Enhanced 100% Ceremonial Cacao

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Vibrant Vitality

4.9
Rated 4.9 out of 5 stars
310 Reviews

Organic & Regenerative

Lab-Tested

Activate your vibrant vitality with this unique combination of ceremonial cacao and healing herbs that support endurance and stamina. The taste of maca blends with cacao to create a malty and almost sweet experience in your mouth.

Activate your vibrant vitality with this unique combination of ceremonial cacao and healing herbs that support endurance and stamina. The taste of maca blends with cacao to create a malty and almost sweet experience in your mouth. Due to the vasodilating and gentle cardiac stimulant properties of the ceremonial cacao, it acts as an optimal delivery mechanism for the healing herbs that we've carefully selected. 

Each cup contains a full daily dose of maca (3400 mg), which is known for boosting energy levels and stamina as well as balancing hormones and reproductive health. Each cup also contains a fully daily dose of ashwagandha (450mg), which is known for reducing stress, anxiety, and fatigue. Turmeric and black pepper also serve to reduce inflammation. With regular cacao ceremony you may notice an inner glow emanating from you :)

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Why You'll Love This

UPLIFT - Neuromodulators and neuro reuptake-inhibitors in cacao support a stable and elevated mood that lasts.

ENERGIZE - Theobromine gently energizes and helps with coffee reduction or replacement.

NOURISH - High mineral density in cacao replenishes deficiencies so you can be optimally healthy

INSPIRE - Cacao ceremony begins with mindfulness, gratitude, and intention. Practice at home to deepen your relationship.

Ingredients + Nutrition Facts

Ingredients: Cacao Beans from Uganda, Maca from Peru, Ashwagandha from India, Cacao Butter from Tanzania, Turmeric from India, Black Pepper from Indonesia. Note, Ashwagandha is not recommended during pregnancy.. That's all! No sweeteners.

Cacao Sourcing Standard

Ceremonial Cacao refers to a premium grade, pure cacao that is ethically sourced from small family farms practicing regenerative agroforestry. Ceremonial cacao is made from a single ingredient, whole cacao beans, with nothing added or removed. You drinking cacao with intention and gratitude is part of it too!

100% Cacao from Uganda with Maca, Ashwagandha, & more Read more

How To Prepare Cacao

Step 1 - Combine between 20 cacao discs (0.8oz) to 25 cacao discs (1.0oz) with a touch of sweetener (or drink pure)

Step 2 - Add 3/4 cup (6oz) hot water, tea, or mylk ~ 180°F

Step 3 - Use a blender or electric frother to mix for 10 seconds. This creates much better texture than just stirring.

Certifications & Lab Test Results

1. Organic & Regenerative - all of our cacao is certified organic by Organic Certifiers. We only source from farms practicing regenerative agroforestry.

2. Heavy Metals - we lab test all of our cacao. You can see our test results here.

3. Caffeine & Theobromine - our pure cacaos contain 36mg of caffeine and 212mg of Theobromine. Though because of the fat from the cacao butter, the caffeine is released slowly and gently.

Ethical Trade Regenerative Agroforestry USDA Organic Unsweetened Third Party Lab Tested Metals Safe Vegan & Keto GMO-Free & Soy-Free

Ethical Trade Regenerative Agroforestry USDA Organic Unsweetened Third Party Metals Tested Vegan & Keto GMO-Free & Soy-Free

Ingredients

MACA FROM PERU
A Peruvian radish that has been used by indigenous Andean peoples for thousands of years for increased stamina and balancing of hormones. Our maca is grown on a spring-fed family farm at 13,000 feet elevation and is a custom tri-color blend of red, black, and yellow varieties. One cup of cacao delivers a full daily dose of maca (3400 mg)!

ASHWAGANDHA FROM INDIA
An adaptogenic Aryuvedic herb that rejuvenates the body system, especially helpful for relieving stress, anxiety, depression, and inflammation. It also has reported anti-cancer benefits and can increase muscle mass and strength while lowering unhealthy cholesterol. One cup of this cacao delivers a full daily dose of ashwagandha (450mg)! Note, Ashwagandha is not recommended during pregnancy.

CACAO BUTTER FROM TANZANIA
There is so much Maca and Ashwagandha in Vibrant Vitality that we augment the already-present cacao butter for a maximally smooth texture. Cacao butter is one of the healthiest fats, rich in antioxidants to fight inflammation, as well as fatty acids that support brain & heart health. Cacao butter also moods and lowers blood pressure; reduces the risk of cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and stroke; and serves as the carrier vehicle that delivers all ingredients into your cells and tissues.

TURMERIC FROM INDIA
A relative of ginger, the "Golden Spice" has potent anti-inflammatory properties and helps to alleviate depression, diabetes, cancer, and viral infections. It may also be effective in delaying or even reversing many brain diseases and age-related decreases in brain function, as well as arthritis.

