We crossed the waters to one of the Philippines' most untamed islands—Mindanao. All because we wanted to see a chocolate farm. Well, technically it's a cacao farm.
Honestly, we didn't have a clue what we were getting ourselves into. Only that our new sailing friend Rex said he runs his family farm and they grow rare heirloom cacao. But really, all I heard was chocolate farm. That was enough and I couldn't invite myself over fast enough.
But turns out, Malagos Chocolate isn't just a farm—it's a real working farm where African night crawlers help create the fertilizer, chili-garlic concoctions keep the bugs at bay, and rare ancient trees have been growing for generations.
It also isn't just farming; it's a stubborn act of preservation. The odds are terrible. The work is relentless. Only 5% of the cacao flowers survive to become fruit. Yet here they stand, the Puentespina family, guardians of one of only 19 recognized heirloom cacao sites on the entire planet.
We quickly learned good chocolate is alive. Like, fermenting, breathing, culture-rich alive. And the revelation hit us as we stood there with sticky fingers and a mouth full of cacao seeds. We knew this wasn’t just about chocolate anymore.
This is a story about taste, toil, trees, and the humans behind the best chocolate we’ve ever had.
If you ever get the chance to go to the Philippines, please do yourself a favor; go visit the farm and make sure to say hello to our friend Rex and his family. It's well worth the trip!
- Malagos Chocolate: malagoschocolate.com/
- Malagos Resort: https://www.malagos.com/
