Each Delicious Bar is Unique

Sometimes our chocolate is so pretty I just have to snap a photo. Speaking of snapping, as you can see above, we snap each bar in half after they have chilled in our tempering room.  Sometimes the snap is not so perfect - see the bar to the left - wah!  Well, this is craft chocolate, shtuff happens.  Each bar is slightly different. The bars are also unique in flavor; the bars we are pouring now have some exceptionally delicious, light-colored honey.  Michael, the natural beekeeper that brings us this heavenly honey, says it is from bees foraging in "avocado, citrus, and tropical fruits."

Preparing a New Agroforestry Cacao Orchard

We are excited to be adding more cacao trees to the land.  This is a view of the future orchard, looking mauka (towards the mountain - Mauna Kea is behind trees and clouds to the right).  So far the fence posts are in, and we are almost ready to install the fencing and gates, all of which has to happen to keep wild pigs out before planting.  Otherwise, the pigs will dig up new plants looking for worms.  We will be intermixing young cacao trees with nitrogen-fixing support trees and shrubs. 

Below:

Here's the view towards the ocean (makai).  A very peaceful, gentle place.  

Below: The trees are generally done fruiting now, and are flowering and starting to bear teeny tiny cacao fruit.  The minute flowers spring right out of the branches or trunk and are pollinated by gnats.  We are busy pruning, feeding, and mulching to provide the best conditions for next season's harvest.

That's all for now.

Aloha,

Rachel and Dan