A young couple from Mumbai is nurturing lofty cocoa-flavoured dreams with simple means in the idyllic hills of Uttarakhand
Sai Nair and Prachi Ojha, both 33, created the chocolate ‘factory’ in Suriyagaon
Nainital’s quieter cousin, Sattal, is a piece of paradise that still preserves every romantic notion of the Himalayan foothills, from scarlet minivets to pink kachnar flowers. What you wouldn’t quite expect from the idyllic village of Suriyagaon is A-grade artisanal chocolate. But it’s these mountains that inspired a couple from Mumbai, create beautiful chocolate in the first place. Sai Nair and Prachi Ojha, both 33, are the team behind Cochoa.
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Cocoa nibs separated from husk
“In 2018, a year after our wedding, we were on our annual mountain vacation. Sai mostly kept to himself for a couple of days, lost in thought. On day three, he told me he had decided to learn how to make chocolate,” Ojha recalls on the first sunny day after a spate of hailstorms and thundershowers in Suriyagaon last month. From that high-altitude emerged an equally lofty ambition. “Our dream is to create the best chocolate in the world, here in India,” says Nair, with a Willy Wonka glint in his eyes.
Their chocolate ‘factory’ is a spartan space dominated by two wet grinders, usually associated with idli-making in south Indian households. Roald Dahl would object to the minimalism. But Nair is an engineer by training, while Ojha is a practising lawyer, and theirs is a grown-up dream, accompanied by evolved palates and worldviews. “Absolutely anyone can get a small grinder, some cocoa beans and sugar, and make chocolate at home. It’s that easy,” Nair offers. “The flavour is in the details. The best way to do it, as I learnt, is after apprenticing with a professional chocolatier.”
Chocolate that looks like it’s from Mars
And so, their brand started life in Mumbai’s central suburbs, named after a beautiful, though elusive, Himalayan bird. “The gradual degeneration of the mountains, and nature as a whole, made us think hard about the choices we made as a business. Three months ago, we moved to the hills, whose purity we try to distil into our chocolate,” Ojha explains.
This writer has, by now, tasted a few of Cochoa’s offerings, noticing the difference between the Kerala bar and the Tamil one, and is equally surprised and thrilled by the espresso bar. Although first doubtful about the coconut pepper combination, we thought the flavours were subtle and compatible. Sinking into a cocoa trance, wondering about the provenance of these creations that can trigger powerful emotions, we are curious about the making.
Kesariya
“We have three sourcing requirements: the ingredients need to be grown organically, have exceptional flavour, and adhere to humane and conscious processes. Every time we have to source a major ingredient, we look for ethical farmers who truly care about their produce and how it is grown,” Nair shares. Fermentation forms one of the most important processes in making chocolate. Their dark chocolates gain the most from this process, since they are made using just two ingredients: cocoa beans and raw sugar. “Just like fine wine, each one is different yet absolutely amazing,”’ he promises.
The times we live in throw more challenges than opportunities, and Cochoa has had its fair share of rough ride too. “Apart from the operational challenges of any new business, our value system often presents us with roadblocks. For instance, we needed clean packaging solutions and devised an ice pack from natural materials to regulate the temperature of the chocolates in transit. The other major challenge has obviously been the pandemic. But we know we are not alone in this.” The duo locks up the chocolate factory, where the two grinders are left to work on a dark and white chocolate each. It’s a bleak time for humanity, but we walk out into the sunlight with hope, and a memory of innocence. Through all the grief and loss, what still remains is the primal impulse to create and share something beautiful with the world.
Rose
Before leaving, we ask the chocolatiers what keeps them going. “I was always sceptical about Rosa, our rose bar, although Prachi really believed in it,” Nair remembers. “And then we received a call from a client who said they had a Rataouille moment with the bar. They were transported back to their childhood, sipping on cold rose milk on a scorching day in Rajasthan. That was magic. These are the moments that we create for.”
The chocolate is available for anywhere between Rs 249 to Rs 349
To Order: https://cochoa.in/
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