There’s something grounding about making chocolate in the cool air of Baguio. At John Hay Hotels, the scent of roasted cacao mingles with pine, and for a moment, you’re connected to a tradition that began long before craft chocolates became a trend.
The hotel has partnered with Angeleah Montilde, founder of Kokomo Chocolate, to offer artisan chocolate-making workshops that immerse guests in the legacy of Cordillera cacao.
Montilde, based in Baguio, has built Kokomo around working with smallholder farmers in Benguet, Mt. Province, and surrounding communities—families who have nurtured heirloom cacao trees for generations. Some of these varieties are believed to trace back to the Criollo beans brought by the Spanish in the 17th century, prized for their distinct flavor profiles.
The workshops, held in the serene settings of John Hay Hotels, take guests through cacao’s journey from highland soil to delicately crafted bars. Participants are guided in roasting, grinding, and tempering single-origin chocolate. They experience tasting rituals, learn about zero-waste production, and see how each step of the process supports local livelihoods.
The sound of tempered chocolate snapping, the scent of roasted beans mixing with the mountain breeze, and the stories passed down by farming families make the sessions as much about connection as they are about craft.
For John Hay Hotels, this collaboration is part of its purposeful luxury initiative under Landco Lifestyle Ventures.
“Purposeful luxury means every experience must have soul,” says Erickson Y. Manzano, President and CEO of Landco Pacific Corporation and Landco Lifestyle Ventures. “Sustainability, heritage, and storytelling aren’t marketing words for us. They’re what make these chocolate workshops special. Guests don’t just taste chocolate here; they taste the Cordilleras.”
For Montilde, the partnership is a way to honor the people and traditions behind every bean.
“Chocolate, for me, is ancestral,” she shares. “It’s a story of heirloom cacao, the rituals that surround it, and the communities who nurture it. When guests temper chocolate with their own hands, they feel its rhythm. They understand its roots, giving voice to the quiet history and heritage of the Cordilleras.”
Kokomo’s approach goes beyond flavor. It’s a movement rooted in sustainability, cultural preservation, and community support. By sourcing beans exclusively from smallholder farms, Montilde ensures that cacao farming remains viable for the next generation. The collaboration with John Hay Hotels aligns with this vision, adding depth to the brand’s commitment to immersive experiences that enrich both guests and the places they visit.
This series of workshops is part of a broader initiative by John Hay Hotels to offer meaningful encounters with the region’s culture, from collaborations with Baguio’s Mountain Man to environmental practices inspired by the Cordilleras. Each activity invites visitors to engage with the land, its people, and its stories—turning a stay in Baguio into something more enduring.