BLACK PEPPER FROM INDONESIA
Black pepper enhances the absorption of curcumin in turmeric by up to 2,000%. It also contains the bioactive compound piperine, which has been shown to enhance the activity of digestive enzymes in the gut, relieve nausea and headaches, and reduce inflammation. It may also improve memory and cognitive skills, as it has effects on brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), a powerful protein that stimulates new brain cell production.

Formulated as an ideal coffee substitute, to replace the jitters and crashes with natural stamina.

My interest in maca in particular came from my days of bicycle touring, when I realized that I could travel longer distances with less effort on days that I had my Mighty Maca chocolate bar, and notably more so than any of my other chocolate bars. As I formulated this enhanced cacao, I really pushed the limits and added complementary superfoods to ensure that you get full daily doses in an everyday cup of cacao. The resulting enhanced cacao is even more potent than my original Mighty Maca chocolate bar!

Strengthening, supportive, and awakening by connecting to the root, sacral, and solar plexus centers!

The Ashwagandha in this enhanced blend can help create security and safety within as this important herb is known to help with anxiety, depression, exhaustion, and poor muscle tone, helping the root center feel supported. The Maca can help rejuvenate reproductive health; it can even increase sexual desire for women and aid in hormonal balance for both sexes awakening and activating the sacral center. The turmeric and black pepper can bring aid and stimulation to the solar plexus center by improving digestive functions and even liver functions!

Over 50,000 customers love and trust Ora Cacao!

310 reviews
  • Dhivyaa C.
    Verified Buyer
    Yesterday
    Rated 5 out of 5 stars
    Tastes great!

    Vibrant vitality, in addition to amazing Ayurvedic herbs and maca, tastes so good!

  • Elie H.
    Verified Buyer
    Yesterday
    Rated 5 out of 5 stars
    My energizer!

    My absolute favorite coffee alternative!! Ceremonial cocoa enhanced with Maca and ashwaganda! Amazing for mornings and afternoons. Tastes delicious. Sometimes I add almond or pistachio milk, and Sometimes I add Manuka honey if I feel having a little sweetness in the afternoon. I have the vitality bundle and 4 other variations including the pure cocoa Belize, mushrooms blend, rose petal and licorice mix.

  • Victoria
    3 weeks ago
    Rated 5 out of 5 stars
    5 Stars

    Always the best cacao.

  • Rochelle M.
    Verified Buyer
    1 month ago
    Rated 5 out of 5 stars
    Contains Maca

    I especially liked this one because I don't have to take a separate maca supplement when I drink this cacao, and it's very tasty. I drink it with a vanilla soy creamer added.

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Answers to Frequent Health Questions

What are the Nutrition Facts?

Is Your Cacao Tested for Heavy Metals?

Yes! We take heavy metals in cacao very seriously and have been testing long before the recent media attention on the topic.

All of our cacao has no detectable levels of lead. Lead is a post harvest contaminant that is introduced onto cacao beans through air and soils pollution. Since we source from remote and pristine regions with exacting standards, we have never had any presence of lead in our cacao tests.

All of our cacao also tests well below the legal limits for cadmium. Cadmium is present in many soils and impacts much of the food that we eat. Even if you were to consume cacao daily and it had the legal limit of cadmium in it, experts estimate that is would contribute at most 10% of your daily cadmium intake that comes from other grains and vegetables.

We've been talking with people daily to assure them that they will not die from heavy metals poisoning because of their love of chocolate. We strongly believe big chocolate needs to be held accountable for poor quality of their products. We're also disappointed that a lot of the recent media didn't contextualize the many cadmium sources people have in their diets (not just cacao), and that there are very large factors of safety that are used to determine the legal limits.

Here's a good third party perspective on the topic: https://arstechnica.com/health/2023/11/despite-spooky-consumer-reports-testing-metals-in-chocolates-arent-scary/

Why are there Rainbow Bubbles in my Cacao?

All of the following answers are true - pick what works best for you!

1) The cacao senses your awesomeness. Only the blessed few can actually see them, so, you must be awesome.

2) Thin-film interference. Cacao is rich in oils that can spread out in very thin layers on the water-based beverage. The different wavelengths of light have different kinds of interference between the top and bottom surfaces of the oil so white light turns into iridescent rainbows.

3) It's energetic residue from the rainbow serpent that emerged from the first cacao tree a very long time ago (for real - cacao is considered an original world tree in the Maya cosmosvision)

How is this different than cacao powder?

We typically tell our customers that cacao powder has little medicinal or health value because of the following differences:

1) Cacao powder is often made with untraceable, low quality commodity cacao that doesn’t support farmers with ethical compensation. By contrast, Ora sources direct trade traceable to the farmer and with organic certification.

2) This low quality input necessitates processing at very high temperatures, which degrades many of the beneficial compounds in cacao. The process of dutch processing or alkalization to make the flavor milder further reduces the levels of these compounds. By contrast, Ora's premium inputs enable us to use uniquely low temperature processing that keep the value of the cacao bean intact.

