There are places in Peru that exist at the edge of what maps consider worth recording. The upper Urubamba basin is one of them — a region where the Andes lose their confidence and descend, reluctantly, into something older and less legible.

I didn’t set out to build a ritual around chocolate. For years, it was simply part of my work. I sourced it, sold it, wrote about it, packed it into boxes, shipped it across countries. I knew the makers, the origins, the awards.

There’s “good” dark chocolate… and then there’s the kind that makes you stop mid-bite, blink, and wonder how cacao can taste like berries, flowers, roasted nuts, wine, citrus, or spice without a single flavoring added.