The Chocolate Podcast

Can chocolate change the world? Milton Hershey and George Cadbury certainly believed it could. Behind two of the world's most famous chocolate brands lies an extraordinary story of philanthropy, social reform and the ambition to build a better society through chocolate. In this episode of The Chocolate Podcast , Ed Easton and Andrew Nason of Melt Chocolates explore the fascinating history of C...

Why does Hershey's chocolate taste like vomit? And how did Milton Hershey turn a strange-tasting milk chocolate into one of the biggest chocolate brands in the world? In Part Two of the Hershey story, Ed Easton and Andrew Nason explore the invention of American milk chocolate, the science behind its distinctive flavour and the extraordinary decisions that transformed Milton Hershey's choco...

Why does American chocolate taste so different? And how did a failed candy maker become the founder of one of the biggest chocolate companies in the world? In this episode of The Chocolate Podcast, Ed Easton and Andrew Nason uncover the extraordinary story of Milton Hershey, the man who transformed American chocolate forever. Born in 1857, Hershey grew up caught between two very different parents....

How did Forrest Mars fight his way back into the family business and turn Mars into one of the most powerful companies in the world? In Part Two of the Mars story , Ed Easton and Andrew Nason are joined again by Melt’s chocolate researcher, Kitty Nason to uncover the extraordinary battle for control of the Mars chocolate empire. After the death of Frank Mars, the company didn’t simply pass to his...

How did Mars go from a failed family candy business to the beginnings of one of the biggest chocolate companies in the world? In this episode of The Chocolate Podcast , Ed Easton and Andrew Nason are joined by Melt’s Kitty to uncover the extraordinary story of Frank Mars and Forrest Mars , the father and son behind the Mars chocolate empire. From making candy at home and failed early businesses to...

In this episode of The Chocolate Podcast, Andrew & Ed Easton roleplay and discuss the life of Lope de Aguirre, a Basque conquistador who fought for Spain in Peru, who was publicly whipped for mistreating indigenous people, hunted down and murdered Judge Esquivel, then joined an El Dorado expedition led by Pedro de Ursúa. Aguirre helps overthrow and kill Ursúa, installs Fernando de Guzmán as a...

How did Captain Henry Morgan pull off one of the most audacious pirate attacks in history? In the final chapter of our story of Captain Henry Morgan, we follow the legendary privateer as he attempts the seemingly impossible: the capture of Panama City . After surviving the explosion of his own flagship, Morgan could have walked away. Instead, he assembled the largest Buccaneer force of its kind, b...

The legend of Henry Morgan continues. In Part 2 of our deep dive into the life of the world’s most famous (and misunderstood) pirate, we explore the daring raids, political maneuvers, and the surprising legacy he left behind. Was Henry Morgan a ruthless criminal or a tactical genius? From the shores of Port Royal to the heart of the Spanish Empire, we unpack the history that the textbooks often le...

In our limited series - The Chocolate Pirate Series, Ed Easton and Andrew Nason discuss Captain Henry Morgan’s role in 17th-century European power struggles that shaped the histories of sugar, plantations, and chocolate, including an account of privateers mistaking valuable cacao for “sheep’s poo.” They outline what is known and disputed about Morgan’s origins (born around 1635 in Wales, possibly...

Was Stede Bonnet really the worst pirate in history? Or has history been too harsh on the so-called "Gentleman Pirate"? In this episode of The Chocolate Podcast , in our limited series - The Chocolate Pirate Series, Andrew & Ed dive into the remarkable true story of Stede Bonnet, the wealthy Barbados plantation owner who abandoned everything to become a pirate. Unlike every famous pirate befor...

In this episode of the Chocolate Podcast of our limited series - The Chocolate Pirate Series, we are diving into the incredible life of Peter Hein —the man who went from being a "privateer" to one of the most successful and feared naval commanders in history. Most people know the name, but few know the tactical genius (and sheer luck) that defined his career. Andrew & Ed explore how Peter Hein...

In this episode of The Chocolate Channel, Ed Easton and Andrew Nason (aka "The Don Chocolier") don their armor to dive into the high-stakes world of 16th-century piracy and its surprising connection to the history of chocolate. We explore the complex legacy of Sir Francis Drake, moving beyond the "English Hero" myth to uncover his role as a privateer, slaver, and a "thorn in the side" of the Spani...

In this episode of The Chocolate Podcast, Episode 13, Season 2 we are continuing our conversation about Chocolate Pirates. This time...the Shocking Political Scandal of Captain William Kidd 🏴‍☠️⚖️ Was Captain Kidd really the "worst" pirate in history, or was he a victim of the most corrupt political scandal of the 17th century? In this episode, we break down the life and trial of William Kidd. Fr...

