Hilo Cacao Orchard Tour - 90 mins

17-4194 Ualani Rd,Kurtistown HI 96760

15 June, 2021

Description

90-120 minute educational tour of a tropical cacao farm in Puna District on the route to Volcano National Park. See how chocolate grows! Visit a Hawaiian Cacao (or Cocoa) Orchard just 15 minutes south of Hilo in Kurtistown, Puna District. This is a working orchard with nearly 2,500 cocoa trees among a working farm of Coffee, Macadamia Nuts, Bananas, Citrus.  We will visit the cocoa nursery and cocoa orchard to view how cocoa is grown and where your favorite food, chocolate, comes from! You will handle fresh cocoa pods, open and taste fresh fruit and pulp you can't taste at home. You will then explore how beans are converted to chocolate and then retreat into a sheltered canopy for a small chocolate flight of various dark and milk chocolates from beans grown on Big Island.  You will also view the fermentory and dryers where fresh beans have their bitterness converted to delicous chocolate flavors. Appropriate for all ages.  This is a non-improved trail on grassy and moist terrain - please wear closed-toe shoes for walking up to 400 yards on uneven tropical terrain. COVID19 - we have limited the number of attendees to 10 per tour. The event is entirely outdoors. If you do not feel comfortable with group events, please consider purchasing all available tickets. Please inform us ahead of time if any accessibility requirements are needed. Reservations are required at least 12 hours ahead of time - our cocoa expert prepares only for the amount reserved. Minimum Attendance: Most people reserve the day before but if we have less than 4 signed up when sales close at 9pm the night prior, we may have to cancel or reschedule the tour in order to better focus our limited resources. Refunds are allowed up to 7 days before the event upon request. * tour will proceed in wet weather, we have umbrellas.  **Private tours are extremely limited at this time Puna Chocolate Company originated in the volcanic Puna District of Hawai'i Island. It is one of the only chocolate makers in the US that uses American-grown cocoa grown in varying sites across Big Island, Hawaii. It is a family run business with ties between Wauconda and Hawaii that allow a consistent supply of freshly harvested cocoa beans that are the highest quality in the world. We make chocolate the European style with quality fresh ingredients, no fillers, and maximum flavor. Aloha cocoa.