Sibu Chocolate - Our Story
Handmade with 100% organic Costa Rican cacaoCosta Rica’s Sibú Chocolate is part of a growing artisan movement dedicated to taking chocolate back in time, to a realm of heightened quality and sensory pleasure. Our classic collection of handmade truffles and caramel is inspired by Costa Rica’s rich tropical flavors and indigenous heritage.
Founded in 2007, Sibu Chocolate is the creation of Costa Rican historian and naturalist Julio Fernandez, and former journalist from Miami George Soriano.
In 2004, the two began a journey to learn about all things chocolate and specifically about cacao production in Costa Rica. “Sampling chocolate from around the world became both our hobby and ongoing passion,” says Fernández. “We visited plantations and indigenous reservations to try to understand the story behind this sacred crop. Each day we became more fascinated with what we learned.”
In 2006 the two studied chocolate arts at the Canada-based Ecole Chocolat, and would become Master Chocolatier the following year through studies at L’Ecole du Gran Chocolate in Tain L’Hermitage, France. After a long search for the best chocolate in Costa Rica, they found their source on a small organic farm on Costa Rica’s Caribbean slope.
Sibú confections and bars are made with this single origin cacao, drawing on European tradition and local flavors. By inventing innovative recipes that are uniquely Costa Rican, Fernandez and Soriano hope that their chocolates will change the way Costa Ricans and visitors to their country think about the delicacy, first cherished by pre-Columbian civilizations from Mexico to the Andes.