Bean to Barstool

Bean to Barstool Redux: Vintage but still relevant conversations from the archives without all the extra narration. Just classic interviews from really cool people in craft chocolate, craft beer, and other food and beverage fields. In this edition, we talk with Nick Davis of One One Cacao in Jamaica. Nick shares his thoughts on the good and bad of inclusions, the challenges and opportunities in Ja...

Bean to Barstool Redux: Vintage but still relevant conversations from the archives without all the extra narration. Just classic interviews from really cool people in craft chocolate, craft beer, and other food and beverage fields. In this edition, we talk with Max Gandy, perhaps better known in the craft chocolate world as Dame Cacao. Max was one of the first chocolate educators I started followi...

In this short bonus episode of Bean to Barstool, we'll hear from Kelly Campos of Dark Matter Coffee and Sleep Walk Chocolate in Chicago. Kelly talks all about the barrel-aged beer chocolate bars Sleep Walk has made in collaboration with breweries like Half Acre and Revolution. Enjoy! You can learn more about Sleep Walk Chocolate here . You can listen to Kelly discuss Sleep Walk's mezcal-...

I just got back from a weekend in Seattle for the Northwest Chocolate Festival, and want to share my thoughts from the experience. Here are my takeaways from the Unconference, the trends on the festival floor, my favorite experiences in this beautiful city, and the thoughts I was left with as I returned from the show. If you attended NW Chocolate this year, I'd love to hear your own takeaways...

Bean to Barstool Redux: Vintage but still relevant conversations from the archives without all the extra narration. Just classic interviews from really cool people in craft chocolate, craft beer, and other food and beverage fields. In this edition, we talk with Martyn O'Dare of Firetree Chocolate in the UK. Firetree has been making single origin dark chocolate from primarily Pacific island or...

Welcome to Bean to Barstool Bite Sized, where we spend about 5 minutes on a specific topic in craft beer, craft chocolate, or artisan drinks. Today we're talking with David Herrick of Foundry Chocolate in New Zealand. David shares with us the thought and intention behind their elegant packaging design. Enjoy! You can listen to the entire episode this clip is from here . You can learn more abo...

Here's the entire Collaboration for Chocolate Makers series in one place!  While craft chocolate makers periodically partner with breweries and coffee roasters, examples of collaboration in the industry remain pretty limited. That's a shame, because collaboration offers amazing opportunity to growing your chocolate business. In this supercut of the Collaboration series from early 2026, w...

Bean to Barstool Redux: Vintage but still relevant conversations from the archives without all the extra narration. Just classic interviews from really cool people in craft chocolate, craft beer, and other food and beverage fields. In this edition, we talk with Arron Liu of Chocobien in Hong Kong. Chocobien is a bean to bar chocolate company that produces many truly unique bars that employ flavors...

Welcome to Bean to Barstool Bite Sized, where we spend about 5 minutes on a specific topic in craft beer, craft chocolate, or artisan drinks. Today we're talking with Caroline Houghton of Carobeans in St. Paul, Minnesota. Caroline talks about how her community came together to protect their neighbors during the immigration raids earlier this year, and the ICE Melter bar she creates to raise a...

It’s appropriate we call alcoholic drinks spirits . Fermented beverages carry with them the traditions of their homelands and the essence of their agricultural ingredients, and they’ve been used for millennia to both grieve and celebrate, to ease tensions, to bond relationships, to preserve the bounty of a harvest, to mark our hopes for the same next year. Bean to Barstool has been covering the in...

Bean to Barstool Redux: Vintage but still relevant conversations from the archives without all the extra narration. Just classic interviews from really cool people in craft chocolate, craft beer, and other food and beverage fields. In this edition, we talk with Arcelia Gallardo of Mission Chocolate in Sao Paolo, Brazil. Arcelia has taken a long and winding road to making world class chocolate in B...

Welcome to Bean to Barstool Bite Sized, where we spend about 5 minutes on a specific topic in craft beer, craft chocolate, or artisan drinks. Today we're talking with Allo Gilinsky and Rachek Benkowski of the Craft Connections Beverage Education Summit. Allo and Rachel share with us some thoughts about how to make beer education approachable for consumers. Enjoy! You can listen to the entire...

