Honoring LACMA’s New David Geffen Galleries with a Chocolate Tasting Event
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Time to read 2 min
When the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) invited us to create a unique chocolate tasting celebrating the opening of their new David Geffen Galleries, we knew this wouldn’t be just about sampling our bestsellers. Events like these call for something much more memorable, and we were excited to bring the museum’s story to life through flavor.
The David Geffen Galleries, designed by Swiss architect Peter Zumthor, opened their doors in June and house a collection of art distinctly global in nature. Rather than organizing the art by chronology or geographic territory, the exhibit is designed around the world’s four major bodies of water: Pacific Ocean, Caribbean Sea, Indian Ocean, and Mediterranean Sea. The galleries were intentionally designed like this to emphasize cultural links between regions, highlighting connection and community rather than political or geographic divisions - an approach that feels especially fitting for Los Angeles where diversity and shared cultural influence are part of the city’s identity.
Craft chocolate, much like art, is an expression of place. Every bar reflects the land where the cacao was grown and the traditions and vision of the people who helped transform it into craft chocolate. Our mission was to curate a tasting that complemented LACMA’s vision through taste.
Curating Chocolate From Around the World
Rather than simply assembling a collection of our favorite bars, we designed the tasting as a sensory journey, and selected craft chocolate with origins, ingredients, flavor profiles, and makers represented throughout the galleries.
The Caribbean
We chose the first bar to level set the tasting and introduce participants to the pure taste of cacao, as most people have never tried unsweetened chocolate before and discover they enjoy it. We also selected an origin-made bar that beautifully reflects the flavors of its island, Jamaica.
Karü Chocolates - 100% Single Origin Dark Chocolate (Colombia)
Likkle More - Thyme & Orange Peel in 70% Dark Chocolate (Jamaica)
The Pacific Ocean
These bars celebrated the vibrant flavors from Latin America and the Pacific Islands.
Cuna de Piedra - 73% Comalcalco with Hibiscus Flowers (Mexico)
Mānoa Chocolate - 50% Dark Milk with Passion Fruit (Hawai'i)
To'ak - 65% Alchemy Grande with Spicy Tucupí (Ecuador)
The Mediterranean Sea
The next two bars on our tasting incorporated ingredients from the broader area’s culinary traditions.
The Indian Ocean
These bars reflected both the cacao origins bordering the Indian Ocean and the makers bringing this region to life through chocolate.
Each bite was a uniquely tailored way for participants to explore the exhibition and experience how geography, culture, art, and flavor intersect.
More Than a Chocolate Tasting
Creative challenges like these are especially rewarding for us because craft chocolate is more than just delicious chocolate. It’s a (very tasty) tool for storytelling and elevating immersive experiences. For LACMA, that meant translating the gallery’s central narrative into a guided tasting experience that encouraged discovery and connection.
It's the kind of collaboration we love most: taking a client's mission and expressing it through exceptional craft chocolate, and we’re grateful to have had the opportunity to play a role in celebrating the David Geffen Galleries. To learn more about LACMA and how to visit, click here.
Whether we're partnering with museums, brands, nonprofits, or corporate teams, our goal is always the same - to create meaningful experiences people remember long after they’ve sampled their last bite of chocolate.
Have a story you’d like to tell through chocolate, or interested in creating a custom chocolate tasting for your organization or event? We'd love to collaborate on an experience designed specifically around your story, audience, and goals. Reach out to us at info@chocolatedispensary.com to learn more.
