Madre Chocolate Hawaii purchases raw, fermented beans directly from farmers and cooperatives, and then they roast and process in small batches to craft their chocolate bars. The best part about making chocolate in Hawai’i is that they can work closely with cacao farmers to dial down the fermentation and drying process. This makes delicious chocolate. Many cacao farmers in the Latin America and Africa have never tasted the chocolate made with their beans. Once they receive the beans from the farm, a couple weeks later they go back to the farm and taste the chocolate and comparing notes. This allows the farmers an opportunity to improve and make their beans shine. Keep reading to learn more about the wonderful Madre Chocolate Hawaii!
Sustainable Chocolate
We love that Madre Chocolate does direct trade. They get to know each farm and farmer that they buy cacao from. They see every farm, the conditions of the people, and the ecology. This way they know that every single cacao farm they work with is treating their land, animals, plants and people well. Madre Chocolate is truly providing its customers with sustainable chocolate. All of their packaging is completely biodegradable/ compostable or recyclable! Great work guys!
Dr. Nat Bletter is the Owner and Founder of Madre Chocolate. He has 15 years of experience in botany, documenting exotic fruits and vegetables, gathering food in the wild, and herbal and traditional medicine. Dr Bletter has explored Asia, South America, Central America, and Africa.
He has a Ph.D. in Ethnobotany from the City University of New York and New York Botanical Garden, where he researched medicinal plants of Peru, Mali, and the Guatemalan Mayans, ethnobotany, taste-modifying plants, and stimulant plants such as cacao. This inspired him to start a traditional-ingredient, high-antioxidant, artisinal chocolate company, Madre Chocolate.
Dr. Bletter also taught at the University of Hawai’i Manoa researching plants and migration in Thailand and Laos. Nat is the “flavormeister”! He recently offered a cacao/chocolate bootcamp, which is not offered on a regular basis. Ann Tuomela from Maui Chocolate Coffee Tours was interested in this, but he mentored her via phone and email. “He is a very nice guy, and for being such a “brainiac”, he keeps educational value in laymen’s speak”!
Madre Chocolate Hawaii
There are so many incredible chocolate products that you can view and shop on their website.
The
Triple Cacao is an award winning bar and one of our favorites! The beans are from Guatemala, and the chocolate is made on Oahu. This bar combines cacao in 3 of its forms: tangy cacao fruit pulp and rich roasted nibs in a flavorful Guatemalan dark chocolate. You can taste how chocolate has evolved from a fruit to the superfood we love!
A Unique Chocolate Bar:
Nat’s latest bar was the Jaguar Chocolate Bar, and it immediately sold out! Jaguar Cacao (also known as Patashte, Balamte, Macambo, or Cacao Blanco) is the lesser known sister plant of the cacao that is used to make chocolate. It’s equally delicious and holds equal reverence in Central America as that of cacao. the seeds are used in drinks like Tejate in Oaxaca, for it’s mild almond taste, similar to milk chocolate. This bar is one of the extremely rare cases “white cacao” can be tasted outside of Central America!
Madre Chocolate offers Chocolate Classes.
Click here to check out their schedule and see what it’s all about!
Island Shark Chocolate is a vegan, small-batch craft chocolate company based in Hilo, Hawai’i. Nat Bletter mentored Ethan Swift of Island Shark when he first arrived on the Big Island. Another brainiac guy! Check out his
instagram for updates and all things chocolate! There are many fun things to watch and learn from.
Hana Gold is a plantation that was founded in 1978. They produce 100% Maui grown chocolate using the most environmentally friendly methods. We don’t know the chocolate maker from Hana Gold personally, but Ann has been to their farm and did their tour! They were also mentored by Nat from Madre Chocolate.
Click here to shop their tasty chocolate bars.
We hope you enjoyed discovering Dr. Nat Bletter and Madre Chocolate Hawaii. Feel free to drop a comment below if you have any questions, and give us a follow on
Instagram for all things chocolate and Maui!
