THE OWNERS FOUNDERS:
After 12 months of exploring Central America, Puerto Viejo de Talamanca is where these two Canadians decided to settle down. Surrounded by cacao lovers, they've opened a space dedicated to this product.
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Nelson is a Registered Graphic Designer by trade. He is the artist and creative mind of this duo. He loves chocolate fondue. |
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Martin was a call centre manager and a real estate investor. He is on the administrative and planning side of things. He loves dark chocolate S’mores. martin@cho.co.cr |
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ACOMUITA In 1991, following an earthquake, women of the area came together to form the Asociación Comisión de Mujeres Indígenas de Talamanca (ACOMUITA), which creates jobs through a variety of projects. It has about 80 members, some grow cacao and others make artisanal chocolate. These women, native to Talamanca, had the knowhow to integrate new manufacturing methods all while conserving the taste and texture of ancestral chocolate. |
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BREAD AND CHOCOLATE After studying philosophy and sociology at Bucknell University located in the United States and working for several years in different kitchens, Tom caught the travel bug. Following a language immersion program in Costa Rica, he returned several times to further explore the country. He was immediately attracted to the Puerto Viejo area for its diverse community and culture. He decided to move there and landed a job in the kitchen of a small restaurant: Bread and Chocolate. In 2006, the owners/founders decided to put their restaurant up for sale, and Tom jumped at the opportunity to buy the restaurant. For over a decade, he has been running this place and serving up delicious chocolate treats to locals and travelers from all over the world. While chocolate confections were always popular, Tom decided to take their process a step further in 2011 when they began their bean-to-bar chocolate making process. Bread and Chocolate currently processes cacao supplied from their baker’s farm, Cacao South, to create their own line of chocolate bars. You won’t be able to resist the different featured flavours blended with criollo and trinitario cacao. |
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CACAO MAGIC Seeking a better future for their three children, this Israeli couple left their home country to settle in Costa Rica. With their background as musicians, therapist, teacher and gardener, they started looking for a project that would allow them to support their family, all while staying true to their values: love, health, freedom, creativity. They developed a 100% cacao chocolate with a single objective in mind: its medicinal properties. Their product is beneficial to the balancing of vibrations and energies, to opening the heart and to uplifting the spirit. It can be eaten as such or used in recipes or health drinks. It's also ideal for cacao ceremonies. Itamar and Noa use a dehydration process instead of roasting the cacao, in order to conserve its medicinal properties as much as possible. |
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CARIBEANS Caribeans is one of the first businesses to produce chocolate, from tree to bar, in Costa Rica. With over 10 years of experience, Paul and his team collaborate with over 15 families in the area to obtain cacao. Once the cacao is transformed into a chocolate bar, Caribeans carries out a tasting with the farmer who provided the cacao: "Tasting chocolate makes you a better cacao farmer and better cacao farmers make our chocolate better." The origins and cultivation methods generate different flavours and aromas. Instead of mixing the crops, Paul decided to create a range of chocolates with different subtleties. Each bar carries the name of the farmer who produced the cacao. |
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CHOCORART For over 20 years, this Swiss family has been growing cacao and making chocolate using ancestral methods. Having set their plantation up themselves over all of these years, they know each tree and plant on their property. 80% of their production comes from their own farm. They also obtain goods from local farmers at a fair price. Their flagship product is a straw-shaped chocolate that comes in 11 different flavours. As they don't use a mixer, the final product has a unique and very interesting texture. |
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COOPECACAO AFRO In 2017, the Caribbean cacao producers came together to create COOPECACAO AFRO, which generates jobs through various projects. The cooperative has around 40 members and 80 families where some grow cacao and others make cacao products.Each farmer harvests the organic cacao pods and then sell them to the cooperative. From there, the cooperative processes it and finally obtains the dry cacao bean. A percentage of the production is sold as is, and another part remains in the organization for roasting and giving it added value by creating products such as: nibs, liquor, cacao paste and, of course, the chocolate bars that you see in our store. This project is a great way to preserve the history of our region. |
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KIÖ Karla, who hails from San José, created her first line of natural products in 2007. Now established in Hone Creek, her company manufactures products for hoteliers and boutiques in the region. Her agro-industrial engineering studies led her to create a collection of products that are in harmony with nature. Since then, Karla and her team have been continuing to perfect these products and their manufacturing process to improve the daily well-being of clients. |
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MORENA CLARA Morena Clara is a brand that represents Afro-Costa Rican culture identity through cacao and its added value. The project is directed by the journalist, farmer, designer and entrepreneur Andreas Cordero who is rescuing the cacao heritage of her family who arrived in the area in 1800. With its Cacao Fashion collection, Morena Clara offers original accessories made with cacao seeds, flowers and leaves from the Talamanca region. A great way to bring a gift from a local small business. |
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PUREZA Searching for products that don't contain any ingredients harmful to health, Jorselda began making a range of beauty products that could satisfy her own needs. With local and natural products, she works constantly on making new perfumes. Her cacao comes from the mountain and in some cases, from her own production. With its natural virtues and fragrance, a single try will make you fall for its charms.
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RANCHO TRANQUILO Christian, a Costa Rican citizen of Swiss-German origin, settled in the area in 1982 to build Rancho Tranquilo. Seeking a secluded place in the heart of nature yet close to civilization, he acquired this 10-hectare cacao farm. With the help of his wife Amarilis and business partner Francisco, Christian has been producing different flavored chocolates for several years. All of the cacao is sourced from his farm with a blend of seven different tree types that give his products their unique taste. Roasting the cacao in a wood oven fills the air with a chocolate aroma that delivers a great feeling of serenity and happiness. |
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TALAMANCA CHOCOLATE Hailing from California and Scotland, here is where Peter (a botanist) and Ancel (a teacher) make their many-flavoured fine chocolates. The unique relationship between the people working in the manufacturing process is what makes the final product lighter and more harmonious. Half of the cacao comes directly from their farm, the rest of the production comes from a farm located near Bribri and grown by locals. More than 50% of the bars are made from an unroasted cacao bean. With several unique flavours intertwined, these chocolates will surprise you. |
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TALAMANCA ORGÁNICA Using her knowledge about the conservation of flora, Christina is devoted to regenerating a cacao farm and to tropical forest sustainability. Completely passionate by her work, she only uses her own cacao to make her chocolate bars. This allows her to oversee all aspects of production: from tree to bar. The cacao is aged for a minimum of one year and no additional flavours are added to her bars, allowing all of their subtleties to be savoured. |
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WOLABA Settled in the Talamanca area for several generations, Víctor’s family is one of the rare few producing chocolate from the tree to the bar. Víctor owns a 20-hectare farm and uses cacao from five different types of trees. The farm, which has been in the family for a long time, started manufacturing chocolate bars in 2017 during its reorganization. Víctor loves to walk in the jungle with tourists, rediscovering his region through their eyes and questions. Explore another side of the area with Wolaba (Patois for Puerto Viejo), a velvety smooth chocolate bursting with flavors that are typically Caribbean. |
TRANSLATION: Caroline Künzle - Lexicos / English Translation |
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