There’s no such thing as ‘Colombian cacao’
A little over a week ago, I found myself in Popayán, in the Cauca region of Colombia, surrounded by cacao farmers, chocolate makers, tasters and a lot of chocolate!
I’d been invited by ProColombia to visit Cauca as part of a trade mission, coinciding with a chocolate festival in Popayán which brought together people from across the cacao and chocolate community.
And I think the biggest thing I came home with (apart from a suitcase somewhat heavier than when I left) was the realisation of just how meaningless it can be to talk about “Colombian cacao” as though it is one thing.
Over a few days, I tasted chocolate made with cacao from Argelia, Guapi, Miranda, El Tambo and Tumaco, as well as the Sierra Nevada and other regions across Colombia. Even within Cauca there was an extraordinary range of flavour.
That’s something I understand intellectually as a chocolate maker and taster. I know that variety, soil, climate, fermentation, drying and the choices made by farmers and producers all have an impact on flavour.
But it is quite different to stand with the people growing and processing the cacao, taste the chocolate with them, and hear them talk about what makes their cacao different.
And the flavour was only part of the story.
Cacao as a way forward
Some of the conversations that stayed with me most were with people working incredibly hard to elevate the quality and value of cacao farming within their communities.
In parts of Colombia, growing illicit crops can offer farmers an income, but brings with it enormous risks. We met people and organisations working to make cacao a viable, valuable alternative - creating safer livelihoods and a different future for their communities.
We also met organisations including Mercy Corps and heard about some of the work happening alongside the Chamber of Commerce and ProColombia to support producers and help their cacao and chocolate reach a wider market.
One project particularly caught my imagination. They have created a collection of chocolates from different regions, with each little bar illustrated to tell the story of the place and people behind that cacao.
Of course, I loved this! Because this is exactly what I find so exciting about chocolate. A bar of chocolate can look incredibly simple. But behind it is often a particular farm, landscape, community and set of skills. There are decisions made at every stage that ultimately become the flavours you experience when you put a piece of chocolate in your mouth.
Closing the gap
On our first day we visited Cacao Hunters, where we were able to see their cacao storage facility and chocolate factory - and, of course, taste our way through some of their Colombian chocolates.
Among all these sacks of beans, I spotted the same sacks of Tumaco cacao that I have sitting in my garage back in Exeter.
I know these beans intimately. I’ve roasted them, cracked, winnowed and ground them and tasted them over and over again. And yet seeing them there, in Colombia, gave me a completely new perspective on them.
Suddenly the gap between the sacks arriving at my little factory in Exeter and the place and people they came from felt much smaller.
I experienced something similar when I travelled to El Salvador and visited the farms where some of my cacao is grown. Afterwards, my relationship with those beans changed. I felt more connected to them, and somehow more invested in doing them justice when I turned them into chocolate.
Now I feel that way about Tumaco too! I came home feeling completely in love with those beans again.
That's one of the things that travelling to origin gives me that I can't get from a spec sheet, a sample or even from tasting the chocolate. It closes the gap.
What happens next?
The whole trip was an extraordinary adventure.
ProColombia and the team in Cauca looked after us incredibly well, from arranging an interpreter who enabled us to have proper conversations with the people we met, to organising our transport, hotel and meals. It meant that in a very short visit we were able to see, taste and learn an enormous amount.
But perhaps the most exciting part is that I don't think the story ends with the trip.
There are a couple of growers I met whose cacao I would really like to explore further, and conversations I’m hoping to continue over the coming months.
There are quite a few practical steps between meeting a cacao producer in Colombia and getting a sack of their beans into my little chocolate factory in Exeter, so I don't yet know where those conversations will lead.
But I love the possibility that one day I might be able to take cacao from one of the people I sat and talked with in Cauca, bring it back to Exeter, and discover what I can make from it.
And if I do, you'll get to taste that story too.
What Does “Bean-to-Bar Chocolate” Actually Mean?
“Bean-to-bar” is a phrase that’s become part of the chocolate landscape. You see it on bars, on menus, on social media. But what it actually means, and why it matters, isn’t always obvious.
At its simplest, bean-to-bar means this:
The chocolate maker starts with raw cacao beans and carries out every stage of the chocolate-making process themselves, all the way through to the finished bar.
That includes:
sourcing the cacao beans
roasting
cracking and winnowing
grinding and refining
tempering
moulding and packaging
Nothing arrives pre-made. Nothing is melted down and reshaped. The flavour, texture, and character of the chocolate are built slowly, step by step.
It’s a longer process, with many decisions along the way, and nowhere to hide!
What bean-to-bar is not
This is where things can get confusing.
Chocolate can be:
handmade
small batch
beautifully packaged
made with care
…and not be bean-to-bar.
Many chocolatiers (including some excellent ones) work with couverture - finished chocolate that’s already been made elsewhere. They melt it, temper it, flavour it, and turn it into bars or bonbons.
There’s nothing wrong with that. But it is a different process, and it leads to a different result.
Couverture is usually made on an industrial scale, so there are questions around how ethical or sustainable it is - and how much transparency there is around the cacao itself. The quality can vary too, depending on how the chocolate has been formulated and handled long before it reaches the chocolatier.
