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Cacao for beer & spirits

We know cacao.
You know brewing.

Breweries use Chocolate Alchemy’s cacao to bring their own ideas to life. Hear what they’ve learned, find a starting point, or talk with us about the right cacao for your next batch.

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Get help choosing cacao

Tell us what you’re brewing and the character you’re after. We’ll help you choose a bean or nib product.

Talk with us
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Start with Brewer’s Blend

Developed specifically for brewing, our blend and roast profile give you a starting point for your trials.

Explore Brewer’s Blend
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Choose your own cacao

Have an experiment in mind? Browse our cacao for beer and spirits, choose an origin, and start exploring.

Browse the cacao selection
Hear from other breweries

From Nibs to Pints: A discussion on the Journey of Craft Beer Brewing with Cacao

In this extended talk with Matt Van Wyk, Alchemist John explores the process of taking cacao beans to nibs and onward to delicious pints of craft beer. Throughout a horizontal tasting of Alesong’s Rhino Suit Imperial Milk Stout on different cacao nibs, they discuss how the various origins, roasting profiles and processes affect the final result. A great place to start if you’re into home brewing or a brewer looking to break into Cacao and Brewing.

Breweries Working With Our Cacao

Alesong Brewing and Blending

Website

See the above video for full details about how Alesong is working our Cacao products into some amazing brews.

Cigar City Brewing

cigarcitybrewing.com →
Cigar City Brewing logo
“This year, we plan on using a combination of several Chocolate Alchemy single origin nibs to build more chocolate complexity in our 2023 vintage of Hunahpu’s Imperial Stout, an imperial stout that incorporates cacao nibs, several varieties of chile peppers and baking spices, which creates a dessert mole-like experience.”
Cigar City Brewing
Wayne Wambles
Wayne Wambles
Mark LaPierre
Mark LaPierre
Sean Sasser
Sean Sasser
Austin Jevne
Austin Jevne
Forager Brewery logo

Forager Brewery

foragerbrewery.com →
“At Forager Brewpub and Humble Forager Brewing company, we love brewing with cacao nibs. What Chocolate Alchemy has done for our beers cannot be explained in only words. You have to taste the difference.”
What they told us about the nibs
  • Forager Brewpub and Humble Forager Brewing Company love brewing with cacao nibs
  • Chocolate Alchemy's impact on their beers is significant and noticeable
  • Real cacao nibs provide superior chocolate flavor compared to alternatives
  • Utilize Chocolate Alchemy's diverse cacao selection to enhance various aspects of their beers
  • Brewing philosophy: Create flavors using only real ingredients
  • Trust Chocolate Alchemy to roast nibs perfectly
  • Purchase roasted nibs and perform in-house "sanitization" before adding to beer
  • Taste beer hourly during nib contact, transferring off nibs when desired flavor is achieved
  • Practice contributes to the desired impact of roasted nibs in their beers

Holy City Brewing

Holy City Brewing logo
holycitybrewing.com →
“ I pick which nibs to use based on the detailed flavor profiles provided on the Chocolate Alchemy website that match the flavor profile of the beer we are brewing. ”
Holy City Brewing
Working notes
  1. 01Selecting nibs: Based on detailed flavor profiles on Chocolate Alchemy website
  2. 02Matching nib flavor profile to beer being brewed
  3. 03Process: Steeping nibs in bright tank for 48 hours at 52F, then lowering temperature to carbonate
  4. 04Flavor impact: Imparts citrus, coffee, and chocolate flavors depending on the nibs used
Chris Brown
Chris Brown

Nod Hill Brewery

nodhillbrewery.com →
Nod Hill Brewery logo
“In the spring we release “Depth Effect”, an imperial stout with cacao nibs and vanilla. In the beginning of December we release “Calentador”, another imperial stout, this time with cacao nibs, chipotle peppers, and cinnamon. ”
Nod Hill Brewery
Kyle Acenowr
Kyle Acenowr
Ron Grazioso
Ron Grazioso
PostModern Spirits logo

PostModern Spirits

postmodernspirits.com →
“the alcohol and the cacao flavor compounds are vaporized and distilled so we collect essentially chocolate flavored alcohol”
What they told us about the nibs
  • Small distribution in the eastern half of TN
  • Cacao liqueur sold in bulk to another distillery
  • Cacao Liqueur ingredients: Roasted cacao nibs, alcohol, sugar
  • Process: 100 lbs of cacao nibs and alcohol loaded into the still
  • Alcohol extracts flavor compounds from cacao nibs during boiling
  • Chocolate-flavored alcohol collected through distillation
  • Bitter compounds minimized by cutting distillation short
  • Reduced sugar content due to limited bitter compounds
  • Post-distillation: Aged in used malt whiskey barrels for a few months
  • Aging imparts sweet, smoky flavors and a slight tan/brown color

Yachats Brewing

Yachats Brewing logo
yachatsbrewing.com →
“My experiences with chocolate alchemy over the last ten or so years have always been positive.”
Yachats Brewing
Working notes
  1. 01Runs two breweries using Chocolate Alchemy nibs
  2. 02Positive experiences over the last 10 years
  3. 03Exclusively uses Chocolate Alchemy nibs in full batches
  4. 04Has both done in-house roasting, and purchased roasted nibs
  5. 05Now orders pre-roasted and winnowed nibs due to time constraints
  6. 06Ethanol extraction followed by blending
  7. 07Chocolate Almond Porter coming out in February
  8. 08Plans to work on a custom roast or blend in the future

If you’re brewing with our products and would like to be featured

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Brewer’s Blend

Origin: Earth
Region: Tropic of Cancer
Type: A little of this, a little of that.
Certifications: Unique
Year: 2020 - 2021
Purpose:  All your fermentation and brewing needs

I've developed this blend and roast profile to make it as easy as possible.  I highly recommend a double addition, one in the boil and the 2nd, if you want to add depth, in the secondary.  In the mash doesn't do much and in the Primary you risk funky flavors.

It would be nice if it was super easy to get chocolate and cacao flavor into beers....but alas, it isn't.  What I will say is that it takes more than you think it might.  4 oz in 5 gallons just won't cut it.  8-16 oz is much closer.

We wrote an article all about brewing with nibs for chocolate flavor in beer.  You can find it here.  Brewing with Chocolate and Cacao.  If you are looking for the "Dark roasted nibs" mentioned in the article, they are nibs of Ancillary Darkness

Request a Sample / Start a Conversation

Tell us what you’re brewing and the cacao character you’re looking for. You know your beer; we can help with bean and nib selection, starting points, and sample pricing.

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