2023 Rain Harvest (75%) - Signature
A resilient harvest year brought a chocolate with satisfying depth: intense and fruit-forward, with remarkable aging potential.
A Year of Balance & Resilience
The 2023 harvest was a year of balance marked by resilience and quiet determination in Ecuador’s Piedra de Plata. Across the farms, flowering was uneven: Some trees were only beginning to bloom as others were already heavy with pods. The rains arrived early and frequently, encouraging flowering but also complicating the drying process and heightening the risk of plant disease.
Despite these challenges, the community adapted. Farmers refined their post-harvest routines to preserve quality, even as yields remained modest. One of the most meaningful developments of this season was the initiative to graft branches from the oldest ancestral Nacional trees onto younger and more vigorous plants. This effort, led by the farmers, became a living act of preservation, ensuring that the genetic legacy and identity of Piedra de Plata’s cacao will endure.
A Chocolate of Depth & Promise
From this harvest emerged a chocolate of depth and promise. The flavor profile opens with pronounced chocolatey, toffee, nutty, and woody tones, layered with hints of tobacco and brown fruits. Meanwhile, notes of honey, cranberry, and raspberry lend brightness and vitality. Intense and fruit-forward in its youth, this cacao shows remarkable aging potential, which was confirmed with our Sacred Series experiments.
Rain Harvest 2023 stands as a tribute to a community’s perseverance and nature’s cyclical grace. This chocolate serves as another reminder that true quality comes from a balance of challenge and care.
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Description
A resilient harvest year brought a chocolate with satisfying depth: intense and fruit-forward, with remarkable aging potential.
A Year of Balance & Resilience
The 2023 harvest was a year of balance marked by resilience and quiet determination in Ecuador’s Piedra de Plata. Across the farms, flowering was uneven: Some trees were only beginning to bloom as others were already heavy with pods. The rains arrived early and frequently, encouraging flowering but also complicating the drying process and heightening the risk of plant disease.
Despite these challenges, the community adapted. Farmers refined their post-harvest routines to preserve quality, even as yields remained modest. One of the most meaningful developments of this season was the initiative to graft branches from the oldest ancestral Nacional trees onto younger and more vigorous plants. This effort, led by the farmers, became a living act of preservation, ensuring that the genetic legacy and identity of Piedra de Plata’s cacao will endure.
A Chocolate of Depth & Promise
From this harvest emerged a chocolate of depth and promise. The flavor profile opens with pronounced chocolatey, toffee, nutty, and woody tones, layered with hints of tobacco and brown fruits. Meanwhile, notes of honey, cranberry, and raspberry lend brightness and vitality. Intense and fruit-forward in its youth, this cacao shows remarkable aging potential, which was confirmed with our Sacred Series experiments.
Rain Harvest 2023 stands as a tribute to a community’s perseverance and nature’s cyclical grace. This chocolate serves as another reminder that true quality comes from a balance of challenge and care.
