About Firetree Chocolate
FROM REMOTE OCEANIC ISLANDS COMES A RICH VOLCANIC CHOCOLATE WITH ITS OWN UNIQUE TASTE. The remote islands of the southern Pacific and Oceania are part of what is known as “the ring of fire”: a circle of 452 volcanoes. This is where you will discover the firetree, or cocoa tree, with its flame-hued pods. The firetree thrives on the rich, porous volcanic soil found on these islands. It’s here, and in a handful of other remote volcanic regions, including Madagascar, that we source the exceptional cocoa used in Firetree chocolate. But the soil is only the beginning of our story... CRAFT To create a chocolate without parallel, we need cocoa pods ripened to perfection. That’s where the experience and expertise of our local farmers comes in. The pods ripen when they are good and ready, and not all at the same time. The farmers pass through the estate several times during harvest and pick only the pods that are perfectly ripe. Then it’s onto the fermentation of the cocoa beans. This is more of an art than a science and the best farmers can tell if they have fermented for long enough just using their sense of touch – and years of experience. The beans are then sun dried before they’re shipped to our chocolate factory where the skilled craftsmen roast, grind and conche the mixture. This brings out the cocoa’s sumptuous flavours, and creates an unparalleled rich volcanic chocolate.
