Make Colombian Chocolate in Medellín: 3.5-Hour Cacao Workshop

Roast, grind, and temper cacao into your own artisanal bar on real marble.

A 3.5-hour hands-on chocolate-making class in Medellín where you roast cacao pods, grind beans into paste, and create a personalized 62% dark chocolate bar to take home. The workshop covers Colombian cacao history, traditional and modern processing techniques, and includes four to five cacao-based drinks and bites. A live guide leads the session in English or Spanish at the Chocolate House in Laureles, in the heart of the city.

The experience

The workshop runs 3.5 hours and starts with a warm welcome (hot chocolate and cheese) before you step into the cacao itself. You'll open a pod by hand, see the beans in their raw state, then move to the roasting station where you'll toast them the way Colombians do. The smell alone is the first signal that this is not a factory tour: you're doing the work, not watching someone else do it.

After roasting comes peeling, a meditative step where you crack open the beans and taste them plain. Then you grind the roasted cacao into a smooth paste, cacao liquor, using both traditional and modern equipment, and taste a spicy ancestral cacao shot along the way. By mid-workshop you've already moved through four different cacao preparations, each one tasting nothing like the next. The chocolate exfoliation (ground cacao mixed with oils for your hands) is a small surprise that breaks up the tasting rhythm.

The final stage is tempering: you'll work with refined dark 62% chocolate on real marble, learning the technique that makes chocolate snap instead of crumble. Then you personalize your own bar with molds, toppings, and flavors you choose. This is the bar you take home. If you want to make extras, you can purchase additional bars at cost and craft them the same way. The workshop closes with a cacao cocktail made with rum.

The Chocolate House sits in Laureles, central Medellín, and the space is wheelchair accessible with all surfaces and areas adapted. Public transportation options are nearby, and you'll need to arrange your own way there. The guide is live and speaks English or Spanish, and the team will help you photograph your work and your finished bar.

What’s included

• One artisanal 62% chocolate bar you make and personalize with toppings and molds.
• workshop materials including apron, utensils, and molds.
• four to five cacao-based drinks and bites (warm chocolate with cheese, spicy cacao shot, flavored cacao water, and cacao cocktail with rum).
• photography assistance from the team to capture your work.
• and WiFi access during the session.

Before you book

Days and timesEvery dayDepartures at 09:00, 14:00 and 18:00

Book up to1h before

AgesAdult (16 and older) · Child (5 to 15 years) · Infant (under 5): free

GroupUp to 20

Live guideEnglish

Meeting point and pickupNo hotel pickup: you go to the meeting point. Ends back at the starting point.

Cancellation and refundsFree cancellation up to 24 h before the start. After that, no refund.

Prices and times updated 3 days ago

Good to know

Wheelchair accessibleAccessible transportStroller-friendlyInfant seats availablePublic transport nearby

Operated by Colombian Cacao Experience

Is this one for you?Join a small group of chocolate makers if you want to learn cacao from pod to bar without a factory-tour feel: the hands-on roasting, grinding, and tempering mean you're doing the work yourself, not standing behind glass. Book this if you're curious about Colombian cacao culture and want to take home something you actually made.

Traveler reviews

4.98★★★★★★★★★★

617 verified traveler reviews

5 ★610

4 ★4

3 ★1

2 ★1

1 ★1

Read all the reviews ›

Top questions

Can children come?

Yes. Ticket types: Child (5 to 15 years); Infant (under 5): free.

What does the 3.5-hour workshop actually include to taste?

You'll taste four to five cacao-based drinks and bites throughout the session: a warm welcome chocolate with cheese, a spicy ancestral cacao shot, a refreshing flavored cacao water, and a final cacao cocktail with rum, plus the chocolate you make and temper yourself.

Do I need any chocolate-making experience to join this class?

No experience is required. The workshop is fully hands-on and teaches you every step from roasting the raw cacao pod through tempering the finished chocolate bar on marble, with a live guide walking you through each stage.

What happens to the chocolate bar I make? Can I take it home?

You create and personalize your own artisanal 62% chocolate bar during the workshop and take it home with you. If you want to make additional bars beyond the one included, you can craft them for an extra cost.

How do I get to the Chocolate House in Laureles?

The Chocolate House is located in Laureles, the heart of Medellín, with public transportation options nearby. You'll need to arrange your own transportation to the workshop. The team can provide the address and directions when you book.

Is this workshop suitable if the weather is bad?

Yes. The entire workshop is indoors at the Chocolate House, so it runs rain or shine regardless of weather outside.