Forum Activity for @Kerry

My Weigh makes fabulous scales - the models i've used have delayed turnoff. The iBalance 11000 goes to 11kg. 

http://myweigh.com/balances/

River cruise in the Great Lakes in February? I think I'd forgo the rare wines and chocolate and pack arctic suitable foul weather gear.

Out of curiosity - who do you consider the best chocolatier in Toronto?

We might try out the GrainPro bags. What's your email Jordan?

Thanks

We have Raw Cocoa Beans for sale from Dominica. We also grow our own cocoa. We can supply large and small amounts. NatureIslandImporters@hotmail.com for more info. 

Stretch loops

Currently 5 cases of 10,000 each 

Selling in smaller boxes of 1000 each

Each loop stretches over twice their resting size.

See photos of resting state.  Works on a many different size boxes.

Total length including bow: 

Silver – flat 1/8” x 40”

Beige – small diameter 25”

Black Metallic Gold – 25”

Sable Gray - 22”

Gold – 13”

$20 per box of 1000 plus shipping.  Well below US pricing.

 black gold.JPG.jpg - 2MB

Depends on the volumes of both the beans and the concentration of the fumigant.  Your fumigation supplier can best direct you with contact times based on the specific products and quantities involved.

My pleasure, & thanks for picking up the mill!

Lighting fast shipping Thanks so lot !

Dear Andy,

Our hermetic bags are intended as LINER bags for traditional jute or polypropylene bags. You MUST have an outer jute/polypropylene bag around the GrainPro liner to protect it.   Also, please note there  are are knock-off and fake hermetic bags in the market now.  If it's a real GrainPro bag it will be the color green and say "GrainPro" on it.   

If you decide to use hermetic to store your cocoa, below again are the guidelines:

Dedy mini moulding machine for sale in good condition. 
This is a table model which can handle around 23 kg of chocolate and in this offer the vibration table is included.
The machine is build in 2010 and you can find more information on http://www.dedy.de/en/products/covering-with-choclate-and-moulding/dedy-mini-moulding-machine/ and http://www.dedy.de/en/products/covering-with-choclate-and-moulding/dedy-vibrating-table/

Good for making bars and hollow figures. 

The machine is directly available for pickup after payment or payment with a bank cheque is also possible on pick up. 

The price I would like to have is 2950 euro excluding 21% VAT. 
The new price is 3500 euro for the mini moulding machine and 800 euro for the vibration table so total 4300 euro new price.

 Dedy-wielmachine (1).jpg - 325KB

I make liquor and can get my hands on a number of varieties of Ecuadorian cocoa.

Shoot me an email at Brad@Choklat.com if you like.  Maybe I can help you out.

Cheers

Brad

@ Sebastian: How long would the bags stay under the tent? Only for 1 hour or more for a few days? In jute bags, I guess...

@Jordan: We do have all cacao at the moment in plastic bags. But not hermetic ones. The big downside on buying GrainPro bags (and bags in general) is that plastic bags get really fast damaged when carried around sometimes already when they take bags down from a shelf. As they are heavy bags, they drag them from the shelf and this comes with a high risk of damaging a nice hermetic plastic bag very easy and fast.

Brian,

Do you still have this for sale?

I'd like to ask you more about it. Please contact me at 

MizChocoBiz@gmail.com

Still have those molds?  If so, I'm interested in a few.  Any other shapes?

Hello Tim,

Would you tell me about your experiences with your Compatta?  

Please feel free to contact me at MizChocoBiz@gmail.com

Great feedback.  Thanks Ben

Hi,

My gf and I are going for a 16-day trip during the time of the valentines day. We are really excited. This is an adventurous trip across the Great lakes of America. https://www.blountsmallshipadventures.com/2017-great-american-waterways/default.aspx?itinerary=1 It's the first time I am going to have such a long river cruise. 

The best part is we can bring along our favorite drinks and snacks. I am thinking about carrying some rare bottles of wine and the best chocolates. We are thinking about taking Pardy's. Pascha dark choco, or Hersheys. We will also pack some of the finest chocolates from the best chocolatier in Toronto.

What would you take with you when you are going on a trip with your partner?

Thanks for sharing this information. 

