The History of Ghirardelli Chocolates

In 1817, Domenic Ghirardelli was born in Italy. The son an exotic foods importer, Ghirardelli was apprenticed to a local candy maker. Then in 1847, he changed his first name to Domingo and two years later, he set sail for America, where he opened a general store in Stockton, California to sell supplies and confections to miners. Soon after, he opened a second location in San Francisco. This was followed by another store at Kearny and Washington called Ghirardely & Girard, which later became the Ghirardelli Chocolate Company. In 1865, a Ghirardelli employee discovered that when a bag of chocolate mass is hung in a warm room, the cocoa butter drips out, leaving behind a residue that can be processed into ground chocolate with superior flavor (this is now known as the Broma process). Over time, Ghirardelli’s chocolate business expanded and his sons took over after his death. In 1923, the now-famous Ghirardelli illuminated light bulb sign was created, welcoming ships passing through the Golden Gate Strait. Ghirardelli Square, which was moved from its original location to San Francisco’s northern waterfront in 1863, received an upgrade in the 1960s and was added to the National Historic Register shortly after. The first annual Ghirardelli Square Chocolate Festival was held there in 1996. In 1998, the company was acquired by Lindt & Sprungli. Ghirardelli’s beloved filled “Squares” chocolates were launched in 1999, including the fan-favorite Milk & Caramel flavor. The company launched its iconic Peppermint Bark offering in 2004. In 2005, Ghirardelli became the first mainstream chocolate company to include cacao content on the packaging with the release of its Dark Squares. Intense Dark bars were released the following year, and the company’s first line of filled bars were introduced in 2007. The company’s chocolates were ranked as the No. 2 favorite among U.S. bakers in 2011, and in 2014, Ghirardelli debuted a line of mini chocolates as well as a selection of candy-making wafers. Today, Ghirardelli chocolates are widely available in a variety of flavors and are still one of the most popular U.S. brands on the market.