Bean-to-bar means the maker is responsible for the chocolate itself, from the raw beans onwards, not just what happens at the end. Many chocolatiers do work with bean-to-bar, it’s always worth asking before you buy.
Why flavour starts at the bean
One of the biggest misunderstandings about chocolate is where flavour comes from. Most people assume chocolate tastes the way it does because of:
sugar levels
cocoa percentage
added flavours
In reality, flavour starts much earlier.
Cacao beans already contain an enormous range of potential flavours before they ever become chocolate. Fruitiness, acidity, nuttiness, floral notes - all of that develops during fermentation and drying at origin.
By the time I start roasting, the flavour is already there. My job isn’t to overwrite it, it’s to help it come through clearly.
That’s why origin matters. And why two chocolates with the same percentage can taste completely different.
Why bean-to-bar chocolate tastes different
When you control the whole process, you’re constantly making choices that affect how the chocolate feels and tastes.
If you roast too lightly, flavours can feel sharp or underdeveloped. If you over roast, everything can start to flatten and bitterness can be introduced.
Grinding and refining take time. As the chocolate becomes smoother, flavours soften and settle. Acidity calms down. The chocolate becomes more cohesive.
Bean-to-bar chocolate often tastes cleaner, clearer, less muddled.
Why bean-to-bar chocolate costs more
This question comes up a lot - and it’s a fair one.
High-quality cacao beans, sourced for flavour and sustainability, cost significantly more than commodity cacao. That’s especially true when you’re buying in small quantities, rather than by the tonne.
Bean-to-bar chocolate also usually takes:
more time
more labour
smaller equipment
more trial and error
There’s waste. There are batches that don’t quite work. There’s a constant process of tasting, adjusting, and waiting.
You’re not paying for luxury. You’re paying for time, attention, choice and the expertise of a maker who’s dedicated to making something amazing every time, without compromise.
How to tell if a chocolate really is bean-to-bar
If you’re curious, or standing in front of a shelf trying to work it out, here are a few useful clues:
Does the maker name the cacao origin?
Do they talk about roasting or grinding/refining/conching?
Are they open about how the chocolate is made?
Can you trace who actually made the bar?
If someone is doing all of this, they’re usually quite open about it. Bean-to-bar isn’t something you quietly tuck away.
A final thought
Bean-to-bar isn’t about being purist or precious. It’s about staying close to the ingredient.
It’s about letting cacao speak, rather than smoothing everything into sameness.
And once you notice that difference, it’s hard to un-taste it.
Chocolate and the ADHD Brain: Why It’s So Enticing (But Not a Cure)
It’s UK Chocolate Week - a celebration of all the joy, craft, and creativity that chocolate brings. For me, chocolate has always been more than a treat. As someone with ADHD, it’s been a source of focus, clarity, and a little dopamine boost, helping me navigate busy mornings and the whirlwind of thoughts in my head.
Over the years, that fascination turned into a calling: making chocolate from bean to bar became my way of channeling energy, curiosity, and creativity into something meaningful.
The Science of the Craving
Chocolate is extraordinary. It’s full of compounds that make our brains light up in small but satisfying ways:
Caffeine and theobromine - gentle stimulants that can help with alertness and focus.
Sugar and fat - instant energy and that comforting hit of dopamine.
Phenylethylamine - often called the “love chemical,” though its effects in chocolate are mild.
Flavanols - antioxidants that may support blood flow and brain function.
Anandamide - a natural compound that interacts with our brain’s pleasure system.
My own research shows that dark chocolate actually contains comparable amounts of caffeine to tea, depending on the percentage of cacao. I’ve always been sensitive to caffeine in tea - it doesn’t take much to get my brain functioning better, and each morning I rely on at least two cups of tea to get my thoughts and focus steady-ish! It’s no wonder chocolate has always been nearby, and dark chocolate specifically was something I would seek out from a young age.
Folks with ADHD have brains that often run on lower baseline dopamine, so those little boosts can feel extra rewarding. Our brains are literally wired to seek out what feels interesting, stimulating, and satisfying.
The Reality Check
It’s important to say this clearly: Chocolate is not a treatment for ADHD.
In my experience, chocolate brings focus and clarity, and yes, a welcome hit of dopamine. But it doesn’t do much for the other sides of ADHD: emotional regulation, self-doubt, and the ever-present imposter syndrome. What it can do is provide small, grounding moments, little bursts of energy and joy that make the day flow more easily.
Finding Flow
Making chocolate has been a way to channel ADHD energy into something tangible and meaningful. Before chocolate, it was knitting, before that baking - always something to keep my hands and mind occupied. There’s something so grounding about the repetition of chocolate making - roasting, cracking, grinding - yet endlessly fascinating in the nuances of flavour and texture.
It’s a perfect balance of sensory pleasure and precise focus, which might be why so many neurodivergent makers find flow in crafting.
Chocolate Week reflection
This Chocolate Week, I’m taking a moment to appreciate what chocolate has meant in my own life. For me, it’s never just a treat - it’s moments of focus and creativity. Making chocolate from bean to bar has been a way to channel my energy into something meaningful.
So as you enjoy chocolate this week, I hope you take a moment to notice the little joys it brings - the flavours, the textures, and perhaps even a touch of focus for your busy brain!