Guatemala
From One Farm
We import cacao directly from a single family-owned farm in Guatemala.
Rather than sourcing cacao from many different origins, we've worked with the same farm over the years, getting to know its cacao, its flavour and the different ways we can use it.
Our work began with chocolate and gradually expanded to cacao butter, cacao powder and ice cream. Working with cacao from the same farm has become the foundation of what we make at nicao.
Finding the Farm
When we first started nicao, we bought our cacao beans from an importer in Japan.
But when those beans became unavailable, we had to switch to cacao from another origin. That experience taught us the importance of a reliable supply, as well as flavour.
So we began looking for a farm ourselves. We found the farm we now work with in Guatemala through an online platform connecting cacao growers and buyers.
The first samples were just a few kilos of cacao beans. We still remember how they were willing to send them all the way from Guatemala to a business as small as ours.
Working with the Same Cacao
Over the years, we've come to enjoy getting to know the particular character of cacao from the same farm.
Even with the same cacao, the result changes depending on how we roast it, how long we grind it, the amount of sugar we use and the ingredients we combine it with.
Our 70% dark chocolate is a starting point. From there, we've experimented with coffee, raspberries, ginger and raisins soaked in umeshu (Japanese plum liqueur).
By keeping the cacao the same and changing other elements, little by little we learn what difference each one makes.
A Relationship Built Over Time
It's been many years since we first began buying cacao from this farm.
Since those first samples of just a few kilos, we've kept in touch and continued buying from them. Today, cacao from this farm has become an essential part of the chocolate we make at nicao.
For us, continuing to buy from the same farm is about more than choosing an ingredient. It's also about who we buy from, and the kind of relationship we choose to maintain.
We hope to keep working with the same cacao, while exploring what else we might do with it.
The Possibilities of Cacao →
