Edinburgh: Chocolate Making Tour & Tasting at Chocolatarium

4.97

(4223 reviews)

What’s the experience like?

The first thing that hit me at the Chocolatarium in Edinburgh wasn’t the look of the place—it was the smell. Warm, sweet, but not cloying—kind of like standing near a bakery on a cold day. Our guide, Isla, handed around this weird, knobbly pod (the cacao fruit), and I’ll admit, I had no idea what to expect. She cracked it open and let us touch the beans inside—soft and sticky, nothing like the chocolate bars you get at Tesco. You could tell she’d done this tour about a million times but still seemed genuinely into it. There were kids in our group who got way more excited than I did about making their own chocolate Nessie. I went for an Edinburgh Castle shape—mine came out a bit lopsided, but whatever.

We moved into this little tasting room lined with jars and trays—over 30 kinds of chocolate from all over. Isla dared us to try haggis chocolate (I did… not my favorite), then there was Japanese yuzu and some wild chilli one that made my lips tingle for ages. My partner picked up on this gin-infused square that actually tasted like juniper berries. The whole time Isla kept tossing in facts about Scottish chocolate makers and how they roast beans differently here compared to South America. At one point she asked if anyone knew how long it takes to get from bean to bar—I guessed way too short; turns out it’s weeks.

Wrapping up our homemade bars felt oddly satisfying—like packing up tiny souvenirs you actually made yourself instead of just buying them last minute at the airport. The whole tour lasted about 90 minutes, but honestly, I lost track of time somewhere between laughing at my partner’s attempt at “Greyfriar’s Bobby” in chocolate form and trying to pick my favorite flavor (still thinking about that yuzu one). If you’re after something genuinely hands-on in Edinburgh with a local guide who knows her stuff—and you want to walk out with sticky fingers and your own lumpy chocolate castle—this is it.