Farmers grow the cacao that is made into the chocolate you eat.

The Theobroma cacao trees grow for approximately 3-5 years before they bear fruit “pods”.

The pods are removed from the trees by hand, collected and then split open to remove their seeds.

The cacao seeds are removed while they are wet and still covered in their sweet pulp.

The seeds are collected in containers and moved to a location where they can be fermented.

Fermentation takes place over the course of 5-7 days. Temperature and humidity are constantly monitored.

When the beans are finished fermenting they are removed from the fermentation boxes and the final drying process begins.

After drying they are packaged in bags and prepared for shipment. This valuable commodity is watched closely by family members.

Colombian cacao heading to the Colombian airport, to Wauwatosa, Wisconsin and Tabal Chocolate.

We sort through the cacao beans removing any unwanted beans or extra materials.

We roast them

We crack and winnow

We stone grind for 2-3 days

We conch or aerate the chocolate to enrich the flavor

We temper the chocolate to create the shine and snap in the crystals

We pour the chocolate into molds, cool the chocolate

We hand wrap each bar

VIDEO SUMMARY of the bean to bar process -

We share the chocolate so others can enjoy and also share.