Chocolate lovers will have the chance to meet the people behind New Zealand's craft chocolate this World Chocolate Day, with 15 makers from across the country coming together for a week-long pop-up in Auckland's Britomart from 7–12 July.
Taking place at Britomart's Spacefor Pavilion, the free event celebrates the launch of A Bar Apart – a new shared emblem for NZ bean-to-bar chocolate makers that will help chocolate lovers understand where their chocolate comes from and how it’s made. Visitors will have the opportunity to meet makers, enjoy complimentary tastings and learn more about the journey from cacao bean to finished bar.
For A Bar Apart founder Luke Owen Smith, the event is about helping people better understand how chocolate is made, where cacao comes from, and why transparency matters.
"There's something remarkable happening in New Zealand chocolate - a community of makers who source their cacao with care, make everything from scratch, and produce chocolate that competes with the best in the world. But walk into any shop and it's almost impossible to tell their bars apart from mass-produced chocolate from overseas. A Bar Apart exists to shine a light on bean-to-bar chocolate, and to give chocolate lovers the clarity to find, trust and enjoy what's truly made here."
The pop-up will bring together 15 makers from Auckland, Wellington, Nelson, Tauranga, Raglan, the Coromandel and the Wairarapa, offering a rare opportunity to explore the diversity of New Zealand's growing craft chocolate scene in one place.
Throughout the week, visitors will be able to enjoy complimentary tastings while speaking directly with makers about flavour, sourcing, craft and the stories behind their chocolate.
“Chocolate is capable of so much more than most people realise. Cacao offers over 400 distinct flavour notes – more than wine or coffee,” says Owen Smith.
“Every one of our makers sources specialty cacao, roasts it uniquely, and brings their own creative vision to what ends up in the bar. The variety is extraordinary – and once people taste their way through it, the supermarket chocolate aisle never looks quite the same again.”
Opening hours are Tuesday–Saturday 10am–6pm and Sunday 10am–4pm, with evening ticketed tasting events throughout the week. Learn more by visiting www.abarapart.co.
Chocolate makers:
Foundry Chocolate, Shirl & Moss Chocolate, Miann Chocolate Factory, Ao Cacao, Valura Chocolate, Raglan Chocolate, Coromandel Chocolate, Solomon’s Gold, Lucid Chocolatier, Baron Hasselhoff, Trice Chocolates, Wellington Chocolate Factory, Wonderland Chocolate, Hogarth Chocolate Makers, Be Happy Chocolate.
