peru is a country that s historically driven men mad, mad for gold, for coca, for its magical, ancient history. but now, there s something else drawing outsiders to its hidden mountain valleys. we love this stuff. we obsess about it, gorge on it, and fetishize it. i m talking about chocolate. once a common treat, it s now becoming as nuanced as fine wine, making the pursuit of the raw, good stuff all the more difficult. i m joining that hunt in remotest peru, but not before i ve re-immersed myself in the booming lima food scene. i took a walk through this beautiful world. felt the cool rain on my shoulder. found something good in this beautiful world. i m in peru with this guy, eric ripert. the guy was looking at us. he went into the tree. that s funny. chef of the world-famous restaurant, le bernardin, in new york, to look at where chocolate comes from, particularly our chocolate. so that s why we re in peru. but before we get all indiana jones, we re spending so
chunk. chris, me, and eric each get a slice out of every bar. that leaves this much, which the retailer takes. chef bleeding-heart hippie here has already convinced me to give whatever meager profits we make off our first bar to a local charity. so, what s unusual about these pods, these beans? chris: the extremely high quality of flavor. anthony: thought not around for a while. chris: this was what almost all chocolate was made of, over 120 years ago. anthony: right. chris: and now, it s, uh, making a giant comeback. i mean, as a chocolatier, this is a once in a lifetime find. anthony: now, about 40% of the beans from these trees have got white cacao beans mixed in. the rest are purplish in color. but we ve heard of an ultra rare group of trees elsewhere, further up the mountains, that produce pods with 100% all pure white beans. and that s something me and eric are very interested in down the road. but for now, don fortunato s daughter, johanna, has prepared
labor, the inner sleeve, this much. design, box, packaging, this much. various sundry equipment and miscellaneous, another small chunk. chris, me, and eric each get a slice out of every bar. that leaves this much, which the retailer takes. chef bleeding-heart hippie here has already convinced me to give whatever meager profits we make off our first bar to a local charity. so, what s unusual about these pods, these beans? chris: the extremely high quality of flavor. anthony: thought not around for a while. chris: this was what almost all chocolate was made of, over 120 years ago. anthony: right. chris: and now, it s, uh, making a giant comeback. i mean, as a chocolatier, this is a once in a lifetime find. anthony: now, about 40% of the beans from these trees have got white cacao beans mixed in. the rest are purplish in color. but we ve heard of an ultra rare group of trees elsewhere, further up the mountains, that produce pods with 100% all pure white beans.
the raw cacao costs one chunk. labor, the inner sleeve, this much. design, box, packaging, this much. various sundry equipment and miscellaneous, another small chunk. chris, me, and eric each get a slice out of every bar. that leaves this much, which the retailer takes. chef bleeding-heart hippie here has already convinced me to give whatever meager profits we make off our first bar to a local charity. so, what s unusual about these pods, these beans? chris: the extremely high quality of flavor. anthony: thought not around for a while. chris: this was what almost all chocolate was made of, over 120 years ago. anthony: right. chris: and now, it s, uh, making a giant comeback. i mean, as a chocolatier, this is a once in a lifetime find. anthony: now, about 40% of the beans from these trees have got white cacao beans mixed in. the rest are purplish in color. but we ve heard of an ultra rare
standards. so, where does the money go? and most importantly to me and eric, are we doing a good thing? here s how it breaks down. the raw cacao costs one chunk. labor, the inner sleeve, this much. design, box, packaging, this much. various sundry equipment and miscellaneous, another small chunk. chris, me, and eric each get a slice out of every bar. that leaves this much, which the retailer takes. chef bleeding-heart hippie here has already convinced me to give whatever meager profits we make off our first bar to a local charity. so, what s unusual about these pods, these beans? chris: the extremely high quality of flavor. anthony: thought not around for a while. chris: this was what almost all chocolate was made of, over 120 years ago. anthony: right. chris: and now, it s, uh, making a giant comeback. i mean, as a chocolatier, this is a once in a lifetime find.