The most remote chocolate factory in the world resides within northwestern County Clare—a seemingly boundless region of cracked limestone filled with some of the greatest diversity of flora and fauna in Ireland. The glacial-era sedimentary rock of the Burren flourishes with plants, animals, fossils, rock formations, and fascinating Neolithic portal tombs, making this an odd location to find a boutique chocolatier. Yet it is a fitting location for Hazel Mountain Chocolate, as the stark beauty of the land mirrors the simple and pure piquancy of the chocolate they create.
As a self-proclaimed connoisseur of excellent chocolate (with my only qualifications being nearly 23 years of eating and enjoying good chocolate), I was delighted to happen across this factory and shop while exploring the landscape of the Burren. The property of Hazel Mountain Chocolate contains a cafe as well as the shop and factory in the back. I made my way through the gates to find the entrance to the chocolate shop, and was charmed to step into an open floor plan with wood, brick, and teal accents—a true hipster paradise that evokes boutique and hand-crafted elegance.
After entering this chocolate paradise, an employee soon greeted me and offered a taste of some of their dark chocolate. He then volunteered to show me around and explain their process of creating chocolate from start to finish, all the way from procuring and roasting the beans to molding the chocolate into bars.
Hazel Mountain Chocolate buys their cacao beans raw from many locations, including Venezuela, Madagascar, and Costa Rica. Bean-to-bar chocolate is different from run-of-the-mill chocolate because the factories purchase their beans raw and hand roast, crack, and winnow the cacao beans themselves rather than buying them pre-roasted and processed. At Hazel Mountain, they stone grind the beans and then age the resulting chocolate for three weeks before using the finest ingredients such as raw cane sugar and Irish milk to create their final products.
They produce all their chocolate in their own small factory within the store, which allows them to control the quality and make sure all their chocolate meets the highest standards. After showing me how the machines work and explaining the process of roasting, the factory assistant opened glass display containers filled with cacao beans to demonstrate the difference between raw and roasted beans. While the raw beans mostly smelled slightly nutty, the roasted beans already smelled sharply chocolaty even though sugar and other ingredients had not been added!
After finishing showing me around, he spoke about Hazel Mountain’s quest to use the whole bean and told me of his personal passion—researching and attempting to recreate the recipe that Martha Washington used for her famous cacao shell tea. As an American, I was excited to learn a little about this project and he was excited to share his passion for a part of my home country’s history. He then had me try several more of their dark chocolates so I could decide which bars to buy, as each of their chocolates has its own distinct flavor. Three of their top sellers are the Costa Rican 62% dark chocolate, the Venezuelan 72%, and the Madagascan 67%. Additionally, all of their bars come in plain chocolate or with additions such as nuts sprinkled on top—a simplicity that allows the unique flavor of each type of cacao bean to shine through.
While dark chocolate is their specialty, they also sell truffles they make from their chocolate. With flavors such as honey and lavender, the truffles live up to the boutique design of this chocolatier. It is simple to mix and match your own selection of these chocolate truffles into a cute box for gifting (or eating on your own).
After tasting their various chocolate types, I discovered my favorite of their offerings—the Madagascar Bean dark chocolate. When you allow this chocolate to melt in your mouth it brings out notes of citrus or fruit as it melts on your tongue…even though there is no fruit in the chocolate! This sensory illusion is delightful and unlike anything I have experienced before. If you think chocolate is homogeneous or that dark chocolate is bitter, you are in for a surprise at Hazel Mountain Chocolate! They will revolutionize your view of chocolate and their products will spoil your taste buds (no more eating mass-produced chocolate! Your taste buds will simply reject it). With helpful and friendly staff and chocolate as unique and fine as the landscape that surrounds their factory, visiting Hazel Mountain Chocolate is a luxurious experience that will have you stocking up on chocolate and longing to return.
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