We just purchased 250kg of Volker Lehman’s spectacular Heirloom Alto Beni Cacao, the first beans ever designated as Heirloom. (Video courtesy of Volker Lehman and HCP)
Help Chocolate Save the World.
Heirloom Cacao Preservation (HCP) recently auctioned 600kg of precious Alto Beni beans–in 2014 it was the 1st cacao designated as “Heirloom.” Alto Beni has been unavailable for nearly 10 years.
THIS IS THE CACAO THAT INSPIRED ME TO BECOME A CHOCOLATIER. The trees had been newly-discovered growing wild in Bolivia. I stumbled across a magazine article and the thought that chocolate could be so rare and unique completely fascinated me. At the time, the only chocolate produced from these beans was Cru Sauvage, produced by Swiss chocolate maker Max Felchlin. I purchased a bag of Cru Sauvage couverture–it was transformative.
Alto Beni chocolate is a quartet, more Bach than Jazz. A fudgy Amelonado base with equal parts fruity Criollo and spicy Forastero, and a splash of floral Nacional on the finish. The flavor is bold, complex, and pitch-perfect. Alto Beni cacao hasn’t been available on the market in years.
You can understand why I was willing to pay a premium for these beans. Expect to see our first chocolate from them by late April or early May.
