Oloron Sainte Marie in the French Béarn is well known as the birthplace of the (Basque) beret, with dozens of beret factories present in the last century and still home to France’s (and the world’s) oldest beret manufacturer Laulhère.
Lesser known is that Oloron Sainte Marie houses the factory of world-famous chocolatier Lindt – originally Chocolate Rozan, launched in 1924 by Maurice Rozan de Mazilly. Rozan survived WW1 but didn’t escape injury. He received severe injuries to his face, which required a two-year stay at the Hôpital du Val de Grâce in Paris and over twenty operations to repair the damage. Despite the pain and suffering, this period gave him time to reflect, and his first act after leaving hospital was to become a chocolatier.
His success came after he discovered a new way to create chocolate. In 1927 he launched the Les Pyrénéens brand, and his recipe for these chocolates remains a secret to this day. Rozan de Mazilly sold his brand to the Swiss group Lindt in 1956 but stayed on as ‘président d’honneur’ of the company and was able to ensure that production remained in France, in his original factory in Oloron Sainte-Marie. To this day, the Les Pyréneens chocolates are sold only in France, and only when the snows begin to fall on the neighbouring mountains.
For one week only, a free bar of Lindt's Excellence 85% Cocoa chocolate (made in Oloron Sainte Marie) with any order of a Laulhère beret.
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