Northwest Chocolate Festival 2018: Full Schedule

11:00am PST

Vietnam: Sourcing Cacao and Making Chocolate at Origin

Over the past 7 years, we have built a network of small-holder cacao growers and fermenters from the Mekong River Delta to the Central Highlands. We pay a stable high price, and celebrate the different flavors of each region in our 6 Origin Bars. Our cafes in Vietnam serve everything from bonbon and macaron to brownies and hot chocolate, with a focus on freshness and local ingredients. We will share photos, stories, and the latest data from our 2018 Sourcing Report.

Speakers

Sonia Gregor

Research Manager, Sourcing Team, Marou Chocolate

Sonia brings a biologist’s training and a lifetime of eating chocolate to her job as Research Manager for Marou. She spent many years in Japan and upstate NY, and now lives in Ho Chi Minh City. Most weeks she travels to the Vietnamese countryside to visit Marou’s cacao farmers... Read More →

Vicent Mourou

Founder, General Director, Marou Chocolate

Saturday November 10, 2018 11:00am - 11:50am PST
Smith Cove Cruise Terminal Pier 91

Keynote Stage

12:00pm PST

Taste Fresh Cacao Seeds from the Cocoa Tree

The Northwest Chocolate Festival will offer a unique opportunity to taste the fruit of cacao pods in collaboration with Uncommon Cacao as they present fresh cacao fruit from their Belize operations and share the story of their work. Chocolate is made from the seeds of the cacao fruit which grows in squash like pods directly on the Theobroma cacao tree. Inside the cacao pods, a sweet, white, and sticky flesh surrounds the beans. This fruit pulp and is very pleasant to eat, with a tangy but sweet taste with a slight floral flavor, much less acidic than citrus. If you have never tasted cacao fruit directly out of the pod, now is your chance.

Speakers

Anjuli Dharna

Uncommon Cacao

Minni Forman

Uncommon Cacao

Emily Stone

CEO and Co-founder, Uncommon Cacao

Emily Stone has spent the greater part of the last decade deep in the jungles of Central America, creating meaningful market access for thousands of indigenous Maya smallholder farmers through supply chain companies connecting these farmers with premium chocolate makers in the U.S... Read More →

Saturday November 10, 2018 12:00pm - 12:50pm PST
Smith Cove Cruise Terminal Pier 91

Keynote Stage

1:00pm PST

CANCELLED The Science of Chocolate from Tree to Tongue

What happens on a microbiological level when cacao is fermented, and how is this process related to the human microbiome? What type of chocolate is “healthier” for you, and more importantly - why? Is all chocolate created equally? We’ll cover these questions and many more from a scientific perspective, and demystify the multitude of processes from chocolate goes through from tree to tongue. We’ll touch on how chocolate affects the mind and physiology, and how processing techniques & other ingredients can manipulate — for better or for worse — the diverse biochemical landscape contained inside a single cacao bean.

Speakers

Brian Wallace

Founder / Maker / Alchemist, Endorfin Foods

Brian's passion for ethnobotany led him to chocolate, aka Theobroma cacao, which translated from Latin literally means "the food of the gods". Through years of courses and travels around the globe, Brian learned to unite his love for wildcrafting with the technical savvy required... Read More →

Saturday November 10, 2018 1:00pm - 1:50pm PST
Smith Cove Cruise Terminal Pier 91

Keynote Stage

2:00pm PST

Chocolate as a Force for Good: B Corps Light the Way

We see great potential in our cacao and chocolate community for radical social change around the shared mission of mutual benefit throughout the cacao supply chain. Big candy has cast a shadow on chocolate, but we believe that through regenerative practices we can shift the paradigm to one in which, from small farmer to conscious consumer, we can more fairly share risk and reward. In this panel discussion of certified b corp businesses, the moderator will introduce chocolate companies and connoisseurs to a model that takes a structured approach to continuous improvement in social and environmental best business practices. And we'll taste the fruits of our labor, by sampling chocolate from certified b corp companies.

