Dominican Cacao

The Dominican Republic is the largest producer of certified organic cocoa in the world, and unusually the crop is dominated by tens of thousands of smallholders rather than plantations, most of them growing it under shade alongside other trees. Dominican beans are sold in two grades: Hispaniola, fermented and prized by fine chocolate makers, and Sánchez, unfermented and used industrially; most of the planting stock is Trinitario. Farm visits run at several cooperatives and estates, taking visitors through pod to bean: cutting, fermenting under banana leaves, drying on wooden trays, roasting and grinding. Cocoa tea, made from ground beans with spices, is a household drink.

What you actually see

• The pods - cut from the trunk and opened to show the white pulp.
• Fermentation boxes - beans under banana leaves for several days.
• Drying trays - wooden platforms rolled under cover when it rains.
• Cocoa tea - the spiced household drink made from ground beans.

When to go

November to April is drier and better for farm roads; the main harvest runs roughly from March to June with a second smaller one later in the year, so the fermentation and drying stages are most active then. Tours run year-round at the larger estates.

Honest expectations

The polished estate tours near the tourist coast are considerably more expensive than the cooperative visits inland and show much the same thing. Chocolate bought at the farms is often better than what is sold in resort shops. Farm roads are rough. Tours are mostly in Spanish outside the main estates.

Nearby

San Francisco de Macorís is the inland centre; the Samaná road passes several estates.