From Madagascar to Nottingham: A Shared Passion for Chocolate
It all started with a shared love of chocolate.
Behind every great bar is a whole chain of people who care deeply about what they do.
Last month, we had the pleasure of welcoming Sariaka, a chocolate maker from Madagascar, to our Nottingham makery. It was a wonderful chance to share ideas, swap knowledge and learn from each other's craft.
Although we work on opposite sides of the world, we're connected by the same passion: creating exceptional chocolate that lets remarkable cacao shine.
Seeing chocolate from a different lens
Sariaka works much closer to where cacao begins. During her visit, she had the chance to experience the next stage of the journey, seeing how we transform carefully cultivated beans into bean-to-bar chocolate here in Nottingham.
Together we:
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Tasted different chocolates
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Experimented with recipe development
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Made bean-to-bar chocolate together
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Talked about flavour and fermentation
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Shared ideas from opposite sides of the chocolate-making journey
"My favourite thing working at Luisa’s is seeing the closeness with the people. It’s amazing meeting customers in the shop and getting direct feedback from them, it’s been really nice."
Celebrating Madagascan chocolate
One of the highlights of Sariaka's visit was making chocolate together using Madagascan cacao (from Sambirano Valley) that she brought us as a gift. Sharing techniques, tasting flavours and celebrating an origin we're both incredibly proud to work with.
If you'd like to experience Madagascan chocolate for yourself, these are two of our award-winning expressions of this remarkable origin.
Madagascar 72%
Bright, fruity and beautifully balanced, with notes of raspberry, red berries and citrus. Carefully crafted bean-to-bar in our Nottingham makery to showcase everything we love about Madagascan cacao.
Madagascar 85%
Our darker expression of Madagascan cacao, with the same vibrant raspberry and red fruit notes balanced by a deeper cocoa richness. Crafted bean-to-bar in our Nottingham makery to let this exceptional origin shine in every square.
Two Minutes with Sariaka
What have you been up to during your time at the makery?
"These past few weeks we’ve been making lots of chocolate with Luisa! We’ve made Madagascar chocolate with the cocoa beans that I brought, and then it was really interesting to work with new origins that I’ve never worked with".
Now you’ve visited, what’s your favourite thing about Nottingham?
“My favourite thing is the architecture. I love the buildings, I think there’s a great balance between old and new here. I love that about it!”.
Your favourite Luisa's bars?
Why visits like this matter
What brings us the most joy is building relationships, meeting the people behind the beans, learning from each other and sharing our passion.
A message from Sariaka
“I’m really grateful for the team I’ve had here, for everything I’ve learned, for all the people that I've met. I really hope I can come back and please come visit Luisa’s!”
Shop the Madagascar Collection