January 11 + 12 Bean to Bar Breakthrough 2-Day Workshop

Making fine-quality chocolate from the cacao bean requires a deep understanding of every step in a delicious process—from harvesting the pods to unwrapping the beautiful, finished bars. Until now, there’s never been a way to immerse yourself in the full cycle of production without traveling to the equatorial “cacao belt” and back.

That’s exactly what we’ll do here in Los Angeles. Our two-day intensive workshop is a hands-on dive into the entire bean-to-bar process, offering professionals and serious amateurs an in-depth, interactive exploration into chocolate-making.

The Art of Chocolate Production

Making craft chocolate is a full-sensory experience that begins with selecting quality beans and discovering the “poetry” in the roast. With decades of experience teaching bean-to-bar chocolate making, Ruth will lead a hands-on production intensive, as you engage directly in the fine art of cracking, winnowing, grinding and tempering. 

You will make two batches of single-origin chocolate from fine cacao. Rest assured, each student will bring home plenty of hand-made chocolate.

Introducing a Special Guest:

We will virtually join Juliana Aquino of Baiani Chocolate at her farm Vale Potumuju in Brazil

Juliana’s family has been cultivating cacao in Brazil since the early 19th century. Grown under the canopy and shade of native trees in Bahia’s Atlantic forest, Baianí chocolate is produced with single-origin cacao from her family’s farm at Vale Potumuju. You’ll learn about what happens at the source—growing, harvesting, fermenting, and drying—and how each element impacts on flavor in chocolate bars.

Tentative Workshop Schedule: (may change depending on special guests’ availability)

Day 1 – Saturday, January 11

HANDS-ON:

• Prepare first batch of chocolate and learn the art of the melanger

• Sort and roast beans

• Winnow beans

INSIGHT SESSION:

“Cacao and Chocolate History” and “On the Farm”

VIRTUAL SESSION JULIANA AQUINO FROM HER FARM IN BAHIA, BRAZIL

• History

• Importance of origins

• Terroir, varieties, cultivation

• Harvest

• Post-harvest: fermentation and drying

• Cacao processing – roasting, peeling, pre-refining

• “Business of Chocolate”

  • The Bean to Bar movement

TASTING:

• Nibs, beans, pulp, cacao by-products

Day 2 –Sunday, January 12

HANDS-ON:

• Check the refining progress and add other ingredients

HANDS ON:

• The alchemy of sugar, cocoa butter and milk powder

INSIGHT SESSION:

• The importance of taste

• Inclusions and infusions

• How to taste

TASTING:

• Industrial vs. craft vs. couverture

• Variety of bean origins

• Craft chocolate tasting

HANDS-ON:

• Tempering (slab and silk methods)

• Unmolding

• Wrapping and packaging

INSIGHT SESSION:

• Tempering skills-building

• What is cocoa silk?

• Understanding room temperature and humidity

• Molds and more

What’s Included in the Workshop?

• Lunches, all materials, and tastings

• We will have vegetarian lunch options. Any special dietary needs, please let us know and we will try our best to accommodate.

  Travel and lodging are not included; students will need to make their own arrangements.

Class Size and Eligibility

• Maximum 12 students. Must be 16 or older to attend.

Workshop Details:

• Location: Los Angeles, CA, USA

  (location provided with registration information)

• Dates: Saturday, January 11 and Sunday, January 12

• Class is from 10am until 5pm Saturday and Sunday

• Cost: $725

• Instructors: Ruth Kennison (The Chocolate Project)

Questions? Contact Ruth Kennison at ruthkennison@gmail.com or 310-383-6050.