Meet Adam Kavalier, the man changing the local chocolate scene one bar at a time | DC Refined

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Undone Chocolate owner Adam Kavalier, Ph.D., and one of his three full-time employees, choco-late maker Liz LeBarron, stand in their work area at Union Kitchen, a co-working space used by food startups. (Image: Amanda Andrade-Rhoades/ DC Refined)

The cacao is stored in large bins to accommodate Undone Chocolate’s small space.(Image: Amanda Andrade-Rhoades/ DC Refined)

Close up of the unfrosted and unseparated cacao beans. (Image: Amanda Andrade-Rhoades/ DC Refined)

Adam compares two types of cacao used in their production - most of their beans come from South and Central America. (Image: Amanda Andrade-Rhoades/ DC Refined)

The cacao beans are loaded onto a baking tray in a single layer so Adam can do a long, slow roast to develop the flavor, but still keep the antioxidants intact. (Image: Amanda Andrade-Rhoades/ DC Refined)

Adam places the beans inside the industrial convection oven. (Image: Amanda Andrade-Rhoades/ DC Refined)

Adam places some of the beans inside storage bags for easier access. (Image: Amanda Andrade-Rhoades/ DC Refined)

Adam places some of the beans inside storage bags for easier access. (Image: Amanda Andrade-Rhoades/ DC Refined)

Adam initially started Undone Chocolate when he was living in New York and studying the health benefits of cacao out of his apartment. He says working in such a confined area helped him get in the habit of staying organized. (Image: Amanda Andrade-Rhoades/ DC Refined)

Adam says Undone Chocolate specifically tries to make chocolate that’s still good for consumers and rich and antioxidants, which is why the cacao is so important. (Image: Amanda Andrade-Rhoades/ DC Refined)

Adam prepares to move the cacao into the storage area of the kitchen. (Image: Amanda Andrade-Rhoades/ DC Refined)

Undone Chocolate prepares the ingredients in shifts and Adam was unable to show the process called winnowing, where they separate the cacao bean’s nibs from the shells. Adam is holding some of the nibs, which go into the chocolate. (Image: Amanda Andrade-Rhoades/ DC Refined)

The cacao nibs which will eventually be transformed into chocolate. (Image: Amanda Andrade-Rhoades/ DC Refined)

Adam sweeps up some of the separated cacao shells. (Image: Amanda Andrade-Rhoades/ DC Refined)

Although the shells don’t go into chocolate, Adam keeps them so they can either be transformed into a chocolate-flavored tea or sold to a company that uses the shells to make bitters. (Image: Amanda Andrade-Rhoades/ DC Refined)

Adam stands with Undone Chocolate’s stone melangeur, which heats up and grinds the nibs, along with some sugar, into a liquid using stone components. (Image: Amanda Andrade-Rhoades/ DC Refined)

Using a spatula, Adam checks the hot liquid cacao and sugar mixture. All of the bars produced by Undone Chocolate have at least a 70 percent cacao content. (Image: Amanda Andrade-Rhoades/ DC Refined)

Adam crawls up storage racks to grab ingredients. Undone Chocolate is currently sold in 100 stores, half of which are local, and he hopes to eventually move into a more spacious facility with an attached store. (Image: Amanda Andrade-Rhoades/ DC Refined)

After the cacao nibs are melted down, they’re placed in large blocks and left to age for up to a few months to develop their flavor. (Image: Amanda Andrade-Rhoades/ DC Refined)

Adam pulls down one of the matured chocolate blocks. (Image: Amanda Andrade-Rhoades/ DC Refined)

Since the chocolate hasn’t been tempered, there are rivulets of cacao butter inside the block. (Image: Amanda Andrade-Rhoades/ DC Refined)

Untempered chocolate has a flaky texture, but Adam shaved some off. (Image: Amanda Andrade-Rhoades/ DC Refined)

This particular block of chocolate had a bright, citrus note. Undone Chocolate also produces bars with ingredients like chili, almonds, cardamom and salt. (Image: Amanda Andrade-Rhoades/ DC Refined)

Some of the chocolate is also sold to other companies working out of Union Kitchen - it some-times makes it into baked goods. (Image: Amanda Andrade-Rhoades/ DC Refined)

The chocolate is broken down and heated up in a tempering machine, which continually mixes the liquid until it’s smooth. (Image: Amanda Andrade-Rhoades/ DC Refined)

The mixture is pumped from the tempering machine into molds, which Adam then places into the freezer. (Image: Amanda Andrade-Rhoades/ DC Refined)

The bars are left to chill inside the freezer until they’re solid. (Image: Amanda Andrade-Rhoades/ DC Refined)

Everything is done in-house at Undone Chocolate, including packaging the individual bars. (Image: Amanda Andrade-Rhoades/ DC Refined)

Adam lays out several chocolate bars that have pink Himalayan salt. (Image: Amanda Andrade-Rhoades/ DC Refined)

Although Adam doesn't particularly love that the local press regarding Undone Chocolate has frequently compared him to Willy Wonka, it’s difficult not to see the similarities when opening up a chocolate bar that looks like it’s been wrapped in a golden ticket. (Image: Amanda Andrade-Rhoades/ DC Refined)

The bars retail between $8 and $12, but Adam says he wants to create an affordable luxury. (Image: Amanda Andrade-Rhoades/ DC Refined)

Undone Chocolate is also venturing into different kinds of hot chocolate and chocolate tea. All of their products are organic and vegan. (Image: Amanda Andrade-Rhoades/ DC Refined)

Adam holds up his finished product. Undone Chocolate has been in D.C. since 2014, but Adam says he’s glad he brought his business here because he’s a local and his fellow Washingtonians have embraced his chocolate. (Image: Amanda Andrade-Rhoades/ DC Refined)

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