3) The cacao bean on it's own is about 50% cacao butter, a healthy natural fat. Pressing for powder strips away most of this fat (reducing it to 10%). However, you want cacao as a whole food, with the cacao butter in it's natural ratio. That's because the fat is an essential carrier for the health benefits of cacao, so without it, many of the health benefits of cacao are unrealized. By contrast, Ora ceremonial cacao has nothing added or removed, so it is a whole food as nature designed it.

Is Cacao A Stimulant?

We’ve tested our cacao and it has 36 mg of caffeine per 1 oz serving, or about 1/3 of what a regular cup of coffee has. It sounds like a lot, but 1mg of caffeine in cacao is not equivalent to 1mg of caffeine in coffee, because cacao has many other compounds that balance and down-regulate the caffeine.

The primarily stimulant molecule in cacao is actually theobromine. Ora Cacao has 212mg theobromine per 1oz serving. Theobromine is a mild cardiac stimulant, and differs molecularly from caffeine which is a nervous system stimulant. Theobromine gives a long lasting, gentle, embodied energy without any sort of jitters or crash, even for sensitive people. Overall, theobromine is only about one quarter as stimulating as caffeine, and it has a much longer half life in the liver, meaning that it's effect on the body is softer and longer for sustained energy.

Theobromine is also a vasodilator (it relaxes blood vessels), so it has a neutral effect on blood pressure. The improved circulation from cacao is excellent for cardiac health, and improves absorption of the nutrients in cacao and superfoods that it is paired with.

Ceremonial cacao is a great coffee replacement because it offers a grounded energy boost without the jitters and crash. You can fully or partially substitute your cup of coffee with a cup of cacao. If you are new to cacao we recommend drinking it before 2pm so that the stimulant effect has time to clear before you need to sleep.

How Does Cacao Affect Mood?

In the long term, regularly working with ceremonial cacao can have therapeutic health benefits that include creating new neural pathways that change our daily experience to include more joy, love, and connection.

That's because cacao is full of beneficial neurotransmitters and neuro-modulators. It also contains reuptake inhibitors that block the pathways that our bodies normally use to break down and recycle these beneficial mood altering molecules, so the good mood lasts for longer.

Some of the top mood altering molecules in cacao include:

Anandamide is commonly referred to as the bliss molecule, and is associated with the runner’s high effect. It is actually the first endocannabinoid to be discovered, and it is well known for moderating pain. Cacao also has N-linoleoylethanolamine, which is the reuptake inhibitor for anandamide.

Phenylethylamine (PEA) gives the perception of time slowing down, and helps with excitement, alertness, attention.

Norepinephrine is commonly referred to as the joy molecule. It is both a neurotransmitter and a hormone.

Serotonin - Helps with wellbeing, and creates resistance to stress. Cacao contains typtophan, an amino acid that the body converts into serotonin, and cacao contains MOA inhibitors that inhibit reuptake of serotonin.

Dopamine - Gives feelings of motivation and pleasure. Cacao contains tyrosine, an amino acid that the body converts into dopamine, and cacao contains MOA inhibitors that inhibit re-uptake of dopamine.

Due to these molecules and many others, when you drink ceremonial cacao you may feel expansive, blissful, connected to self and/or others, inspired, connected to your intuition & vision, connected to spirit, grounded, you may have emotions arise, and you may experience the movement of stuck energy. Gives the perception of time slowing down.

What Minerals Does Cacao Have?

Consuming cacao can replenish minerals vital to our body. Magnesium is chronically deficient in the majority of western diets, and cacao is the highest naturally occurring source. Magnesium is used in all key brain functions, especially memory and concentration. It is also beneficial for the function of the heart, acting to relax blood vessels and decrease strain. Besides magnesium, cacao is also the highest naturally occurring source of chromium, and also high in copper, calcium, manganese, zinc, sulfur, iron, and phosphorus.

Are there any Contradindications?

Cacao is contraindicated with SSRIs. Unfortunately that means many people struggling with depression and other mental illnesses cannot take cacao because of the SSRI’s they are medicating with. There is potential that people may be able to partially reduce their SSRI medication intake and supplement with ceremonial cacao, however medical studies on this need to be done to establish a verifiable protocol.

Besides this, we highly recommend being well hydrated before, during, and after drinking cacao.

Ceremonial Cacao vs Other Cacao Products

Ceremonial Cacao Cacao Powder Baking Chocolate Raw Cacao Paste Chocolate Bar Brewed Cacao
Premium quality beans
No sugar
Healthy natural fats
Melts into liquid chocolate
Healthy natural fats
Minimally processed
Regenerative agroforestry
Ethical, direct trade*

*Depends on brand, however, almost all cacao is sourced from the commodity cacao market without any traceability.

Not sure where to start with Cacao?

That's okay, you can try them all! Our best selling enhanced ceremonial cacao kit allows you to try all four of our sugar free enhanced cacaos!

Continue your cacao journey

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