TSM: Ep. 5: Eat With Your Ears (And More)

Most of our experience of chocolate comes from smell and taste, but also touch, sight and sound. In this episode, we’ll explore the sense people think of most when it comes to eating chocolate—and the one they think of the least. This show was previewed in this segment on Los Angeles NPR affiliate KCRW and featured on Christopher Kimball’s Milk Street Radio. Listen below and visit the episode page for more details.

TSM: Ep. 8: The Deep Origin: Latin America

The cocoa and chocolate we know and love was born in the upper Amazon and domesticated (turned into chocolate) in Mesoamerica. In this episode, we will explore the history of the food of the gods and, as the leading producer of fine and flavor cocoa, the role Latin America plays in chocolate today. Listen below and visit the episode page for more details.

Makers Series, MS 2: Askinosie Chocolate

Askinosie Chocolate was founded in 2007 in Springfield, USA, by Shawn Askinosie, who left his job as a criminal defense lawyer to pursue his love of chocolate. The company has an articulated commitment to fairness, sustainability, minimal environmental impact and community enhancement and offers direct-trade chocolate from the Philippines, Ecuador and Tanzania. In this episode, Shawn shares his insights on transitioning from a career in law to working with chocolate, the two-year process Askinosie undertakes when finding a new origin, and their many inspiring successes with humanitarian programs. Listen below and join us in tasting the 72% Mababu Tanzania Dark Chocolate bar. Visit the episode page for more details.

Makers Series, MS 6: Cacao Hunters

Cacao Hunters was founded in 2013 by Carlos Ignacio Velasco and Mayumi Ogata and is based in Popayán, Colombia. The company is dedicated to finding, preserving and promoting heirloom varieties of cacao in indigenous and post-conflict regions of Colombia. Currently, it supports more than 1,500 families growing cacao throughout the country. Joining us from the heart of the chocolate factory in Popayán, Carlos talks about his start in the coffee industry, finding “hidden treasures” in cacao varieties that have been hidden for years in the Colombian jungles, helping local farmers grow and sell better cacao, and the Japanese elements of his packaging design, inspired by his business partner Mayumi. Listen below and join us in tasting the Arhuacos 72% bar. Visit the episode page for more details. (Apologies for the slightly fuzzy audio from inside the chocolate factory.)