By Glad Auguste

Taza Chocolate, a big local favorite, has its roots in Mexico.

Walk into Taza and you’ll find people tethered to the shelves trying to reconcile the canyon of samples between them. This is chocolate.

Established in 2005 by Alex Whitmore and Kathleen Fulton, Taza Chocolate owes its being to Oaxaca, Mexico. That is where Whitmore tried stone-ground chocolate for the first time and where he apprenticed under a molinero, or miller. When he returned to his home in Somerville he opened a factory, the result of that venture is a company that exports its product in virtually every state in the country.

At present, there are 65 employees who produce roughly 40,000 bars a week, from bean to bar. The backs of which are filled with certifications: USDA Organic, Non-GMO Project verified, Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free, Soy-Free and Vegan. It is a middle ground for the intolerant; oddly transparent for a company that produces dark-chocolate but that’s the crux.

The stories here are not spun, they are told. Taza Chocolate is responsible for the first third-party certified Direct Trade cacao sourcing program in an effort to ensure humane work conditions. In the past year, they have spent 68 days at the sites of origin, planted 110,587 cacao seedlings and have paid $500 above market prices – a 15-20% premium. Krysia Villon, Factory Store and Tour Manager, asserts, “It’s about people, not commodity.”

Taza offers tours that further endorse the transparency of the company and with that comes facts. The first major revelation is that chocolate comes from a fruit, and that the aforementioned staple treat is mainly a seed that has been winnowed, ground and coated in sugar. Children might lose interest until they see the sacks of coffee beans, the Molinas and the treasure trove of treats lying at the end of the tour. Strangely informative in the way that one might discover the word terroir, a word from the lux graces of many wineries. It is the condition for which something is grown or produced and which give it its characteristics. They tell you this, in addition to having you wear hair and beard nets so that the affair feels partly revealing but uniformly festive.

“All arms of the staff are incredible. The team of people are so committed to cacao. It’s infectious,” says Villon. Chocolate takes on a different color with the fervor in which they describe the harvesting, the grounding and the funny faces people make after their first real venture into dark chocolate.

It is a place that is “perfectly-unrefined” and incredibly accessible, both the 66 and 69 bus stop by it. For more information regarding Taza chocolate, visit them at 561 Windsor St. in Somerville. Celebrate the product, the farmers and the retail workers clad in coffee-colored aprons, because they will teach and feed you, and that is something to keep in mind during the holidays.