Harvested in Barcarena, on the banks of the Acará River, in Pará, the cocoa beans from this primary forest, dense and of enormous biodiversity, have differentiated sensory characteristics due to their terroir of origin. An expert woodsman and a deep connoisseur of the forest, Manoel do Carmo Monteiro da Silva , the riverside Xiba, seeks excellence and perfection in his fermentation, which softens the astringency and acidity of the Maranhão variety cocoa and exposes all its sensory potency, like citrus. complex, honey and flower, giving traces of its own empathy, purity and docility to the intense cocoa of this chocolate bar.
Many are impressed by the high percentage of cocoa in this forest chocolate. native and primary, which makes this bar very intense, strong and tasty. But this very special taste would not exist without the hands and care of Manoel do Carmo Monteiro da Silva , popularly known as Xiba. Son of Armínio Bentes da Silva and Dona Jandira, Xiba lives with his family on the banks of the Acará River and knows the forest like few others. Extractor and grower of açaí and cocoa, Xiba is proud of not knowing just a single plant species in “his bush”. He succeeded his father in the knowledge and use of the forest, from where his family takes medicine, food and nourishes itself with stories and legends rich in syncretism, wisdom and teachings.
A forester in essence, Xiba, along with other members of the Bom Jardim riverside community, harvest, select, grind, ferment and dry cocoa beans with great affection, dedication and determination in the search for the perfect chocolate bar.
“I want a perfect almond” – Xiba
César often repeats the words and wishes of Xiba, who, with great humility and purity of intention, carefully and persistently followed the guidelines of his master De Mendes in learning and improving the cocoa fermentation process. “The great secret of the flavor and quality of a chocolate is precisely in the pre-processing, in which the fermentation stage is highlighted due to its delicacy and sensitivity. According to Caesar, Xiba became, with time and his various experiments, an expert fermenter and currently the apprentice is more than revered by his own master. As a result of this partnership of exchange and joint learning, Chocolate Xiba 81% cocoa was born.
“Where do you teach and where do you learn? I have technical knowledge and that's basically what I teach. But what I learn is something unspoken, no is explicit, it is not from someone who studied at a University, but from someone you look at and feel the softness in the look, the purity of intention, that doesn't know how to lie, which even looks like a plate of transparent glass, doesn't have in between, it sometimes comes across as rude, but it's just one absurd sincerity and that's what we learn.” – Cesar DeMendes
Xiba Chocolate presents a complex citrus note, honey and flower, notably roses, which often appears as a result of overfermentation. It is pleasant and pleasant on the palate. “The flavor of this bar is not common in the Amazon. I work with several cacaos from the Amazon, of the same Maranhão variety, and none of them has such delicate notes”, explains César. Surprise yourself with this cocoa bar and unique flavor!
In this primary forest of the low floodplain biome, in the municipality of Barcarena and on the banks of the Acará River, the variety of cocoa found is Maranhão, which gets its name because the first cocoa export to Europe, in the period of the Portuguese empire in Brazil , left Belém/Cametá for Portugal, the state of Maranhão and Grão-Pará, as the region that covered from the state of Ceará to the extreme north of Brazil became known.
SOCIAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT
The area managed by Xiba has 40 hectares, where many animals and plant species live. Work with cocoa directly impacts 100 people. From harvesting to production, we seek to be responsible, supportive and socioeconomically fair.
OTHER INGREDIENTS AND SUPPLIERS *
- Brown Sugar: supplied by COPAVI – Cooperativa de Produção Agropecuária Vitória, located in Paranacity, in the northwest of the state of Paraná. Founded in 1993, from the Santa Maria settlement, with just 236 hectares and 61 inhabitants, COPAVI is the longest-running experience in collective and solidary production in Paraná.
* possible changes in the supplier may happen due to the availability of the product.
Xiba Chocolate - 81% Cocoa
Geographic coordinates of the cocoa harvesting location: 2° 33′ 57″ S 49° 31′ 37″ W
Barcarena - Rio Acará - Pará - Amazon - Brazil
