EP6 — From Hawaiʻi to Samoa: One Cacao Tree Author on Rustic Drinking Chocolate and the Myth of “Best” Cacao
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EP6 — From Hawaiʻi to Samoa: One Cacao Tree Author on Rustic Drinking Chocolate and the Myth of “Best” Cacao
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About this listen
In this episode of Women of Cacao, we hear from Raven Hanna, scientist, author of One Cacao Tree, and micro–cacao grower on Hawaiʻi Island. Tending around 50 trees in a food-forest system, Raven shares her experience fermenting and processing cacao on the smallest scale—challenging the idea that “real” chocolate requires industrial volumes.
Drawing from her research on homegrown cacao traditions in Belize, Mexico, the Philippines, the Caribbean, and Samoa, she maps a global landscape of rustic, unfermented or lightly fermented drinking chocolates. Along the way, Raven unpacks how unfermented cacao behaves differently in the cup and in the body (bitter, more coffee-like, more stimulating) and why these preparations function as everyday nourishment and morning fuel rather than dessert.
At the heart of her message is a core reminder for makers, growers, and facilitators: there is no single “best” way to grow, process, or drink cacao—only culturally grounded, context-specific practices that deserve to be honored alongside fine-flavor bar traditions.