Honoring Our Roots: How Our Heritage Influences Our Craft

It all began in 2019, when the world of chocolate-making opened up to Karl after Kay brought home beans from her family’s 100 year old cacao farm in Batangas. After immersing himself in a little personal project, he started making small batches for family and friends. With everyone’s encouragement, 1919 Chocolate was created.

They believe that flavor starts from the ground up. Being a third generation cacao farmer, Kay oversees the care and propagation of their farm’s century-old Criollo trees. The long history behind these fruit-bearing cacao trees, combined with modern post-harvest and fermentation protocols, create the unique flavors that 1919 is proud of.

The process is carefully managed and directed by Karl, the principal chocolate maker behind the creation of the 62% Tree-to-Bar Chocolate that won Silver in 2020’s UK’s Academy of Chocolate Awards. He spearheads the production of cacao roast profiles, processing techniques, and limited edition recipes.

1919’s initial goal was to simply create chocolate bars that their loved ones can enjoy. They have since branched out to different variants of chocolate and infused bars that showcase more of their heritage farm’s uniqueness.