You Can’t Read a Cocoa Bean from a Flavor Wheel

Join CocoaTown and David Greenwood-Haigh for an Empowering Chocopreneurs Webinar. 

You Can’t Read a Cocoa Bean from a Flavor Wheel

Chocolate is often discussed through the language of flavor wheels, tasting notes and score sheets. Words such as jasmine, bergamot, red berries, banana and caramelized pineapple may help us describe chocolate, but they cannot tell the whole story of a cocoa bean. Real understanding begins much earlier: in cocoa-growing communities, on farms, in fermentaries, drying yards and with the people whose work shapes the beans before they ever reach a chocolate maker.

Presenter: David Greenwood-Haigh
Date: Saturday, July 25th, 2026
Time: 10 am – 12 Noon Atlanta Time
Location: Virtual

Register: https://form.jotform.com/261876427930163

In this webinar, David Greenwood-Haigh explores the idea of sourcing intuition—the practical, earned knowledge that helps chocolatiers understand what they are truly looking for in cocoa. Drawing on his experience visiting cocoa farms across West Africa and the Caribbean, David will explain why great sourcing is not simply about finding “the best” origin, but about discovering which cocoa helps a maker create the chocolate they believe in and tell the story they want to share.

The session will also look at the important role of science and objective analysis in modern sourcing. Using examples such as cut tests, roast analysis and finished chocolate assessment, David will show how data and craft can work together. These tools do not replace intuition, but they can sharpen it, helping producers and buyers build a clearer, more transparent bridge between origin and finished chocolate.