Last Friday we celebrated the birthday of our amazing, fearless, talented, multi-faceted leader Gail Ambrosius. Check out Gail’s reaction (right) to the staff’s gift. His name is Criollo (pronounced kre-ol-yo) and he is a gorgeous betta fish. What does “Criollo” mean, you ask? It is a rare variety of cacao tree that produces high quality … Read more »
When Gail asked for a new flavor idea for Father’s Day, I, of course, had to draw upon my own father for inspiration. When I think of root beer, I think of summers, 4th of July barbecues, and my dad. The man loves root beer. There’s even a brand of root beer called “Dad’s Root … Read more »
As many of you know I have avoided using African chocolate due to potential issues with child labor or slave labor. I recently attended the Chocoa Conference in Amsterdam that focused on production and sustainability of chocolate. I learned that several of the large chocolate companies, and some smaller ones, are working hard to combat … Read more »
Last week I had the pleasure and honor of traveling to Ecuador. The trip was organized by Ecole Chocolat. We had a group consisting of: Gallo, our driver; Daniel, our guide (both are native Ecuadorians); Jeff of Stern’s Confections in Quito; Steve of Devries Chocolate; Paul and James our Scotsman from Cocoa Mountain; Yurin and … Read more »
On April 20-28, 2013, I traveled with a small delegation of the Colombia Support Network (CSN) to Colombia a few weeks ago. The Colombia Support Network is a national grassroots organization based in Madison, Wisconsin, with 501 (c)(3) tax-exempt status, created to provide support to Colombian communities and organizations in areas of conflict which seek … Read more »
The Eiffel Tower Earlier this month I had the extreme pleasure of visiting my favorite city: Paris! The trip also included a visit to Bruge, (no sign of Colin Farrell, darn!) and Brussels the home of some magnificent examples of Art Nouveau. Paris is truly a movable feast! On the agenda the first day was a … Read more »
Packing up chocolates and sharing a laugh with the Amazillia ladies On March 16, I left for my seventh trip to Costa Rica! It had been a year since I last saw my cacao growing friends. The first night I met with Hugo and Hubertien Hemerlink, and Julio and George of Sibu Chocolates, as well … Read more »
Aran and I at our booth This past Saturday was the 25th anniversary of the Great Taste of the Midwest! This wonderful event has been graciously sponsored by the Madison Homebrewers and Tasters Guild since 1983. It isn’t always easy to remember with an event like this, but I believe this was my 10th year … Read more »
The clouds lift at Machu Picchu Wow, where to begin? I am fresh from my first trip to Peru. For nearly three weeks in May, I witnessed amazing scenery and met wonderful people. The main purpose of my trip was to volunteer with the Becky Fund. The foundation raises money to buy and deliver school … Read more »
Cuddling with a sloth I just returned from a trip to Costa Rica. It was pura vida! This is the latest of several trips to the country. My first trip was in 2008, through an Ecole Chocolat tour that included visits to CATIE (a tropical agriculture research center), an organic cacao farm, and several smaller … Read more »
