Mission

Bean To Bar World is an education-first website with the simple goal of educating the public on chocolate making and tasting.

A place to showcase incredible chocolate entrepreneurs around the world, without bias, through a fair platform via the original bean-to-bar map & app.

A place to educate the world from unbiased and research-based learning via the Free Learning Center and professional chocolate tasting experiences.

I grew up the Italian community of Woodbridge, Ontario, Canada, where quality craftsmanship, Southern Italian food, and the spirit of sharing surrounded me. From this grew my belief that chocolate should unite both beautiful flavour with skillful craftsmanship; something worth sharing.

My lifelong passion for nature and art lead me to study both biology and fine arts at the University of Toronto, where I received my Bachelor of Science. Upon graduating, my passion for food drew me towards George Brown College, where I honed in on my skills in their Pastry Arts Program.  It was there where I came across a position as a chocolate sommelier assistant, and after taking on the position in 2008, I have been forever dedicated to chocolate. In 2009 I became a chocolatier, while concurrently developing my tasting curriculum, and eventually delving into chocolate making myself years later.

I applied my background in chocolate and science to develop my own tasting curriculum since no curriculum or certification program existed when I began. The foundation of my tasting curriculum is based on primary research, empirical data, and knowledgeable people within the chocolate industry. This differs from much of the current chocolate sommelier certifications today which often rely on biased and antiquated information, or information which is better suited to chocolate marketing than chocolate knowledge.

I also prefer to keep as much of this information free and available to all instead of locked behind paywalls. Public access to quality chocolate information is the reason I started this website in the first place. In order to grow the bean-to-bar sector, we need to educate the public. This means more free access to quality information, which in turn will create confident and informed consumers, as opposed to believing simply what you’re told. This is the key to growing the sector of bean-to-bar chocolate in a way which is sustainable while also respecting the craft of fine chocolate making.

Today I focus mainly on educating the public through educational tastings, chocolate making classes, tutoring, free resources, the bean-to-bar app, and a growing library of informative videos. I believe in pushing the boundaries of chocolate knowledge beyond what’s been parroted over the years, challenge older ideas but also preserving what is useful, being open to new ideas and even being humble enough to change one’s mind as new information becomes available. For these reasons the website continues to attract all sorts who have a hunger for both fine chocolate and fine chocolate information.

The Bean To Bar World Map App

I have dedicated countless hours and resources over years to build and promote the bean-to-bar chocolate world through my free map and app, which I built from scratch. This is the original bean-to-bar map to focus only on bean-to-bar businesses. The main focus is bean-to-bar chocolate makers (manufactures), but I also included the idea of adding cacao growers/distributors, retailers, researchers, equipment manufactures, and other related bean-to-bar entrepreneurs as a way to grow and connect the community within, and to as many people as possible. Why volunteer so much of my time and money into this tool? It’s simple. To promote the craft of chocolate making, to showcase makers, and to connect the public to this incredible world.

One great challenge for the bean-to-bar sector is that many people don’t know where to start when searching for bean-to-bar chocolate makers, so I decided to create this map, originally a desktop version, but eventually became an app in 2020. Chocolate makers, in particular new ones, do not have large marketing budgets or much visibility in the market, so this app offers them a free platform where people searching for quality chocolate can locate and support them.

Although some prefer to use awards and certificates to act as gate-keepers of the the bean-to-bar chocolate world, anyone who has enough knowledge of this niche can quickly see many of the biases and flaws which exist. My stance has been to empower and inform the public, rather than dictate to them what they should prefer or think. For this reason, the map and app becomes more of a level playing field for these businesses, and removes much of the biases and red-tape for anyone looking to join this incredible world. The app is a tool for you to go and explore the world for yourself, and support who you feel is doing wonderful work in the world of bean-to-bar chocolate.

If you enjoy and appreciate this tool either as a consumer or as someone working in the bean-to-bar sector, please share it with as many people as you can. The app is free to use, and free to be hosted on. You can download some free pdf marketing literature and hand leave it or post it at local public venues (libraries, communal poster boards, cafes). Or if you have any idea of how I can help you get the word out, don’t hesitate to reach out and contact me. And should you feel the desire, you’re welcome to donate to help with my time and effort. Your generosity is always appreciated. Let’s grow the world of bean-t0-bar together. Every drop of effort is worth it if our hearts are in the right place.

Download the app here, or add to it here.