Meet the maker
Aroko
About Aroko
Aroko Chocolate was founded by Dubraska Gonzalez and Johonny Spagnolo, an Italian-Venezuelan couple based in Italy. The company is run entirely by the two of them, with both involved in every aspect of the business, from sourcing beans and making the chocolate to the packaging, sales, and storytelling.
Their mission is to showcase the remarkable diversity of Venezuelan cacao while bringing together two cultures: Venezuela’s rich cacao heritage and Italy’s tradition of craftsmanship and gastronomy. Rather than presenting ‘Venezuelan cacao’ as a single flavour, Aroko highlights the distinctive origins such as Chuao, Porcelana, Sur del Lago, Ocumare, and Choroní, allowing each to express its own character.
The name Aroko comes from the Chiama language, spoken by Indigenous communities from eastern Venezuela, and refers to a feathered headdress or crown. For Dubraska and Johonny, it reflects origin, cultural identity, and the responsibility of representing their heritage with care through chocolate.
How they became makers
Aroko began with a simple idea in 2018: to build a business around something they loved – chocolate – while sharing the story of their homeland, Venezuela. Initially, they searched for couverture made from Venezuelan cacao but struggled to find products that truly expressed the country’s extraordinary cacao diversity. During the COVID-19 pandemic, they started to study cacao more seriously and discovered the differences between regions, terroirs, genetics, traditions and flavour profiles. They realised that if they wanted to showcase Venezuelan cacao authentically, they would have to make them chocolate themselves.
As a result, they began experimenting with recipes at home during lockdown before opening their first production space in 2022. The first Aroko bars were released in early 2023; in the same year, they were named the Cioccolatiere Emergente (Rising Star in Chocolate) and both their Chuao and Porcelana bars received important recognition at both an Italian and international level at the International Chocolate Awards.
Aroko’s sourcing
Aroko’s approach to sourcing cacao begins with researching origins that interest them before establishing direct relationships with farmers wherever possible. They visit the farms, taste the cacao, hear the producers’ stories, and work together to build long-term partnerships. Depending on the producer’s size and existing agreements, they either import beans directly or work with trusted European brokers.
Their Chuao cacao comes directly from the famous coastal village, where cacao has been cultivated since 1660. The beans are harvested by the women of the community, fermented in traditional wooden boxes for four to five days, and dried in the village’s church courtyard before beginning a remarkable journey by small boats, which remains the only way in and out of the roadless village.
Their Sur del Lago Cacao is sourced through cooperatives while they work towards securing single-farm partnerships. Fermentation varies depending on the proportion of Criollo cacao in each harvest, with beans fermented in tiered wooden boxes before being sun-dried in traditional Venezuelan drying patios.
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