TIEN GIANG-Visitors can observe the process and make a chocolate bar at The Rice Market garden during the day, at a cost of about 300,000 VND.
Ms. Nguyen Ngoc Diep, founder of alluvia chocolate brand, every weekend is excited to take each delegation to visit the cocoa garden in Hoa My hamlet, Binh Ninh commune, Cho Gao district (Tien Giang). “When it comes to this province’s specialties, Cho Gao cocoa is now a new indigenous product, compared to long-standing famous dishes such as My Tho noodles, Giong market cakes, Go Cong shrimp paste …”, Ms. Ngoc Diep said.More than 90km from Ho Chi Minh City, this cocoa garden was planted by Mr. Xuan Ron, Ms. Ngoc Diep’s father, since the early 2000s. Cocoa trees are intercropping under the shade of coconut trees and banana trees, which are also two fruits used in the process of processing chocolate finished products and serving dishes here. Cocoa grown on western soil produces chocolate that taste different from other regions of the world, and Vietnamese cocoa beans are often exported to world-famous chocolate brands. Recognizing the potential, Ms. Ngoc Diep and her husband left the street to go home, took over her father’s garden and set up a chocolate factory on site.Cocoa fruit when ripe to golden brown, will be harvested and processed to make chocolate ingots, Ms. Ngoc Diep introduced. Visitors can observe the trees, flowers and cocoa fruits aged 5-15 years in the garden with different ripeness.Guests can taste cocoa fruit picked directly from the tree. Most visitors are surprised to eat cocoa beans with a sour taste and mild aroma, and begin to curious the process to make dark chocolate ingots from these fresh white seeds.According to Ms. Diep, the process of “seeds to ingots” needs to go through 7 stages after harvesting fruits including seeding, drying, roasting seeds, fine grinding and finally liquefiing to pour molds and finished packages. Before visiting, visitors were introduced to the closed chocolate production process at the workshop. However, it is necessary to look at each stage with your eyes to visualize, a visitor said.Mr. Kelvin (France, living in Ho Chi Minh City for 4 years) said that family members are “addicted” to chocolate. Knowing that there is a chocolate factory in Tien Giang, he took his wife and children to Alluvia cocoa garden to learn about his favorite food. “The message was to taste the seeds directly before giving it to us, so I believe the product is clean and safe,” kelvin says.After visiting, the travelers of the workshop will guide each guest to pour molds by themselves, pack a chocolate bar and bring it home for free. This is a special experience that attracts children, the instructor said.At the product display area, guests are invited to taste a variety of solid and liquid chocolate flavors. Alluvia combines “home garden” with cocoa, creating chocolate unique flavors with coconut, chili, pepper, ginger, cinnamon, orange …Besides visiting the cocoa garden, visitors can also participate in folk games such as bronze fishing, pulling, fruit picking, eating pancakes … in the middle of the garden space.
Spirituality
From Ho Chi Minh City, you can reach Alluvia cocoa garden by motorbike, car, or bus (85,000 VND per turn, including a shuttle or garden transfer).
The garden is usually active on Saturdays and Sundays, from 7am to 5pm. Groups of more than 20 people are given an optional date when contacting the owner in advance.
The fee for sightseeing and experience consists of VND 200,000 for a single guest; VND 250,000 per person for groups of more than 5 people with snacks; VND 350,000 per person for a group of 20 people with snacks and shuttle buses from Ho Chi Minh City.
