Valley Isle Chocolate: The Maui Bean-to-Bar Brand You Need to Know
Valley Isle Chocolate:
the Maui brand you need to know.
Small batch. Single origin. Made with aloha right here on the island.
Photo courtesy of Valley Isle Chocolate
The bougiest request the Maui Makai team has ever made was to have Valley Isle Chocolate as the chocolate for Camp Makai. We're so lucky they were on board. And with two homemade graham crackers and a pan of homemade marshmallows, we made what we believe to be the bougiest and most delicious s'more ever made.
But how did I find Valley Isle? Well, you can't miss their delicious spread at most Maui Farmers Markets — catch them at the Wailea Village Farmers Market on Tuesday mornings from 8–11am, and at the Upcountry Farmers Market on Saturdays from 7–11am. And they have been our cacao of choice for many cacao ceremonies where we sip the pure, unsweetened stuff under the moonlight and let it open our hearts as the Aztecs, Olmecs, and Mayans believed it to.
Not just making chocolate on Maui. Growing it.
— Maui Makai on Valley Isle Chocolate
Who They Are
A tight-knit trio,
a home kitchen, a dream.
Valley Isle Chocolate was founded in 2021 by Samual Schwartzkopf, Susan Schwartzkopf, and Sam Phillips — a tight-knit trio who followed a dream of living on Maui and working with plants and food. After years of living and working apart, they each found their way to the island and started exactly how the best things start: in a home kitchen, with hard work and fine ingredients.
What began as small batches sold at the Kō Mahiʻai Mākeke Farmers Market in Kīhei has grown into a brand now stocked in over 50 stores across Hawaiʻi and the mainland US. You can also find them in person at their Kahului location at 60 E Wakea Ave. That growth didn't happen by accident. It happened because the chocolate is genuinely extraordinary.
Bean-to-Bar
They control every step.
It shows in every bite.
Valley Isle controls every step of their process — from sourcing the cacao beans to roasting, refining, and tempering in small batches right here on Maui. That's what bean-to-bar means, and it's rare. Most chocolate companies buy pre-made chocolate and melt it down. Valley Isle starts from the actual bean, which means complete control over flavor, quality, and every single ingredient.
They source cacao from both Hawaiʻi and around the world — working with Hawaiian farms in Kona, on Oʻahu's North Shore, and in Hilo, as well as excellent international origins. They're currently sourcing new and exciting cacao origins and — perhaps most excitingly — planting a cacao orchard in Hāna. The roots here go deep. They're not just making chocolate on Maui. They're growing it.
The Products
30 products.
All $10. All worth it.
Kona Coconut Mocha
🥉 2025 Academy of Chocolate Bronze Award Winner
Made with cacao grown in the Kona region on the Big Island, topped with crunchy bits of 100% Maui-grown coffee from Maui Oma Coffee Roasting Co. Vegan-friendly, smooth, and deeply satisfying.
Big Island Mac Nut 70% Dark Chocolate
🥈 2025 Academy of Chocolate Silver Award Winner
A foundation of 70% dark chocolate made with Costa Esmeraldas cacao, topped with Big Island macadamia nuts and Hawaiian sea salt. This one has won awards and deserves every single one.
Golden Milk Spice Coconut White Chocolate
Sweet, spicy, vegan-friendly coconut white chocolate inspired by a traditional Golden Milk recipe and made with their own Maui-grown turmeric. Creative, delicious, unlike anything else.
Kona Hawaii 70% Dark Chocolate
Their top bestseller. Pure, clean, single origin Kona cacao. For the purist who wants to taste exactly what Hawaiian cacao tastes like with nothing in the way.
Coconut Matcha Macadamia White Chocolate
Creamy coconut white chocolate with matcha and macadamia. Maui in a bar.
Hawaiian Chili Pepper 70% Dark
For the person who likes their chocolate with a little fire.
Cacao Teas, Nibs + More
Cacao orange peel chamomile tea, cacao peppermint lavender tea, cacao nibs, roasted cacao beans, brewing chocolate. Valley Isle is a full cacao company, not just a chocolate bar brand.
The ceremonial cacao — our monthly ritual. 🌕
Valley Isle Chocolate's Drinking Chocolate — their ceremonial-grade cacao, available in a 12oz bag for $40 — is what we use in our own cacao ceremonies every single month here at Maui Makai.
Ceremonial cacao is a whole different relationship with chocolate than eating a bar. When prepared intentionally — as a warm drink, in ceremony, with presence — it becomes something deeply nourishing. Cacao has been used for thousands of years in Mesoamerican tradition as a heart-opener, a plant medicine, a ritual of connection by the Aztecs, Olmecs, and Mayans. Valley Isle's drinking chocolate honors that tradition beautifully — rich, complex, made from carefully sourced cacao with absolutely nothing unnecessary in it.
If you've never experienced a cacao ceremony, this product is a beautiful way to start exploring. And if you have — you already know. This is the good stuff.
Shop Ceremonial Drinking Chocolate →Where to find them.
🌿 Wailea Village Farmers Market — Tuesdays, 8–11am
🌿 Upcountry Farmers Market — Saturdays, 7–11am
🏪 Hawaiian Moons — 2411 S Kīhei Rd, Kīhei
🏭 Kahului Location — 60 E Wakea Ave, Suite 106, Kahului
📦 Online — valleyislechocolate.com · Free shipping on orders $60+
The Bottom Line
Valley Isle Chocolate is what happens when a tight-knit trio chooses Maui, chooses to build something real, and does it one small batch at a time. From a home kitchen to award-winning bars, from the Kīhei farmers market to 50+ stores — this is a Maui success story built on exceptional craft and genuine aloha. We're proud to support them, proud to use their ceremonial cacao in our ceremonies, and genuinely grateful this brand exists on our island.
Buy a bar. Try the ceremonial cacao. Get the gift box. Find them at @valleyislechocolate. 🍫🤙
"Not just making chocolate on Maui.
Growing it."
