From Bean to Bar – the journey of our cocoa beans

Step 1: Sourcing

At Nicola’s Chocolate, transparency is the foundation of everything we do. We source our cacao through traders such as Nahu, a specialist importer who works directly with farming communities across the world. Nahu’s approach is built on long-term, transparent relationships that ensure fair prices for farmers, respect for the environment, and beans of exceptional quality.

When we visited El Salvador, we saw this relationship in action - meeting the farmers who nurture the cacao trees, walking through the fermentation facilities, and witnessing the care that goes into every stage before the beans even leave the country.

We choose to share these details because we believe you deserve to know exactly where your chocolate comes from.

Step 2: Sorting

Once the beans arrive in our tiny Exeter factory, the first thing we do is sort them by hand. Every single batch is carefully checked - we remove any broken or flat beans, and any other debris, keeping only the beans that meet our standards for quality.

It’s slow, meticulous work, but it’s important to bring only the best flavour out of the beans and into our chocolate!

Step 3: roasting

We create a unique roast profile for each origin, adjusting time and temperature to bring out the bean’s natural flavour notes. Some beans want a gentle roast to retain bright fruitiness; others need a slightly deeper roast to unlock nuttiness, or caramel tones.

This is where craft chocolate diverges from the mass-produced. Large-scale producers roast for uniformity and efficiency - a “one-size-fits-all” approach. We do the opposite. Each batch is roasted with intention, tailored to enhance what makes that particular bean special.