Cacao to Chocolate

Since 2014 we have been exploring the world of craft chocolate. Cacao is a fascinating plant that produces sweet delicious fruit. Unless you live near cacao trees, your flavour experience with the plant is going to be with it’s seeds. The seeds are fermented and processed into chocolate. There is a wide variety of types of cacao and ways to get from tree to bar. Many factors influence the flavour. Our job is to curate the best of the best so you can experience the most delicious craft chocolate.

Cocoa Art

Nicole is the artist behind the cocoa ink/paint creations. She has been painting since she was a child and keeps discovering new ways to create and work with different forms of paint. Cocoa powder and husks create a wide range of colours, especially when the ph is shifted to allow for pinks and yellows. Cocoa butter is similar to working with linseed based oil paint but it is not a drying oil. The cocoa butter paintings need to be photographed to be preserved. You can enjoy them in Nicole’s book ‘Cacao to Chocolate’. If you would like to learn more about her creative process, you can check out this blog and podcast.

 FAQs

  • The makers of craft chocolate take extra effort to learn about where cacao fruit is grown, and the bean-to-bar process. They strive to create excellent tasting chocolate. Cacao grows best in places close to the equator and there are many cacao varieties. The variety, location, fermentation and chocolate making process all combine to create a wide variety of flavour notes. The entire process of creating chocolate from the fermented and dried beans is the focus. Making chocolate is easy but making excellent chocolate is extremely difficult.

  • The percent listed on a chocolate bar wrapper indicates how much of the bar by weight is made of cocoa beans. The ingredients list tells what the rest of the bar is made with, and if there are no flavour inclusions (like spices or mint) the only other ingredient should be organic cane sugar. If there is lecithin, it isn’t necessarily bad for you but is not needed to make delicious chocolate.

  • Just send us an email and we will work with you to curate a great collection! We can curate based on a theme, like a favourite travel destination or favourite flavours. Our story highlight titled ‘chocolate bars’ on Instagram @worldtreechocolate is kept up to date with our current collection.

  • I make ink with cocoa husks. I also use the husks ground with honey, gum arabic and water to make paint. I use cocoa powder as well to make paint and sometimes coffee for ink.

    The book ‘Cacao to Chocolate’ is illustrated with paintings made from cocoa butter mixed with natural pigments.

  • Chocolate is happiest at 17-20 degrees Celsius and can be kept in the coolest room in a drawer or cupboard during the heat of summer. If you prefer to put it in the fridge, make sure it is well wrapped and let it get to room temp again before eating.