It's time for the final episode in our Media series! In this episode, David and Melinda talk through a range of topics to conclude the Media Relations for Craft Chocolate Makers series. They discuss: - Common pitfalls companies make in media relations (or let hold them back from even starting) - Crisis communications - what it means, and things to think about now before you need to later - Wh...

Welcome to Bean to Barstool Bite Sized, where we spend about 5 minutes on a specific topic in craft beer, craft chocolate, or artisan drinks. Today we're talking with David Herrick of Foundry Chocolate in New Zealand. David tells us the story behind their esteemed Whisky bars released annually. Enjoy! You can listen to the entire episode this clip is from here . You can learn more about Found...

Once you've established a line of communication with a media member, how do you maintain that relationship and communicate new story ideas to them? That's what we're going to talk about in this new episode in Bean to Barstool's Media Relations for Craft Chocolate Makers series! In part 5 today, food and beverage journalist David Nilsen talks how to maintain communication with m...

Craft beverage education is one of my passions, and I really believe that the more people learn about their favorite drinks, the more they’re able to enjoy them. Allo Gilinsky and Rachel Benkowski definitely agree. I first met this pair at last summer’s Crafted For Action conference in Atlanta, where they were co-presenting an education tasting. Since then, they’re announced the inaugural Craft Co...

Does writing a press release sound scary and overwhelming? Who do you send it to? What do you include? Which news is important enough to deserve one? Welcome to Bean to Barstool's Media Relations for Craft Chocolate Makers series! In part 4 today, journalist David Nilsen and public relations pro Melinda Guerra  talk all about press releases. What they are, when to send them, to whom to send t...

Luke Owen Smith in New Zealand has launched A Bar Apart, an organization with a corresponding emblem that certifies the quality and practices of New Zealand based craft chocolate makers. In today's episode, Luke shares what A Bar Apart is, what it means, and what he hopes it will accomplish. We’ve had Luke on the show before to talk about the craft chocolate and craft beer scenes in New Zeala...

Welcome to Bean to Barstool's Media Relations for Craft Chocolate Makers series! I’ve been a full time food and beverage journalist for about a decade now, and my wife and business partner, Melinda Guerra, has been a freelance PR professional helping brands tell their stories and connect with media for even longer than that, and in this series, we’ll be sharing what we’ve learned over our car...

Welcome to Bean to Barstool Bite Sized, where we spend about 5 minutes on a specific topic in craft beer, craft chocolate, or artisan drinks. Today we're talking with David Herrick of Foundry Chocolate in New Zealand. David takes us behind the scenes of the R&D process for developing their esteemed Whisky bars released annually. Enjoy! You can listen to the entire episode this clip is fro...

Welcome to Bean to Barstool's Media Relations for Craft Chocolate Makers series! I’ve been a full time food and beverage journalist for about a decade now, and my wife and business partner, Melinda Guerra, has been a freelance PR professional helping brands tell their stories and connect with media for even longer than that, and in this series, we’ll be sharing what we’ve learned over our car...

In this episode, host David Nilsen talks with Ava J Holmes and Fiorella Richter, the founders of Women of Cacao, a global, bilingual network uniting professionals across sectors within cacao and craft chocolate: from genetics and farming to chocolate making and science.  The work of Women of Cacao culminates each year in the Women of Cacao Summit, a hybrid virtual and in-person global gathering. A...

Welcome to Bean to Barstool's Media Relations for Craft Chocolate Makers series!  As a full time freelance journalist in food and beverage, David Nilsen has communicated with thousands of breweries, distilleries, restaurants, chocolate makers, and other businesses, and he's seen ones who maximize their relationships with media members and outlets, and ones who are leaving opportunities o...

Bean to Barstool Redux: Vintage but still relevant conversations from the archives without all the extra narration. Just classic interviews from really cool people in craft chocolate, craft beer, and other food and beverage fields. In this edition, we talk with Spencer Hyman, co-founder of Cocoa Runners. Spencer and I discuss the similarities between music and flavor, how understanding different t...

Bit of a rant today: In this bonus episode, host David Nilsen talks about his concerns around the ecological and human harms of LLM AI technology, and why he doesn't think you should use it in promoting your craft chocolate business.  Check out David's book Pairing Beer & Chocolate: A Guide to Bringing the Flavors of Craft Beer and Craft Chocolate Together. Follow Bean to Barstool on...