Here, with the guidance of a house chocolatier, a tree-to-bar, chocolate-making workshop will give you the skills to create a tasty confection using local Trinitario cocoa beans. With a mortar and pestle, you'll grind the nibs into liquefied chocolate. During the process, which can take up to 45 minutes, desired flavorings may be added to create a unique bar. You'll also learn about the nutritional benefits of Trinitario chocolate. During the 20-minute cooling-down period that allows the chocolate to solidify, you might savor a beverage from the Cellar Bar or browse the duty-free gift shop. Then, class resumes, and the end result is a beautiful dark chocolate bar that is wrapped in foil for you to take home as perhaps your most distinctive souvenir of Saint Lucia.
Perched on a hill overlooking Castries is the 19th-century Howelton Estate, home to one of the island's premier chocolate factories.