Chocolatier Mathieu Davoine Is One Of Jaeger-LeCoultre’s Latest Made Of Makers Craftsmen

Based in Geneva, Davoine notes that there are indeed some similarities between chocolate‑making and watchmaking. “There are standard, basic techniques you need to learn in order to master this very complex material. But once you’ve learned those, then you have all kinds of possibilities—moving beyond, exploring, and innovating,” he explains, adding that his favourite watch from the manufacture is the Reverso—an iconic, timelessly stylish, rectangular watch that has its roots in the horseback sport of polo.

“At the beginning of the collaboration, I had the pleasure of visiting the Jaeger‑LeCoultre manufacture. Talking with the watchmakers, I could see the complexity of what was involved—that really vast prep, the research, the precision, and the exploration,” he says. “I’m most impressed by the precision—how detailed and how precise everything has to be in watchmaking. It’s quite impressive.”

One key quality unites these two professions: passion. “These are jobs that you cannot do if you’re not passionate about them,” he says of both chocolate‑making and watchmaking. “You have to get up in the morning with a smile, and want to go and do that work.”

As part of the partnership, Davoine developed four special desserts for Jaeger‑LeCoultre: Harmonie de Chocolat, consisting of a dark chocolate mousse on top of a chocolate sablé biscuit and topped with a milk‑chocolate ganache; Galop des Bois, which layers the textural contrast of mousse, sponge cake, and praline; Éclat de Caviar, which tempers rich chocolate with an olive tapenade and is topped with a chocolate‑pearl ‘caviar’ and served in a round tin; and Douceur de Cavalier, a simple‑looking biscuit that is a staple of Francophone childhood but, in this execution, hides a couple of unexpected twists.

They debuted at the 2025 edition of Watches and Wonders, wherein Jaeger‑LeCoultre customarily incorporates its 1931 Café—a casual café concept that brings visitors back to the glamorous Art Deco period of 1931, which also happens to be when the Reverso was first released. The concept can also be found in Jaeger‑LeCoultre boutiques around the world—including the one in Pavilion Kuala Lumpur.

Aside from being an outlet for Davoine’s characteristic creativity—he delights in surprise and unexpected combinations—these sweet treats are also quite literally infused with inspirations from Jaeger‑LeCoultre’s history, as well as the Vallée de Joux region that the manufacture calls home. Some of it is aesthetic, such as recalling the shape of a polo ball, or the aforementioned tin being a reference to equestrian boot polish as much as caviar. Some of it is gastronomic, such as the use of ingredients local to the manufacture, including hazelnuts, forest fruits, porcini mushrooms, and even pollen.

“Our goal was to move beyond the habitual, the normal, the kind of expected zone in chocolate—to take a step beyond that, and to explore new possibilities and see what associations we can make,” Davoine explains. “And to show there’s really no limit. As long as you’re respecting the proper balance, you can make associations that are really unexpected, and to show that if you respect this need for balance, really anything is possible.”