Did you know that the journey of your favorite chocolate bar was once written in blood? In this episode, Ed and Andrew dive deep into the ruthless 16th-century maritime world where the line between "Admiral" and "Pirate" was razor-thin. We explore the brutal legacy of Pedro Menéndez de Avilés—the founder of St. Augustine and the mastermind behind the Spanish Treasure Fleet—and his violent clash wi...

Did pirates actually drink rum, or is that just a Hollywood myth? 🏴‍☠️🍫 In this episode of the Chocolate Podcast, we sit down with guest Kitty Nason to debunk the "drunken sailor" tropes and explore the high-stakes reality of the 16th-century Caribbean. We’re moving past the cardboard cutout version of history to look at the "panoramic view" of the struggle between European pirates and the Spani...

The Chocolate Channel puts one of history's most controversial figures on trial: Christopher Columbus. While often credited with "discovering" the Americas, his role in the history of chocolate - and his actions as a state-sponsored explorer - tell a much darker story. In this episode of the Chocolate Podcast, host Ed Easton and Andrew Nason of Melt Chocolates dive into the "Columbian Exchange," e...

In this episode of The Chocolate Podcast, we dive into the fascinating debate: Should you eat chocolate in the morning for a productivity boost, or in the evening to help you sleep? Join host Ed and chocolate expert Andrew Nason as they break down the complex chemistry of cocoa - from the stimulating power of theobromine to the sleep-inducing benefits of magnesium. In this video, you’ll discover:...

In this episode of The Chocolate Podcast, we dive deep into the controversial world of "shrinkflation" and what Andrew Nason calls the "inshittification" of our favourite chocolate brands. Are the chocolate bars we loved as kids actually getting smaller, or are they just being replaced with cheaper ingredients? From the iconic Toblerone geometry fail to the petroleum-derived antioxidants in Reese’...

In this episode of The Chocolate Channel, we dive deep into the fascinating link between chocolate, creativity, and the evolution of human consciousness. We explore the "Drunk Monkey" vs. "Stoned Ape" theories and debate whether chocolate was actually the "GOAT" (Greatest of All Time) catalyst for our creative breakthroughs. If you’ve ever wondered if there’s a deeper, existential reason why we cr...

Is chocolate just a sweet treat, or is it a powerful cosmic substance? In this mind-bending episode of The Chocolate Channel, Ed and Andrew (the "Chocolate Shaman") go beyond the candy bar to explore the deep, hallucinogenic roots of cacao. We’re traveling 13.7 billion years back to the Big Bang to trace the stardust inside every cocoa bean, and then diving deep into the Amazon rainforest to uncov...

Did chocolate really begin in the Amazon rainforest? In this episode of The Chocolate Podcast, Ed Easton and Andrew Nason explore the mysterious Capybara Caves, ancient cave art, lost Amazon civilisations, and the forgotten origins of cacao. We discuss whether the first tree ever painted by humans could actually have been a cacao tree, how ancient Amazonian peoples may have cultivated chocolate lo...

Chocolate didn’t start with the Maya or Aztecs. In this episode, we go deeper into the Amazon rainforest to explore the true origins of cacao and the early civilisations that first cultivated chocolate. Ed and Andrew break down the latest thinking on cacao’s origins, from ancient Amazonian agroforestry and Terra Preta soil to the idea that the rainforest itself was a carefully engineered orchard....

What if everything you’ve been told about the Inca… is wrong? In this episode, Andrew and Ed go deep into one of the most fascinating civilisations in history - not through war or politics, but through food, science, and chocolate. From 4,000 metres up in the Andes, the Inca built an empire that could transport fresh fish from the Pacific in under 24 hours, engineer vast agricultural systems with...

In this episode of The Chocolate Podcast, we leave the chocolate yurt and head into the Melt kitchen to do something we have wanted to try for a while: recreate traditional Mayan chocolate drinks. After speaking to archaeologist Dr Ed Barnhart about the Olmec and Maya, we became slightly obsessed with one question: what did chocolate actually taste like before Europe added sugar and turned it into...

What if chocolate didn’t start as a sweet treat… but as something far stranger? On a new season of The Chocolate Podcast we go right back to the beginning — long before supermarkets, chocolate bars, or even sugar — to uncover the people who first discovered cacao and turned it into something drinkable (and possibly a little magical). We’re diving into the world of the Olmec — one of the earliest c...