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I just got back from the Big Island in Hawaii, visited with a few farmers and chocoalte makers, while our chefs did three pastry and chocolate demos in Maui, Kona, and Honolulu. What a great experience, and what a motivation for me to get to know more about the growing, fermenting, and drying of not just cacao beans, but also the amazing and creative means people have of making their own chocolate. I have seen many huge production factories all over the world, but never have I experienced true chocolate making like I did in a few hours with my new freind Sharky near Hilo. Now my hunt must continue, to find more Sharky's around the world, and find a selection of say 10 of the most exotic top quality beans so I can fulfill my dream of producing the best possible chocolate possible, here in Southern California. Anyone knowing where I can find and experience some of the best beans on the planet, please let me know, and I will keep you up to date on my progress in sourcing the most advanced equipment that will enable me to make, from a mechanical standpoint, the very best chocolate
Hello, fellow chocolate lovers and all those reading The Chocolate Life!
I am relatively new to the world of chocolate and would appreciate any advice you were willing to give me.
May I please ask a favor?
I am looking for a contract chocolate manufacturer in either the US or Colombia who can produce 85 % plus cocoa, gluten-free and allergen-free batches (certified).
Can anyone suggest someone?
Thank you!
Regards,
James Swanwick
james at jamesswanwick.com
The world is supposed to end today and I have no idea what to fix for supper, much less who to invite. The prospect of having to prepare my last meal on earth is entirely too overwhelming. All I can say is, just about the time Doomsday hits, no matter how grand the plans or big the roast Ive marinated, I just know Im going to decide that wed might as well order pizza. Making chocolates is pretty much like that. I sketch out half a dozen varieties in my head that I know I can whip out in an afternoon, and by the time the ganaches are made and the first couple of pounds of chocolate are tempered, I realize I need a bigger kitchen and another day to get it all done.
Click here to read all about it at The Chocolate Covered Kitchen .
Id never entered a contest before, unless you count the lottery where all Im judged on is my ability to select random numbers (a skill, by the way, I appear to be miserable at), but when I heard that my favorite chocolate boutique, Chocolopolis ,was having its first Serious Chocolate Contest , I thought Id try something daring and throw my bonbons into the hat to see what happened.
Click here to read all about it at The Chocolate Covered Kitchen .
May 19-22 Salon de Chocolate Ecuador at the Pontificia Universidad Catolica Ecuador
By Jeff Stern, 2011-05-17
Just got the schedule for the Salon de Chocolate, which is held now for the third year and sponsored by the Franco-Ecuadorian Chamber of Commerce. I was invited to participate as I was last year, but had to decline since we are too busy. Also, just was not convinced that spending a couple of hundred dollars (since it's not really an invitation but a paid chance to participate), with a "successful" turnout of maybe 700 people, would be good for business. Unfortunately, there's just not that much local interest in chocolate here and while the networking opportunities might be good, well, they're not that good.
I did see that Martin Christy will be giving a tasting, and a few other names in the cocoa (but not really chocolate) industry will be presenting. So it's more of a mix of some academic type presentations and I don't know what else. I'll try and make a stab at running over there but I can't promise. I'm also not a big fan of one of the presenters chocolates, and not a big believer in another. As well, last year there was another large Chocolate Expo in Guayaquil, and from my contacts in the industry it was not too much of a success. So I'll continue to just keep my head down for now and keep doing what I'm doing.
As I've alluded to but not made exceptionally clear in my comments and few postings here, one of the issues with local chocolate production here that only slightly irks me is the fact that there is one company who produces chocolate for a large number of brands coming out of here. I have no issue with the company that produces; they are good people and just acting as a contract manufacturer. None of these brands have a lot of recognition worldwide, and some have more recognition than others. But the bottom line is, almost all of them are produced in the same factory, with no transparency being provided by the companies that own the brands as to what kind of beans they are using or any of the other interesting stuff that interests serious chocolatiers. I'm not sure either if the company producing all this chocolate even does anything special for any of these different brands; they could all be sourced from virtually any type of bean, with the exception of those with FT and/or organic labels. Other than that, there may be no real distinction among the chocolate with the exception of the wrapper that labels it!
About 12 years ago I bought the Dutch translation of Chantal Coadys book The Chocolate Companion. One of the chocolatiers that got very high rates was Paul de Bondt. I had never heard of him but I became very curious after reading her review. Although he is Dutch his shop is not in The Netherlands but in Pisa, Italy. But I knew then: one day I will visit Pisa!
A few years later I discovered a few of his bars at Le Salon du Chocolat in Paris. They were excellent!
In September 2008 I met Paul and his wife Cecilia at a food festival in Rotterdam. I admired his products and I learned a lot during his chocolate tasting.
One year later, when I was already ambassador for Original Beans, I asked him if he would like to do a workshop for us. He did! A day I will never forget! The most amazing recipe he created with our Piura Porcelana chocolate was a tapenade, of course based on olives, capers and anchovies. Everybody loved it!
And last week I finally visited Pisa! Yes! I had a great time! Paul and Cecilias shop is located along the river Arno. Bars with dried fruit, nuts and spices. Chocolates/bonbons (the coffee ganache is the best I have ever tasted) andalmost three weeks after Eastern there were still some eggs! Lucky me because they are delicious! I dont know which one I like mostgianduia, rocher, creminoall made of the finest hazelnuts (Gentile). Paul only uses the best ingredients and as local as possible. He also showed me his laboratorio, very well equiped. One last dessert before I had to leave Pisa: a chocolate semifreddo with passion fruit. Yummy!
Thank you for the wonderful time Paul and Cecilia!
Chocolate-loving friends, in Ecuador, South America, we have the best cocoa in the world for its good taste and quality, we are the leading exporter of cocoa Fine Aroma variety Arriba, I invite you to visit my country, where I can offer a tour of the main sectors of production of cocoa beans, the tour route of cocoa , then visit the centers of production of cocoa liquor for coverage and places where they make handmade chocolates, made by the peasant associations.
Do not miss the delightful experience of tasting the beans fresh from the cob, which is an almond covered with a white-fleshed sweet and pleasant, also experience the pleasure of seeing and smelling the aroma of roasted cacao, enjoy exciting taste of freshly from cocoa liquor, and finally taste the delicious handmade chocolates produced by the natives of the area. 
The tour will be great, do it for the path of cocoa and learn all about this delicious grain, you can visit many wonderful places, because we have beautiful places, both in the mountains of cold weather (6-18 C/43-64 F), where we have beautiful mountains with snow on the coast where we have beautiful and large beaches with a sea rich (20-32 C/68-90 F), then there is the East with its warm and humid, with large trees, lush vegetation and beautiful waterfalls (22 - 30 C / 72-86 F).
If you decide to visit my country Ecuador, also enjoy a variety of typical dishes from each region, and finally, if you are interested can visit the Galapagos Islands or Enchanted Isles, with its wonderful wildlife, giant tortoises and marine species unique the world who have been declared World Heritage Site, so mind and travel, forming a good group of 20 people, give me 30 days to organize everything and I have the great pleasure to be your guide on this wonderful adventure.
Sincerely,
Ivn Andrade
info@dissupp.com
