Notable Edibles, Bean-to-Bar Chocolate

Bean-to-bar chocolate-makers are completely different from chocolatiers, stresses Steven Schneider, who established Gansett Craft Chocolate in June 2022 with daughter Ella. Chocolatiers use tempered chocolate to create all manner of bonbons and bars ... but they do not begin their process with raw single-source cocoa beans, as do the Schneiders. A basic view of the process: Beans are roasted, cracked and winnowed down to cocoa nibs; nibs are ground into a liquid (chocolate liquor) in melangers (stone-on-stone grinders); and then tempered and molded. The Schneiders sampled beans from all over the world before choosing cacao beans from a group of small independent farms in Peru. “There are differences where [the beans] are from,” Steve explains, “some fudgier, some fruitier.” Customer favorites have been the Gansett 70% dark, their award-winning 50% milk chocolate bar and their award-winning “Rhode Island Coffee Milk,” using beans from local Seaworthy Coffee Roasters (the dark chocolate has raspberry and brown butter sage variations). Seasonal big sellers were pumpkin spice and peppermint crunch, and Steve looks forward to their 70% dark bar with flaky sea salt from Newport Sea Salt Co. By day, Steve is a physician in South Kingstown; Ella is a first-year student at URI who hopes to expand Gansett Craft Chocolate beyond pop-up events, farmers markets and online sales.

Gansett Craft Chocolate is crafted at Town Made, a shared commercial kitchen space at 203 Main St., Wakefield. For a list of local stores where bars are sold or to purchase online, visit GansettCraftChocolate.com.