Lead melts at what, 620F or so, and aflatoxin (lets use aflatoxin a, since it's the most carcinogenic) breaks down at about 356F.  I've never measured the temperature in at the smoke point source, but it'd suspect it's above 356.  Lead is not going to decompose, but it could aerosolize and redeposit itself on your foods i'd wager.

And now i'm hungry for brisket.

Hah, cool. Maybe I'll ask a friend to help do a test for taste - and if that passes, ask a lab to run tests?

As a precaution, it's probably best to do it with a fairly clean shell from a non-volcanic soil.

I spent a number of years in Indonesia - fantastic place, some very fond memories and some great friends there!

You know I was going to try that this summer, actually.  I suspect it's not a very good idea, to be honest, but I was going to try it nonetheless (do as i say, not as i do?).  That said, i never did get around to trying it...

Hi Kristofer,

Yes, it's still available. Please email dianakelleryd@gmail.com to discuss further. 

Thank you 

Hello everyone my name is Gustavo Woltmann and I am working as an assistant in a small and private publishers office since 2006.  Just want to know where do the best cocoa beans in the world came from? What are the brand of chocolates came from the best cocoa beans?

It is still available if interested @preston-stewart & @ruth

Hello,

Since the Rumbo shares the main overall design ideas with all other melangers (stones spinning on a stone base), I'm sure it can be used to conche as well as any other melanger (maybe even a little better, due to some of the changes like the off-center stones). Also, my guess is that some, if not most of the makers using it are using it to both refine and conche, although a separate conche will work significantly better. Melangers are just not particularly good at conching, which is why you have to run them for days and days to achieve some of the effects of a real conche.

As a melanger, I think the Rumbo looks like one of the best out there. Having the wheels turn, rather than the bowl, seems like a great idea, and the drainage spout for emptying is genius.

-Ben

Invoice sent. Please add the full shipping address when you complete the invoice, or message one to me at marx510 at gmail.com

Thanks!

Hi! Interested. My shipping address is Roselle, NJ, 07203. Please send me invoice to umaxexpress at yahoo.com . Thank you

Sebastian, do you know if using the shells for smoking food is also a bad idea?

(I haven't done so and wouldn't recommend it without knowing it's safe. It's plausible that metals would stay in ash and fungus would not survive burning)

Hello everyone!  I'm sure this has been discussed but cant find anything recent. But I'm looking for a cost effective way to get a custom mold done and as I've been researching I found quite a few ways that I'd like some choco-life feedback and opinions on.

There's 2 ways I will ultimately go about this so this is getting done, but looking for safest and most cost effective way to do this.

3D printing.  It's come a LONG way since I started researching this several years ago. In the past couple years filament materials have kind of exploded - to the point it's nearly impossible to keep track of all the available materials. It's no longer a matter of PLA or ABS if you too havent looked at this in a while.

In the last year, a few companies have produced an FDA Approved Food Safe filament. There are a few companies making stuff with PET-G (water and soda bottle materials, lesser extent hobby grade mold sheets) and Polycarbonate.  But only a few have gone that extra step to get FDA Approval and it's stamped on the spool.  

So, has anyone contemplated any of this, looked any further on the aspects of 3d printing custom molds?  

I should note, that 3d printers have stepped up in quality, they still dont have super fine resolution without going the route of say, Shapeways, with the multi tens of thousands of dollar machines.  However, that should not stop you from finishing any mold that comes out. Sanding, polishing, engraving fine details, sealing (if necessary)

Doing things this way, if you already have the printer, it should only cost approx $10-$20/mold depending on mold size and who you source your filaments from.

I do have a line into the FDA to confirm that this is food safe and possible. The big question on hand is if it's a sterilizable finished piece. Polycarbonate does require much hotter temps to print though, so any bacteria on the filament is likely to be destroyed.  Proper finishing should provide a food contact surface that is sterilizable though.

So while I'm waiting I'd love to hear your opinions on the matter.

The other, much more expensive option is to 3d print a "positive".  Well, I guess in mold making terms they'd ultimately be negatives. But you'd design the bar/tablet/bonbon the exact way that you want it to look. You then print that out in whatever plastic is your choice.  Then you spend extra time getting that finished/post processed to look as perfect as you can get it.  Then you use that as a negative and pour a silicone mold of the printed piece.

