This cocoa sparked my love for Venezuela – for its country and its people, and not least for this incredible cocoa.

The cacao grown on farmers' haciendas in this region of Venezuela is generally divided into Guasare and Porcelana varieties. While Guasare cacao is characterized by nutty, cane sugar-like, or malty aromas and a subtle fruity note, it also exhibits medium to low levels of herbal, acidic, and bitter notes.

Porcelana cocoa is dominated by nutty, cane sugar-like, or malty aromas, while other flavor nuances, as well as astringency, bitterness, and acidity, are less pronounced. Both cocoas are Acriollado cocoas, meaning they are the result of natural crossbreeding between Forastero and Criollo beans and have a high Criollo content.

They impress us with their tenderness and creaminess. Through our cooperation with the cocoa farmer and trader Agustin, we receive partially fermented and unfermented cocoa in the form of beans and also cocoa mass from several cocoa farming families.

The farming families support each other during the harvest and pay each other for their wages along with the harvest itself. The beans are then dried and processed centrally.

This year we want to visit the local farmers again and see if we can further co-create the development positively for all involved through workshops (through our cooperation with the national cacao expert and agricultural engineer Luis Varela) and financial returns from Maya Munay.