Speakers

Dan Rattigan

Co Owner, French Broad Chocolate

Dan Rattigan, and his wife and partner Jael, founded French Broad Chocolates in 2007, after returning from two years living and working in Costa Rica. Started as a confectioner, they transitioned the company bean to bar between 2012 and 2014. Dan has been organizing shared purchasing... Read More →

Jael Rattigan

Co-Owner, French Broad Chocolate

Jael Rattigan, along with her husband, Dan, lived and worked in the cacao-rich rainforest of Costa Rica for two years. At the restaurant they opened, Bread and Chocolate, they were able to source local chocolate for their handmade desserts, sparking a passion for cacao and all things... Read More →

Emily Stone

CEO and Co-founder, Uncommon Cacao

Saturday November 10, 2018 2:00pm - 2:50pm PST
Smith Cove Cruise Terminal Pier 91

Keynote Stage, Sustainability

3:00pm PST

Women in Chocolate: Crushing The Status Quo

Speakers

Emily Benson

Theo Chocolate

Emily joined Theo Chocolate in 2016 and focused on the company's supply chain and social impact. Today Emily is the Brand Manager for Theo and manages the company's messaging and brand strategy while also overseeing relationships at origin. Prior to joining Theo, Emily worked in international... Read More →

Chloe Doutre

Chloe Chocolate, Chloe Chocolat

Chloe Doutre Roussel is an author, consultant, educator and world-renowned expert on all things chocolate. Her seminal book, “The Chocolate Connoisseur”, has been translated into 5 languages. Her relationship with chocolate is a genuine passion and love story and her enthusiasm... Read More →

Dr. Maricel E.Presilla

Founder and Americas Director, International Institute of Chocolate and Cacao Tasting and International Chocolate Awards

Dr. Maricel E. Presilla, a descendant of cacao farmers from the eastern mountains of her native Cuba, has been working on fine cacao and chocolate for the last thirty years, combining the high academic standards of a professionally trained historian with a cultural anthropologist’s... Read More →

Maria Fernanda di Giacobbe

Cook, entrepreneur, artist and chocolatier.

Maria Fernanda di Giacobbe, chef, master chocolatier, and ambassador of Venezuelan cocoa is the founder of KaKao, Venezuelan chocolates (2004), Cacao de Origen (2013) and Río Cacao (2017). As an entrepreneur and caterer, she was the owner of more than 15 cafés and restaurants in... Read More →

Gillian Goddard

Cross Atlantic Chocolate Collective

Gillian Goddard is a chocolate manipulating activist who spends her time building resiliency in Trinidad and Tobago and the greater Caribbean. She is the Co-Director of ARC TT - The Alliance of Rural Communities of Trinidad and Tobago - and the Co-Owner of Sun Eaters Organics - a... Read More →

Jael Rattigan

Co-Owner, French Broad Chocolate

Jean Thompson

CEO, Seattle Chocolates

Saturday November 10, 2018 3:00pm - 4:30pm PST
Smith Cove Cruise Terminal Pier 91

Keynote Stage

11:00am PST

Cacao & Cannabis: Perfect Plant Allies

Chocolate and cannabis; two substances ‘highly’ desired by many and few things make a better pair. Both cacao and cannabis have been used for 1,000’s of years by cultures across the globe and continue to permeate the modern world growing in demand every day. But what is it that makes them both so coveted? And why do they pair so well? This presentation will dive into the complex histories of these two cherished plants and explore some of the reasons why chocolate and cannabis are so adored by many, the synergy they create, and what makes them a perfect match.

