On this edition of Ag Matters Radio, Amys’ guest is Ryan Wiswesser, owner of Chugach Chocolates & Alaska Artisanal – two incredible Alaska Value-Added businesses that are focused on sourcing as much Alaska Grown and small-batch foods as possible.
https://www.radiofreepalmer.org/2018/02/06/ag-matters-01-29-2018/
AUTHOR | Kerry Nelson
When Ryan Wiswesser and his wife Emily started Alaska Artisanal back in 2012, he never would have dreamed the adventure would lead them to become owners and chocolatiers of Chugach Chocolates. The universe had its own plan. Amy sits down to learn how the two redefine what local Alaska chocolate looks like while continuing their search for Alaskan-made goods that reflect the unique tastes the state has to offer.
Love Of Alaska Turns Corporate Guy Into Local Entrepreneur
Alaska made it’s debut to the couple on a winter ski trip. A familiar love story, the two were smitten with the state and it’s entrepreneurial opportunity. During their first months up here, they spent a lot of time looking for small batch Alaska foods to send back to family. They found it to be more time consuming and difficult than they thought it should be. Why not make it easier for people here to share a piece of Alaska with those below or in other parts of the state? The two set out to do just that, and Alaska Artisanal was born.
Ryan’s connection to agriculture is more peripheral than personal. He grew up in southeast Pennsylvania and central Michigan with a father whose life was spent in ag. Though Ryan didn’t grow up on a farm, he spent a lot of time around them. Deciding to take a different route, he ended up working for a public accounting firm in finance. Perhaps it is this blend of experiences that accounts for Ryan’s passion to start a business that benefits local producers.
A Curated Showcase Of Alaska Grown
An eCommerce company, Alaska Artisanal is entirely online. Trying to make it really easy for people to send things back home, Ryan takes the money saved from the overhead costs of a brick and mortar storefront and passes them onto the consumer – all shipping is free within the US. He offers pre-packaged gift boxes accessible to every budget, ranging from $19 to over $100. Each box contains information about the products and their producers, further connecting its recipients to what makes them so specially Alaskan.
The boxes are filled with a wide variety of Alaska Grown products. In 2017 the boxes included products such as pancake mix from Alaska Flour Company in Delta Junction, jams from Alaska Berries in Soldotna – the only commercially grown berry farm in the state, honey straws from Alaska Heavenly Honey in Willow, potato chips from the Alaska Chip Company out of Anchorage, salmon jerky from Smoked Alaska Seafoods in Wasilla, and biscotti from the ovens of Palmer’s Turkey Red, just to name a few.
More products are added during the holidays, and Ryan always tries to add new offerings. He chooses Alaska foods that he really truly loves. His hope is that even if you don’t buy them from Alaska Artisanal, you’ll go out and find them for yourself.
Alaska Artisanal Paves Way To Chugach Chocolates
Ryan views his newest venture as a chocolatier to be serendipitous. Chugach Chocolates has been around for the last five years, and Alaska Artisanal was one of their biggest customers. When the two brothers who ran it decided to part ways, Ryan and his wife decided to purchase it. In the two years since they took over, they’ve repackaged and rebranded with a focus on infusing Alaska Grown products to offer uniquely Alaskan flavors.
For their Prince William Sound Sea Salt bar, they incorporate sea salt from Alaska Saltworks. The Alaskan Birch Syrup Toffee bar uses birch syrup from Bridge Creek in Homer, and the Espresso Beans bar features locally roasted beans from Black Cup Coffee in Anchorage. While not local, they also offer a bar with pink Himalayan salt.
More local flare is in the works. Ryan has been adding Alaska Chip Company potato chips into the bars. The chips stay crunchy within the chocolate while giving it that salty sweet combination that seems to work so well with our taste buds.
A more daring experiment of adding kelp and cayenne has been unfolding. Using kelp from Barnacle Foods out of Juneau adds an earthy flavor, and the cayenne pepper adds a little heat while the sweetness of the chocolate brings it all around. If it hits the shelves, the unusual concoction is bound to be a conversation starter.
Whatever your fancy, Ryan wants to know what you’d like to see, so don’t hesitate to speak up! To satisfy that sweet tooth, you can find a long location list of where you can find the bars on their website. Or, hop online to Alaska Artisanal for a package of all four flavors.
Chugach Chocolates Becomes Labor Of Love
Beyond local products, Ryan’s focus is providing a high quality, proudly handcrafted chocolate. As a numbers guy, Alaska Artisanal naturally made sense to him. Chocolate seemed like more of a stretch. So, he constantly expands his knowledge of the trade by talking to the previous owners and going to trainings and tastings.
After processing the cacao beans, he takes the chocolate and tempers it. This requires a really close eye of taking it up to temperature and back down again, ensuring that clear crisp snap he’s looking for. Following each flavor’s recipe, it’s then poured and formed. He uses hand tools to cut and decorate it, making each bar a bit different. It’s what we look for in a handcrafted local product, afterall. Those little hints of a human touch versus mass produced machine.
Future Of Chugach Chocolates Lies In Crafty Experimentation
The future looks sweet for Chugach Chocolates and Alaska Artisanal, even with growing concerns over the sustainability of cacao bean production keeping up with current demand. Cacao only grows in tropical regions. Recent changes in climate and increased disease pressure has had quite an effect on the crop.
While Ryan admits it’s certainly a concern, as a small shop having a restrain on an import may actually benefit him. He doesn’t need to use the quantities that large chocolate companies do. This is where the transition from corporate life to running his own small business has its advantage. Ryan often draws on his previous job experience to guide him.
Ryan has tapped into Alaska’s up and coming small craft food surge. People are doing some really cool things up here, and he really wants to be a part of that. Chugach Chocolates has outgrown its former home in Girdwood. For now it’s housed in Anchorage until Ryan can find a suitable location to bring it back home. One might argue it’s a good problem to have.
For his chocolate to get that coveted Alaska Grown label, cacao would have to change it’s preference for tropical climates. He might try to grow the beans here someday. Amy jokes that Mike Mosesian at Bell’s Nursery in Anchorage is successfully growing wine grapes, so why not try? We’ll anxiously wait to hear how that experiment turns out. But first – kelp flavored chocolate.