
Maker
Definite ChocolateDefinite Chocolate is a micro-batch bean-to-bar maker based in the Dominican Republic. Founded by Jens Kamin, they source directly from local cacao producers and use locally sourced ingredients whenever possible. Their lineup includes single origin dark bars, 100% cacao options, and bars with coffee, sea salt, and rum. They were the first Dominican chocolate producer to win an international award, within a year of starting in 2017.


Cacao Region
Duarte, Dominican RepublicDuarte is a northern province of the Dominican Republic, named after Juan Pablo Duarte, the founder of the country. The province is located in the eastern portion of the Cibao Valley, and finds its economic base in both commercial industry & processing, and agriculture. Duarte grows over two-thirds of the Dominican Republic’s exported cacao, as well as ~60% of the rice consumed within the country; other crops include coffee, tobacco, and bananas.
Cacao Estate
Reserva ZorzalZorzal Cacao is an agroforestry project of Reserva Zorzal, a thousand-acre private bird sanctuary and 130-acre organic cacao farm in the northern Dominican Republic. Zorzal is actually the Spanish word for “thrush,” referring to the Bicknell’s Thrush, a migratory songbird which spends winters in the tropical forests of the preserve. Reserva Zorzal is even more unique in the world of cacao, as they have set aside seventy percent of the preserve’s land to be forever wild. They’re part of a carbon-offset project with thirteen other landowners, employ local wildlife monitors, and serve as a model for the integration of conservation & sustainable agroforestry. The cocoa trees are shade-grown to promote wildlife habitat and biodiversity, and all Reserva Zorzal cacao is certified organic.