Visitors to Oahu rarely miss opportunities to sample island treats such as mochi, malasadas and shave ice. For chocolate lovers, there’s even more to enjoy, thanks to a delicious selection of educational tours that teach about chocolate’s journey from farm to bar (complete with samples, of course).
During my own chocolate education on Oahu, I learned that cacao — the source of the deliciousness of chocolate — only grows at 20 degrees north or south of the equator; therefore, Hawaii is the only place in North America where it’s grown commercially.
In addition, chocolate-making is much more labor-intensive than Willy Wonka would have us believe. That’s because cacao is harvested year-round, meaning chocolatiers also create single-origin Hawaiian confections throughout the year.
To further your clients’ chocolate education, here are three tasty tours on Oahu to consider.
21 Degrees Estate
Billed as “the most charming cacao farm in America,” 21 Degrees Estate on Oahu's east side offers family-friendly guided tours that follow the process from “tree to bar,” including the sustainable farming, harvesting and processing of cacao. Best of all, guests can taste the finished product.
Even before we reached the cacao grove, co-owner Michael Rogers noted it’s not friendly neighborhood bees who pollinate his crop; a tiny insect, the chocolate midge, is chocolate’s only pollinator.
“We always look for something educational when we travel,” said Michelle Kohr from Boston, who took the tour with her sons, ages 9 and 12. “They can watch something on television, but they really absorb it when they can experience it.”
Tours include tasting fresh, raw cacao beans and cacao nibs.
Credit: 2024 Samantha Davis-FriedmanAfter learning how cacao is grown, harvested, fermented and roasted, we sampled fresh, raw cacao beans — “slimy yet satisfying,” as Simba says of tasting grubs in “The Lion King” — and cacao nibs, which tasted like crunchy, chocolatey peanuts. Then, it was finally time to taste the chocolate.
We sampled several “seasonal” single-origin dark chocolates made from estate-grown cacao and were surprised that they tasted different. Co-owner Maria Carl explained it’s because each harvest takes on the flavors of its season.
“Here at ‘the North Pole’ of cacao growing [21 degrees latitude], we experience variance in temperature during our growing season, so we get different flavors at different times of year,” she said.
We tasted fig and toffee in the chocolate made from the autumn harvest and cranberry from beans harvested in winter; a blend of all four seasons added tropical fruit and floral flavors from spring and summer.
The two-hour Cacao Farm Tour & Chocolate Tasting group tour is offered Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 10:30 a.m. (Private tours can be arranged at other times.) Reservations are required; all ages are welcome.
Manoa Chocolate
Manoa Chocolate in Kailua was founded in 2010 by Oahu native Dylan Butterbaugh to exemplify the philosophy of “manoa” (strong, vast depth).
“It’s a representation of what we believe and where we want to go as far as cacao-growing here in the islands and for future generations,” said Yvette Nii, a chocolate sommelier for Manoa Chocolate. “Of course, we want to make the best chocolate in the world, but that’s secondary to working with local farms."
The Chocolate Tour & Tasting Experience tour provides education about the craft chocolatier’s “bean to bar” manufacturing process, including a peek into the roasting room and an extensive sampling of chocolates made from ethically sourced Hawaiian cacao — accompanied by freshly brewed cacao tea.
Clients who don’t have time for the full tour can enjoy a complimentary guided chocolate tasting at Manoa.
Credit: 2024 Manoa Chocolate“If cacao is coming from Kealakekua on the Big Island, Kapaa on Kauai or Mililani on Oahu, every origin is going to taste different, and we want to develop, enhance and showcase the flavors of these areas within Hawaii,” Butterbaugh notes in a video.
During our tour, we tasted nearly 30 single-origin Manoa chocolates, including vegan options and — my personal favorite — the “breakfast bar,” with Kona coffee and cacao nibs. (Pro tip: Those with low spice tolerance should beware the ghost pepper chocolate.)
Tours, which last about 75 minutes, are offered daily at 10:30 a.m. and select afternoons at 2 p.m. Reservations are required; the tour is recommended for those ages 12 and older.
No time for a tour? Manoa Chocolate offers 10- to 15-minute complimentary guided chocolate tasting from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily without reservations, with all ages welcome.
Lonohana Estate Chocolate
Housed in a refurbished 1930s art deco movie theater in Honolulu’s Kakaako neighborhood, Lonohana Estate Chocolate is a “vertically integrated chocolate company” that grows its own cacao and transforms the locally grown fruit into high-quality chocolate.
The 90-minute interactive Chocolate Factory Tour & Tasting follows the entire process, from farming cacao using regenerative agriculture to handcrafting artisanal chocolate using vintage equipment.
Lonohana Estate is unique in that it both farms cacao and makes chocolate.
Credit: 2024 Lonohana Estate Chocolate“We are a highly unusual company, in that we are both cacao farmers and chocolate-makers,” said Seneca Klassen, founder of Lonohana Estate Chocolate. “So, when you visit our factory, you get a unique, behind-the-scenes look at both the agriculture and manufacturing of fine Hawaii-grown chocolate."
Tours are offered on Friday afternoons and Saturday mornings. (Private group bookings can be arranged at other times.) Reservations are required; the tour is recommended for ages 8 and older.
Lonohana’s nearby tasting bar offers complimentary curated chocolate flights, including “The Dark Side,” “Vegan Delights,” “The Classics” and “Seasonals” — which, when I visited, included lilikoi (passion fruit) coconut chocolate, cardamom milk chocolate, dark mint chocolate and coffee-crunch chocolate with cacao nibs. No reservation is required, and all ages are welcome.
“Hawaii represents less than 1% of the world’s total cacao production,” said Carl of 21 Degrees Estate. “But in the last six years, Hawaiian cacao and chocolate has placed in the top three spots in almost every major international competition. So, we have a small footprint, but it’s very big in terms of quality and flavor.”
