The return of chocolate to the Perth Royal Food Awards was celebrated in style at Denmark’s Whitfield Estate as it picked up a champion’s gong for a mouth-watering white chocolate entry, Tropical Trio.

Last year the estate enjoyed massive success at the Tasmanian Fine Food Awards. But with chocolate back on the menu in Perth it entered a box of delights there and came away with a swag of medals last Friday.

Top of the selection was the Tropical Trio which layers fresh pineapple, mango and passionfruit inside a white chocolate shell.

That was named the champion of the white chocolate moulded shell category and was the highlight of a medal collection which included seven gold, three silver and two bronze.

Whitfield Estate owner Kelly Howard was delighted with the haul and praised chocolatier Yael Angwin, whose skills in matching ingredients were key to the successes.

Angwin, who started as a baker before moving into chocolate, paired fig and fennel, feijoa and rivermint, and rhubarb and custard into gold-medal winners.

As it did in 2025, her dark chocolate cabernet sauvignon, designed for wine, also won gold.

Ms Howard said the medals were a great honour for her team.

“These awards are judged blind, so every product is assessed on its own merits,” she said.

“To receive this recognition alongside such talented chocolatiers is a great honour for our small team.

“Our focus has always been to create chocolate that is beautiful to look at, unique and made with care.

“This result gives us further confidence to keep developing products that showcase our creativity, quality and regional pride.

“Yael Angwin continues to showcase her technical skill with a very high standard of industry-recognised requirements.

“The flavour profiling and balancing of each product is a team approach, ensuring we have a diverse and unique selection available.

“We are proud to use seasonal fresh local ingredients wherever possible across our range.”

The competition attracted 90 entries with products evaluated on criteria including appearance, finish, texture, flavour balance, innovation and overall quality.

For chocolate bars, judges considered sheen, snap, structure and flavour, while truffles and individual chocolates were assessed on finish, mouthfeel, flavour combinations and craftsmanship.