Bean-to-Bar Chocolate Maker Location: Provo, Utah
Website: Taste 117
Date Established: Current Owners, July 2024 (Previous Owners opened shop in Oct 2014)
Ingredients Used: 3 - Cacao, Cocoa Butter, Cane Sugar
Current Chocolate Production Output: 3-5k bars per month
Allergy Information: Made on equipment that processes milk, gluten, and
nuts.
Click here to watch the chocolate tasting recording with Grant from Taste Artisan Chocolate.
Grant’s chocolate journey didn’t begin with a grand plan; it started behind the counter. While a university student, Grant took a job as a cashier—and the first employee—at Taste, simply to make ends meet. Before long, he found himself slipping into the factory whenever possible, helping with small tasks like sorting beans and cleaning equipment. Curiosity quickly turned into obsession. In his off-hours, Grant began researching cacao origins, roasting theory, and flavor development, eventually realizing this wasn’t just a job—it was a craft he wanted to master.
Grant learned chocolate-making at the Taste factory under the original owners, initially as a third job, working only a few hours a week. Over time, particularly after one founder exited, he stepped into a more hands-on role, learning through a combination of mentorship, experimentation, and relentless practice. His first entirely solo batch—a Madagascar Dark Milk with a Chai Masala blend—was produced just before he left the company in 2017 to finish school out of state. Although he wasn’t present for its release, the bar later won a bronze award at the Academy of Chocolate and ultimately drew him back to Taste after graduation.
Some of Grant’s fondest early memories come from prototyping his first dark chocolate: ten different roast profiles, each with three conche variations, tasted and compared over weeks. That process revealed how small changes can dramatically shape flavor and instilled a confidence that continues to guide his work today.
Now, as co-owner and head chocolate maker, Grant focuses on sourcing exceptional, ethical cacao from around the world and refining every step—from roast to conche—to let each origin speak clearly. He doesn’t claim any secret techniques, but he brings a unique perspective shaped by a deep love for music, art, and storytelling, along with a carefully curated playlist or two for long production days. With over a decade in the craft, Grant sees this chapter as just the beginning. Taste is now a family business, co-owned with his parents and a longtime childhood friend, and he remains excited to keep learning about—and sharing—the world of chocolate.