Speakers

Heather Dunbar

Heather Dunbar is a cannabis health educator with over a decade of experience in the cannabis industry; including cultivation, sales, edible production, and education. Heather has also worked extensively in the natural products industry, leading product development and community outreach... Read More →

Christina Sasser

CEO, Vital Leaf

Christina aims to inspire, nourish, and bring community together through healthy, delicious, and healing foods. As the visionary force behind the Vital Leaf edibles line, she is crafting artisan CBD & Cannabis products, including organic, fair-trade, regeneratively sourced Chocolates... Read More →

Sunday November 11, 2018 11:00am - 11:50am PST
Smith Cove Cruise Terminal Pier 91

Keynote Stage, Sustainability

12:00pm PST

Taste Fresh Cacao Seeds from the Cocoa Tree

Speakers

Anjuli Dharna

Uncommon Cacao

Minni Forman

Uncommon Cacao

Emily Stone

CEO and Co-founder, Uncommon Cacao

Sunday November 11, 2018 12:00pm - 12:50pm PST
Smith Cove Cruise Terminal Pier 91

Keynote Stage

1:00pm PST

Decolonizing Chocolate

The colonial and post colonial history of cacao is short, somewhat monochromatic and heavily skewed towards chocolate. Like other raw materials which captured the attention of colonising nations it was a story of unimaginable exploitation both in the New World plantation and the Old World factory. In the past couple of decades an emerging trend has begun to present itself and speed up. Origin countries -the nations who grow cacao have begun entering the world of chocolate making. Come and join a discussion on where this may be going, how the economics looks (from a case study in the Caribbean) and how this radical flip in global trade could set an example for other commodities.

Speakers

Gillian Goddard

Cross Atlantic Chocolate Collective

Sunday November 11, 2018 1:00pm - 1:50pm PST
Smith Cove Cruise Terminal Pier 91

Keynote Stage

2:00pm PST

Changing Lives Through Chocolate in Guatemala

Diego's Chocolate is a Mayan-owned Guatemalan chocolate company situated on the shores of Lake Atitlan, Guatemala. Adapted from his grandmother's drinking chocolate recipe, Diego spent years developing a chocolate for eating that has sustained his family and provided much-needed jobs for young people without work in his community. His chocolate-making process is extremely unique and intentionally labor-intensive, casting aside the usual means of maximizing profit and instead creating well-paying jobs. Come learn about Diego's Chocolate with Nicholas, their USA partner.

Speakers

Nicholas Silverman

Diego's Chocolate

Nicholas is the founder and CEO of GlobeWright, a social enterprise that works with artisans and food producers in developing countries to access new international customers. In 2012 he partnered with Diego's Chocolate to expand job opportunities in Guatemala by selling their chocolate... Read More →

Sunday November 11, 2018 2:00pm - 2:50pm PST
Smith Cove Cruise Terminal Pier 91

Keynote Stage

3:00pm PST

Cacao fermentation and phone Apps: What do they have in common?

From our 1,019 acre bird sanctuary in the northern mountains of the Dominican Republic, Zorzal Cacao produces fine flavored, organic cacao while creating conservation solutions across hemispheres. This presentation will focus on fermentation trials and how a phone App was used to collect data along the supply chain, including farm, fermentation, drying, and final chocolate making stages. The audience will taste chocolate samples from different fermentation methods while hearing about how the phone App can be used to improve cacao bean quality within the craft chocolate industry.

Speakers

Greg D'Alesandre

Chocolate Sourcerer, Dandelion Chocolate

Greg has been working with chocolate for over twenty years, and making chocolate for the last decade. He started making liquid nitrogen truffles in college with "borrowed" equipment from the physics lab. He's been with Dandelion Chocolate for 5 years as partial owner and Chocolate... Read More →

Dr. Charles Kerchner

Co-Founder, Reserva Zorzal, Dominican Republic

Dr. Charles Kerchner is co-founder of Reserva Zorzal, a 1,000 acre bird sanctuary and organic cacao farm in the Dominican Republic. He has worked for 15 years with cacao growers developing innovative mechanisms, including selling select cacao bean varietals to artisan chocolate makers... Read More →

Sunday November 11, 2018 3:00pm - 3:50pm PST
Smith Cove Cruise Terminal Pier 91

Keynote Stage