Tipsy Cat and Chocolate
Tipsy Cat and Chocolate go paw-in-paw, so when she heard that we could stay at a chocolate plantation, she jumped at the chance.
The hacienda was run by an American couple, who offer fine dining experiences and welcome guests with suavva – cocoa pulp juice with rum – and traditional patacón – banana fritters, named after ancient Spanish money (and interesting, similar to patacums, banana chips from south India – another of Tipsy’s favourites).
The castillo is set within a working chocolate plantation, offering chocolate-lovers the chance of staying over to relax and wandering about the paths filled with cocoa trees.
We were lucky to be there when the pods were just ripening and ready for harvest and the drying of the beans, so we got to see the process from bean to tasting! There’s also a tour of the factory, which smells divine. Their fair-trade chocolate tastes delish, so we we filled our tums and our suitcase with yummy bars.
Just to let you know, we’re not being sponsored by anyone (yet) to write this blog post. We’ve only put in the clickable links so that’s it’s easier for you to find things. We’re nice like that ?