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Fortunato Mother Tree

Dan Pearson and Brian Horsley return to Fortunato’s farm. Standing by the Fortunato No. 4 mother tree, they tell their story of accidental discovery and the 500 year history of Pure Nacional. They and several Marañón Partners, trace the origins to Ecuador in the 1600s and the discovery by Swiss chocolate makers in the early 1800s. Pure Nacional dominated the fine chocolate markets in Europe and the Americas for 100 years. By 1919 the trees were devastated by disease and thought to be extinct. Now the mother tree has thousands of Pure Nacional children growing all over the Marañón Canyon.