Willie's Wonky Chocolate Factory and Willie's Cacao
An exercise in good chocolate and mad men! Willie would of course and we love him for it - and you would too if you get to taste his range of chocolate bars and cooking barrels that we stock in our shop and through our online store. Willie Harcourt-Cooze may have a wonky chocolate factory but the end result is anything but wonky - in fact we would go as far as to say it's some of the best chocolate we have ever tasted (apart from BullRush of course) and then some. That's why we are the only ones South of the Equator stocking the stuff...so if you want some, get in quick...it sells fast! We also stock Willie's marvelous chocolate cookbook. And the man himself? Well, he's how shall we put it...eccentric! Born to a Burmese father and Irish mother, his father fled Burma during the Second World War. When Willie was four the family settled in Ireland, where his father started farming. They bought a small island off the southwest coast and lived a self-sufficient life Willie attended school in Waterford and then in Cork. At the age of 16 moved to London to continue his studies. During a night out with friends, Willie was stabbed; a short time later his father died.Deciding life was too short and had to be enjoyed, aged 17 he was a tea boy for Wolf Holland, and took a succession of jobs that encompassed decorator, restaurateur, a partner in a Night Club. He ran various companies and worked for Manpower for two years carrying plaster boards. While considering becoming a property developer, he went travelling in South America. In 1993 after a tip-off from a beach umbrella rental friend, he discovered the 1,000 acres (400 ha) cocoa hacienda El Tesoro (meaning treasure in Spanish), in Choroni. |
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Having known the model Tania Coleridge while resident in London, Willie flew to her home in Los Angeles and propose. After marrying, they honeymooned, trekking on horseback in Venezuela where they fell in love with El Tesoro. They returned to London for a year.
They eventually decided to sell his flat in London, and emigrated to Venezuela to purchase El Tesoro. They planted more than 50,000 cacao trees of the Criollo cultivar, and built up an eco-tourism venture. In 1998 he started making 100% cacao bars for locals from the farm, with moulds made from a clay pipe. In 2008, after being falsely accused, investigated and cleared by the regime of Hugo Chavez for exploitation of locals.
Relocating to a rented property in Devon, England, after several years of assembling suitable equipment, and the resumption of cocoa farming, he began production in 2007 in Uffculme, Devon, filmed by Channel4. In 2008 the TV show was recommissioned for a second series, the follow-up series Willie's Chocolate Revolution: Raising the Bar, aired on Channel 4 over three consecutive nights, 7-9 April 2009. This followed Willie's attempt to introduce a high-cacao chocolate bar, "Delectable", to the British market.
And if you're really craving good chocolate make sure you buy some of our 72% Cacao Bars where we combine top quality bitter chocolate with cacao nibs. One piece will have you energised in no time. It's fantastic stuff. Bex and I have been living off it for the past two months and can swear by it!
