You can get it at Delaurenti, Harrods in London, Wally’s in Beverly Hills, and only a handful of other premium retailers throughout the world. Delaurenti only sells To’ak chocolate in-store, but their new online store sells nearly 100 varieties of  other great chocolate.

When Nate Plutko, co-owner of Delaurenti, saw an email from Jerry Toth inviting him to sell To’ak chocolate bars, he almost didn’t read it. After all, Delaurenti carries such a wide range of fine chocolate bars that the store is known regionally as the place to go to find great chocolate. Turns out that reputation was precisely what led the founders of To’ak chocolate to Delaurenti. As Nate read more of their extraordinary story, he knew Delaurenti had to carry the unusual chocolate.

To’ak’s founders, Jerry Toth and Carl Schweizer, met in Ecuador, the birthplace of the cacao tree. They’d been drawn separately to the country by interests in rainforest conservation and sustainable agriculture. One day, they were led to a stand of ancient cacao trees in the remote village in the valley of Piedra de Plata, located along an upper tributary of the Guavas River Basin. What made the trees so exceptional was that they existed at all. In 1916, a disease called witch’s broom had wiped out Ecuador’s cacao trees. The small stand of old-growth trees had only survived because of its isolation. After the devastating blight, an Ecuadorian scientist created a disease-resistant strain called CCN-51. It became the most widely grown chocolate in the world, with West Africa producing most of it. Genetically, the replacement trees were worlds different from the native variety known as Nacional.

Only 15 of the pure Nacional trees that produce the mother strain exist in Ecuador. The heirloom trees weren’t unknown to locals. Although their yield is low, they had been continuously harvested for generations. With no other market options, the local farmers sold the unusual cacao to the commodity traders who blended it with everything else.

Shocked by the cacao’s unique and beautiful flavor, Jerry and Carl confirmed through DNA tests that the trees were 100% pure Nacional. Their genetic lineage dates back to the first known domesticated cacao trees—at least 5,300 years. To’ak’s rarest bars are made entirely with that heirloom cacao.

Jerry and Carl work closely with Servio Pachard, a fourth-generation Harvest Master, and his small team to collect To’ak’s heirloom Nacional cacao. Production is done entirely by hand in Ecuador. The beans are dried and fermented on Servio’s farm in boxes made of Spanish Elm. When they are ready, the cacao beans are roasted, shelled, and ground. This single-origin pure cacao is mixed with just enough organic brown sugar to bring out the flavor. This pure elixir is used for To’ak’s rarest bars—of which they produce only about 100 of each edition each year (and so far each edition has sold out). Each 50-gram bar is aged in French oak cognac casks or other aging vessels for a minimum of two years, before being hand wrapped and assigned a vintage year. In the middle of each bar is a single roasted cacao bean. It’s an opportunity to taste the fruit of an ancient tree, the most direct lineage to the mother tree that exists.

To help bring Ecuador’s historic Nacional cacao back from the brink of extinction, To’ak works with local growers, conservationists, and international universities. Both owners spend lots of time on their knees with local growers planting and grafting to repopulate Nacional trees. Their efforts have led to global awareness of this original cacao tree. National Geographic sent a team to Ecuador to report on it. The story can be found here. (You’ll need to enter your TV provider. The clip starts at 11:23. You can find an excerpt here.)

And then there’s the chocolate itself.

Each bar comes with an Ecuadorian bamboo tweezers, which helps you handle small pieces without them melting in your hands. You savor this chocolate like one would a fine wine. You break off a small piece and smell it. Then place it on your tongue, and take in the nuances as it slowly melts. Firm and intensely flavored, it has a buttery chocolate flavor with a hint of orange bitters and black cherry and finishes with subtle notes of toffee and honey. Tasting it will transform the way you experience dark chocolate.

Currently, Delaurenti carries three of To’ak’s rarest chocolate bars, ranging in price from $300 to $375. By Valentine’s Day, Nate hopes to bring in some of the more accessibly-priced chocolates made by To’ak. Those are not made from the nearly extinct varietal but are made with pure Nacional cacao derived from new plantings.

So, who buys the most expensive chocolate bars in the world? Nate says, “One woman had a chocolate tasting party with a bunch of friends, others are intrigued by the chance to try the world’s truest chocolate. Most have reported back. They’re unanimous in their praise.”

While To’ak’s rarest chocolate may be the most precious thing Delaurenti sells, it’s an example of the range Delaurenti strives for. Nate says, “We sell products that no other stores in Seattle sell. To do that, we rely on a lot of people around the world to make some amazing things. I try to find the really interesting stuff. And what To’ak is doing with conservation and grafting will have a seismic impact on the future of heirloom cacao. We’re proud to carry it.”

Find dozens of wonderful chocolates at Delaurenti’s new online store, ranging from hard-to-find gems to beloved classics. Enjoy!