Maple (Ep. 20)
Is there a more comforting flavor than maple?
Maple is a part of life in eastern North America, and in today’s episode, you’ll hear from Canadian and American bean to bar chocolate makers and American craft brewers who use maple sap, sugar, and syrup local to their areas in thoughtful, nuanced chocolates and beers. All of them had memories that tied the flavor of maple into the stories of their lives, and in this episode you’ll hear how evocative the smells and flavors of maple can be. I encourage you to seek out one of these chocolates or beers and follow along with those memories through the tasting experience, letting your senses tell you part of the beautiful story of maple.
Timeline of interviews:
3:15-4:18 - Hans Westerink of Violet Sky Chocolate
4:18-15:10 - Andy Conrad of Sandy Springs Brewing Company
15:10-30:35 - Elfi Maldonado & Maxime Simard of Qantu Chocolate
30:35-38:00 - Erica Gilmour of Hummingbird Chocolate
38:00-50:00 - Austin Jevne by Humble Forager Brewing
Chocolate bars discussed in this episode include: Violet Sky Maple + Vanilla, Qantu Maple & Maras Fleur de Sel, and Hummingbird Maple.
Beers discussed in this episode include: Sandy Springs Happy Sappy, Humble Forager Sugar Shack Memories & Warming Hut Memoirs, Scratch’s maple beers, and Oxbow Sap Haus.
If you want to learn more about the Sandy Springs Brewer’s Quarters Airbnb lodging, you can read an article I wrote a couple years back here.
The music for this episode was sampled from an instrumental version of the song “Umbrella” written and performed by indie folk musician Anna ps from her 2016 album of the same name. You can find out more about Anna at her website.
Guests:
Hans Westerink is the founder and chocolate maker at Violet Sky Chocolate in South Bend, Indiana. In 2021 he will be launching a coffee line called Cloudwalker Coffee, and will be opening a cafe to serve both chocolate and coffee.
Andy & Amanda Conrad founded Sandy Springs Brewing Company in Minerva, Ohio, in 2017. Both were born and raised in small town Minerva with a passion to bring more business to this incredible town and create a community through craft where good times are had and long-lasting friendships are made.
Elfi Maldonado and Maxime Simard met in 2007 while Maxime was traveling in Elfi’s homeland of Peru. Elfi moved to Maxime’s hometown of Montreal in 2009, and graduated there with a master’s degree in Industrial Engineering. Elfi and Maxime, who was formerly an IT specialist, founded Qantu Chocolate in 2017 to combine Elfi’s deep attachment to Peru with their mutual love for food.
Erica Gilmour’s love of chocolate and working with farmers around the world led her to found Hummingbird Chocolate in 2012 with her husband, Drew. Hummingbird focuses on ethical sourcing, highlighting the varied natural flavours of cacao and bringing a little joy into people's lives. Based in Almonte, Ontario just outside of Ottawa, Hummingbird has won 100 international chocolate awards and the coveted Golden Bean award from the Academy of Chocolate in London, UK.
Austin Jevne is the founder of Humble Forager Brewing, a contract brewing operating out of Octopi Brewing in Madison, Wisconsin, and a sister brewery to Forager Brewing in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Humble Forager runs on the principles of Think Globally, Forage Locally, Live Humbly, and Drink Adventurously.