With the mold materials that I've seen and researched, this is entirely food safe and sterilizable and may actually make for a better mold than what Polycarbonate can do due to stretching and elongation properties of the silicone. That being said, an "avg" size mold would run between $30-$50 each.  Better than getting an injection mold created, but also more expensive than just buying commercially available molds.

Anyone trying any of the above options? What are your thoughts on it? If you've tried it, how is it working for you?

Thanks for the inputs. Appreciate a lot.
@Sebastian; I am working for a chocolate company in Indonesia for the moment.
@Jordan; thanks I will have a closer look at your products.

Andy

Hi Diana,

I am interested in your machine. Please let me know if it is still for sale.

Kind regards,

Kristofer 

The stated capacity of most of these wet-mill grinders is the volume of the bowl.

The batch capacity (in kg) is typically 50% of the bowl volume. 20L bowl is ~10kg of chocolate.

Crankandstein Cacao Bean Mill w/ Stainless Steel Gears

Used for cracking cacao beans to separate nib from husk. This unit was purchased with upgraded stainless steel gears for commercial production. Includes hopper for easy feeding. Collection bucket not included.

In excellent condition. I no longer need it after making some equipment changes to scale up production.

Cost $275 new.
Asking $175 plus shipping if applicable.
Located in Madison, WI. USA buyers only, please.

 20170109_111325.jpg - 1.3MB

20kg or 20#?  Their website says the 20 does 20#, not 20kg.

http://www.santhausa.com/

Hi Andy, I lost the weekend to Sebastian and Clay, but let me answer your original question.  The difference between a regular plastic bag and a hermetic GrainPro bag is that a regular plastic bag is more porous, allowing in oxygen which enables the insects to not only live, but thrive.  

A GrainPro bag has a barrier layer, stopping the inflow (and outflow) of air.  Insects suffocate to death after a few days.   A hermetic GrainPro bag is 500x more airtight than a regular polyethylene bag.  It's more expensive than a regular plastic bag because of this barrier layer.

Regarding mold, as long as the cocoa beans are dried to the right moisture content (about 7%), they will store perfectly well in a hermetic environment.  The key is drying the beans properly (7%)  before putting them in the hermetic environment.  

You sound like you have a mess on your hands - but hermetic is a great way to control for infestation. We have users all over Latin America and the Caribbean using GrainPro to both store and ship their cocoa beans - organically.  Happy to put you in touch with any of them.  

If you have a quantity above 1 metric ton - you could also consider using a GrainPro Cocoon and flush (organically) with CO2 to kill the insects.  You can use this method wherever you have access to a CO2 cannister (most countries of the world).  

Hope this helps.  Let me know if you have  any other questions,

Jordan

No worries - did you open up your own shoppe?

Don't forgot to discard your winnowed shells on a regular basis, lest that become an infestation point source as well.

greetings,

due to the drastic exchange rate I am inquiring if there are any folks who might be able to supply me with fairly traded (doesn't have to be certified) cacao paste and butter within Canada.  I am currently using Ecuadorian cacao that I ship within the US and then drive over the border.  I would prefer to stick with Ecuadorian cacao (due to labels that are developed already), but if the source was affordable and consistent I would consider other options. I am located in rural Canada and therefore very limited in what I can access.  I am open to US sources if the price is better than my current supplier.  I am currently about to expand so my needs would be roughly 125 kilos of each for 6 months, and then probably an increase by then.

Thanks, Beth

Thanks for the recommendation Brian!

Thanks to you both for your inputs. That helps me a lot. I know well about how a storage room should look like but never had to handle an actual infestation.
So, I am grateful for the fast inputs.
Their roof was leaking water into the storage room. I guess you can imagine that this is not optimal

Try bwilson@cloudforestcocoa.com as they have some really good Ecuadorian beans available that I've been using. 

Brian

For Sale: FBM Compatta Tempering machine, 12kg bowl

$6,000

Located in St. Louis, MO

Pickup preferred

email me: tim.williams1 (at) gmail dot com

-       220V 60hz. (3 phase + earth) 60kW

-       Continuous tempering process

-       Night cycle

-       Electronic dosing device with repetitions

-       Removable screw pump

-       Switch to reverse run of screw pump (unload chocolate)

-    Vibrating table

I also have a phase converter available. Ronk Roto-Con Mark II. If you are handy with electrics or have a good electrician it can be hooked up pretty easily.

 FBM 1.jpg - 260KB