The Spirits-Infused Bars of Goodnow Farms Chocolate
by David Nilsen
The name Goodnow Farms has two meanings for the Massachusetts bean to bar chocolate maker. The first is a reference to the historic farm where founders Monica and Tom Rogan live and run their business out of a barn that’s more than 225 years old. The second is a nod to the cacao farmers and farm workers who produce the beans for their bars in places like Guatemala, Ecuador, and Mexico. A reverence for cacao beans—and the direct relationships with farmers through which they source them—is at the heart of Goodnow’s chocolate, even in the case of inclusion bars.
Goodnow Farms is known for both elegant single origin bars and and thoughtful inclusion bars, and even when they’re formulating the latter, they have the character of cacao beans in mind. Rather than relying on a somewhat neutral blend for their inclusions, they match specific cacao origins to each bar concept, allowing the chocolate and its flavor ingredients to complement each other. Tom and Monica have done this for popular bars like their Caramelized Onions, Brown Butter, and Pure Passion Fruit, but also for their series of bars made in collaboration with local craft alcohol producers.
Boston Harbor Distillery Collaborations
Goodnow Farms is just outside Sudbury, about 30 miles northwest of Boston’s downtown waterfront, and they’ve formed a close relationship with Boston Harbor Distillery. The distillery was founded in 2012, and makes a range of spirits, several of which have made their way into Goodnow Farms bars. The Rogans soak their chosen cacao for each bar in the spirit after roasting the nibs, and then dry it back out before proceeding to make the bar.
Putnam Rye Whiskey
Goodnow’s 77% dark chocolate made with Putnam Rye Whiskey was born as a birthday present from Tom to Monica.
“I asked him to make me something special and unique and he surprised me with it,” she says. “When I tasted it, I just fell in love.”
It’s not hard to understand why. The Putnam bar showcases a balance of sweetness and structure that defines Goodnow’s approach to inclusions in general. Rather than a direct whiskey-like flavor, the bar leans more toward subtle fruit backed by warm oak notes.
“I feel like you’re eating a warm, freshly baked banana bread or fruitcake,” says Monica.
The bar is made with Esmereldas cacao from Ecuador, freshly pressed cocoa butter, and the titular spirit, which is made from a blend of barley and rye and aged in American oak barrels.
For Halloween, Goodnow Farms also makes a Demon Seed bar using Boston Harbor’s Demon Seed Whiskey, a rye whiskey made with scorpion pepper, fresh ginger, and maple syrup. The bar utilizes cacao from Boyaca, Colombia. In addition to a subtle kick from the ginger and peppers, it has notes of dried fruit and comforting maple sugar.
Lawley’s Rum
Monica says she was surprised by the banana and fruit notes from the Putnam Rye Whiskey bar—flavors you might except to result from rum rather than whiskey. When they began formulating their Lawley’s Rum bar made with Boston Harbor’s Lawley’s Dark Rum, they expected something similar. They got a variety of results from their test batches, but were surprised the one they liked the most was very rum-forward, leaning into the spiritous flavors, rather than those more delicate fruit notes.
Boston Harbor makes their spirits in a building once occupied by George Lawley’s & Sons Shipyard, who built America’s Cup-winning yachts and, during World War II, minesweepers. The distillery makes dark and light versions of the rum in the ship builders’ honor, and the dark version used in this bar is made with 100% molasses and is “vatted”, meaning used wooden staves and pieces are added to the un-aged rum to give it an oaky character of vanilla, spices, and caramel.
Goodnow uses the same Ecuadorian cacao for this bar they use in the Rye Whiskey bar.
Seasonal Cider Collab
Goodnow has made a Spiced Apple Cider bar for years using apples from their property and cider from a local farm. This year, they decided to get into the “spirit” of the season even more by partnering with their friends at Downeast Cider in East Boston. Downeast is known for making unfiltered ciders, and Goodnow made their Unfiltered Hard Cider bar using Downeast Overboard, a strong, 8% ABV variety.
The bar utilizes Dominican Republic cacao from Zorzal Reserve, a typically fruity origin that complements the apples in the cider. The bar is made using the same soaked-nibs process used in making the bars with whiskey and rum. This was a first time collaboration, and Downeast had the Rogans in for an event in September to release the bar alongside the cider.
“I think that it’s a nice balance of chocolate with the tart flavor of freshly harvested apples and still a little bit of that breadiness that you get when you have a cider,” says Monica. “I feel strongly about making chocolate that tastes like what you say it tastes like.”
All of the bars discussed here are available on the Goodnow Farms website, though the Unfiltered Hard Cider and Demon Seed bars are limited and won’t last for long.
If you want to here Monica talk more about these bars and others, listen to our full interview with here in a recent episode of the Bean to Barstool podcast:
