There’s something about chocolate that brings out the maker in all of us..

You won’t want to miss these sessions at the Midwest Craft Chocolate Festival 2025.

At the Midwest Craft Chocolate Festival 2025, creativity is on full display — not just at the tasting tables, but in the workshops that invite you to play, paint, pour, and imagine. These sessions are where chocolate becomes more than a food — it becomes an art form, a medium, a muse.

Maybe it’s the way it melts, the way it surprises, or the fact that chocolate can be both playful and grounding at the same time. Whichever you’re looking for, these sessions are for anyone who loves hands-on chocolate experiences. From crafting edible art to exploring cacao’s roots, you’ll discover new ways to taste, make, and imagine with chocolate

Why We Love These Sessions:

• Join expert makers and educators for interactive chocolate workshops
• Explore artistry, sustainability, and sensory learning through chocolate
• Learn how to make chocolate at home or paint your own bonbons
• All included with your Midwest Craft Chocolate Festival 2025 pass

So check the schedule, mark your favorites, and get ready to experience chocolate from the ground up.

Craft, Flavor & Creativity Fuelled Workshops at the Midwest Craft Chocolate Festival.

If you’ve ever wanted to understand the “craft” in craft chocolate, this lineup is where to start:

1. Serious crafting for casual enjoyment – the KESSHŌ way of making bean to bar Asian-inspired inclusion chocolates

Host: KESSHŌ Chocolate – Liang Wang

When: Saturday, 22 November 2025 11:30 AM

Why It’s Worth a Stop:

Ever wondered what happens when meticulous chocolate craftsmanship meets playful, cross-cultural flavor? Liang Wang, founder of KESSHŌ Chocolate, invites you to discover exactly that. Known for her elegant (and adventurous!) bean-to-bar chocolates with Asian-inspired inclusions — think yuzu, black sesame, matcha, and beyond — Liang brings a thoughtful yet approachable energy to the craft.

This session explores how tradition, creativity, and curiosity come together in chocolate that’s as refined as it is joyful. Expect to taste, learn, and leave inspired to see inclusion bars not just as treats, but as stories told through flavor.

Photo courtesy of KESSHŌ Chocolate – Liang Wang and the Midwest Craft Chocolate Festival

2. Edible Masterpieces, Creating Hand-Painted Art

Host: Lohcally Artisan Chocolate – Denise Steele

When: Saturday, 22 November 2025 2:30 PM

Why It’s Worth a Stop:

Chocolate meets color, texture, and artistry in this hands-on demo from Denise Steele of Lohcally Artisan Chocolate. From shimmering finishes to hand-painted bonbons, you’ll see how chocolate can become both a treat and a canvas.

Perfect for anyone who loves creativity in the kitchen, this session proves that eating with your eyes is just as important as tasting with your tongue. You’ll walk away inspired — and maybe ready to paint your next bar.

3. Food Wisdom and the Honey Bee

Host: Mademoiselle Miel – Susan Brown

When: Saturday, 22 November 2025 10:30 AM

Why It’s Worth a Stop:

Chocolatier and beekeeper Susan Brown of Mademoiselle Miel brings her rooftop hives and artistic vision to this session on flavor and nature. Inspired by her first creation — a cup of unsweetened chocolate filled with honey — Susan explores the beauty of contrasts: bitter and sweet, simple and refined.

Named one of North America’s Top 10 Chocolatiers, she reminds us that great chocolate, like life, is best when rooted in authenticity and balance

4. You Can Make Chocolate at Home!

Host: CocoaTown – Andal Balu

When: Saturday, 22 November 2025 12:30 PM

Why It’s Worth a Stop:

Think bean-to-bar is only for professional makers? Think again. The team from CocoaTown shows just how accessible chocolate-making can be with the right tools, ingredients, and a bit of curiosity.

From roasting to refining, you’ll see each step in action and learn how to start experimenting in your own kitchen. Whether you’re a hobbyist, a culinary student, or just ready to get your hands chocolatey, this session will spark your next delicious obsession.

5. From Fjords to Flavor: Enjoying Chocolate from Nordic Bean-to-Bar Makers

Host: Fjorden Sjokolade – Kjell Inge Vestre

When: Saturday, 22 November 2025 1:30 PM

Why It’s Worth a Stop:

Norway’s Kjell Inge Vestre, founder of Fjorden Sjokolade, brings the cool clarity of the North into every bar he makes. After 25 years in public health, Kjell followed his passion and launched Fjorden Sjokolade in 2023 — inspired by the incredible flavor range found in fine cacao. In this session, he shares how Norway’s landscape and his love of honest, simple ingredients shape his chocolate.

Expect clean, expressive flavors and a tasting experience that feels as pure as the fjords themselves — proof that great chocolate, like good wine or coffee, tells a story of place and curiosity.

Photo courtesy of Fjorden Sjokolade – Kjell Inge Vestre

6. From Bean to Barstool and Back

Host: David Nilsen, Bean to Barstool
When: Saturday, 22 November 2025 12.30PM

Why It’s Worth a Stop:

Writer, beer expert, and chocolate storyteller David Nilsen bridges two beloved worlds — craft beer and bean-to-bar chocolate.
In this flavorful session, he explores how fermentation, terroir, and sensory storytelling connect the two. Expect tasting notes, pairings, and insights into how shared values of craft and community shape both cultures.

Insider Tip: If you’re keen for more Beer and Bean to Bar flavors, check out David’s Add-On Session Beer & Spirits-Infused Craft Chocolate Tasting.

See Here for More Details and See Here to Purchase Tickets.

Why These Workshops Belong on Your Craft Chocolate Schedule

What makes these sessions so special isn’t just the expertise — it’s the energy. Each one blends creativity, craftsmanship, and community in a way that reminds you why we fall in love with chocolate in the first place.

These are the workshops where ideas turn into flavor, where inspiration meets indulgence, and where you can see that the future of chocolate is as imaginative as it is delicious.

Photo courtesy of Beanstalkr

Keep Exploring the Chocolate Series

If you loved this, don’t stop here — the story continues:

• Flavor, Craft & Creativity: Serious Fun for Serious Flavor – YOU ARE HERE!! Discover the hands-on artistry behind chocolate making, from painting to tempering.
• From Bean to Bar to Story: The Workshops That Bring Chocolate to Life – Meet the farmers and makers redefining craft chocolate from Ecuador to Madagascar.
• The Chocolate Workshops You Can’t Miss at the Midwest Craft Chocolate Festival 2025 – A full overview of the lineup and how to plan your perfect festival weekend.

For More details:

1. See our headline article here: The Midwest Craft Chocolate Festival 2025: Small Batch, Big Flavor
2. And this article here details the full Midwest Craft Chocolate Festival 2025 schedule – and check out their website for more details: Midwest Craft Chocolate Festival Schedule

So check the schedule!

Pick your sessions, secure your pass – let us know what you get up to!

Want More Like This?

Want more tasting guides like this? Check out our Midwest Craft Festival dedicated page and sign up as a chocolate eater for insider picks, single-origin deep dives, and chocolate reviews from every corner of the craft world. Thanks for traveling with us — see you on the festival floor.

Where to next?

If you’re off to the Midwest Craft Chocolate Festival 2025, we recommend:

And if you’re curious, we recommend:

And if you’re still not so sure, check out what events or makers are in your area:

Talk Beans with us!

Got any questions? Feedback? Want to hi say? Reach out below – we’re always happy to chat!

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