Hello, fellow chocolate lovers?
May I ask a favor?
Do you know 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
Has anyone tried the new Terra Cacao range by callebaut? im so excited to test
http://www.terracacao.com/about.html
Hey Tao,
Their # is(828) 855-1895. (The first bad sign is that the number's hard to find!) I've never removed the bowl before-it would involve quite a bit of disassembly! The hair dryer's the way to go. I've been there! No fun, I know. I'd guess the motor's ok if it's still making noise. The bowl can't spin just while it's firmly attached (by solid chocolate) to the wheels, since they spin in place.
Good luck! Hopefully you're unstuck by now!
Thanks for the responses...I am too far away, and the logistics too difficult and expensive to try to send the machine back and replace it. I have tried the calibration reset recommended by Kumar, and it seemed to help for about a 1/2 hour...or basically until there was chocolate in the machine again.
Last night, I had it set on low so that it wouldn't disturb my sleep too much, but apparently it wasn't turning fast enough to keep it warm, and the whole batch solidified. Now at it with the hair dryer, but not having any luck getting the wheels to turn, so not sure if the motor is burned out (although still makes the screeching noise) or if the belt is broken or what...with a full batch of chocolate in the machine, it is difficult to know what to do...will try recalibration again, and then empty the chocolate, and try taking the drum off. ANYONE KNOW HOW TO DO THAT? WE COULDN"T FIGURE IT OUT BEFORE...how do you get the drum off the stem? Is there a screw on the bottom that releases the stem/column?
Madeleine, you said you spoke to them on the phone: Do you have a phone number for SANTHA? I
have not been able to find one in any of the literature, communications or website. Much appreciated.
Hi Tao,
The same happened with my Santha when I bought it a year ago. The sound was from the motor. I exchanged it and the replacement machine was slightly better. Took it to a machine shop and was told that it was just a really cheapo motor. Turned out to not be worth it to replace the motor because of the speed controller. I kept it, and miraculously the noise went away after a few months.
I spoke to Santha on the phone and got the impression that this happens with some of their machines though they wouldn't really give me a straight answer.
They only exchanged the machine very grudgingly and didn't offer any help with the second machine.
Good luck!!
Often times the squealing sound is just metal on metal from the wheels. I am assuming you bought it new and this is probably the case. I had the same thing with my Cocoatown small grinder. You just have to let it run sadly until it stops and kind of wears away whatever is too tight that it is squeaking.
That was my experience at least! Hope it helps!
Hola,
I just got my Santha Spectra 20...and it squeals...high pitched, unbearable, screeching...kinda like living inside a forest of chicaras (if you live in CR, you know what I mean). Is it the belt? Is it something else? Any clues before I try to open it up to find out? Kumar said some "noise" was normal...I agree, and I anticipated "some noise", but this is unbearable. Help!
Hi Ben!
I have replaced the belt once. Next time I'll go for fiberglass- thanks!
I don't think that the belt is the problem, but I'll check just in case. When I first got the machine, the motor made a really high pitched (bad) sound. I took the santha to a machine shop and they pretty much diagnosed the motor as a low-quality cheapo. (They improved the noise a tiny bit by doing something with the bearings, and then one day months later the noise pretty much evaporated. But at the same time I noticed the drum rotating more slowly. (speed control still says 1500)
Because of the conversation with the mechanic, I just assumed it was time for a motor replacement.
Thanks, Madeleine
Hi Madeleine,
Are you sure it's the motor? Have you replaced the belt already? If not, I'd do that first as the stock belts are not great and wear out pretty quickly. Per Brad's suggestion a few years ago, I only use the fiberglass link belts on my melangers and they've been great. No stretching or breaking. I've had one on my Santha 40 now for over a year with no problems (the stock one broke on the third or fourth batch).
-Ben
Hi Brad,
(If you're still there!)
Do you have any recommendations for a replacement motor for the santha 20? The machine is less than 6 months old but I've noticed that the drum has been spinning more slowly..
Thanks! Madeleine
Duffy - the latest version of the chocoeasy has a pre-grinding rotor installed in the refiner that allows feeding very coarse materials, like nibs or crystal sugar, so the company you are familiar with may have an older unit.
To start with nibs you need to use some cocoa butter to circulate the nibs into the refiner. depending on the size of the ChocoEasy unit, the amount of butter required to do this is about 3-4 kilograms.
Soon you will be able to visit our new facility in Orange County, Ca. There you will be able to learn everything you need to know about making chocolate, truly from Bean to Bar. The Qzina Institute will open in September, together with the Stephane Treand Art of Pastry School. We will have numerous machines to test, along with a big variety of beans, and other ingredients. We also carry molds, small and large tempering machines, melters, tools, flavors, powders, and all kinds of ingredients for Chocolate, Dessert, and Pastry Professionals. The Institute will have Small Melangers from both Cocoatown and Alchemy, roasters, winnowers, grinders, and even larger (mid size) equipment for more serious production. We are working onhaving commercial roller refiners and conches for 2012. The idea is to teach customers andenthusiastseverything from how to source the beans, to various production methods, and from there ourin house Chocolatier and Pastry ChefFrancois Mellet, with assistance from MOF (Best Craftsmanof France) Stephane Treand, can teach you how to make incredible top quality truffles, fillings, cakes, pastries, andchocolates.We are not a school, butmore of anR&D institute for the industry. We will also display machinery in our showroom from a host of top manufactures, including enrobers, mills, small processing equipment, etc. We also stockmost of the top chocolates of the world, from Callebaut to Valhona to Guittard, and many many more, for those wanting to supplimentproduction. We also have refined liquor,cacao butter, nibs,on and on. Contact us for more information. We are justoutfitting our new building now, and hope to be ready in Sept or October. This is a facility like no other in the United States, located minutes fromNewport Beach Airport, Irvine Spectrum Mall, andDisneyland (for those who want a side trip), half way between L.A. and San Diego.
Sales Alert!
Maybe you all should take a look at ChocoEasy - this is a German machine so it's expensive, but built to last forever, serviced here in USA by yours truly and customer service is our best sales tool.
I'll tell you up front that the 50 Kilogram machine is $99,500 and the 300 Kilgoram machine is $186,000. These are fully automated machines to control temperature, process time. Produce 25 to 50 Kgs in 8 hours to below 15 microns. Can start with nibs and butter
So if you're ready to use a BMW versus a Tata, please take a look. NETZSCH is having a seminar on this machine in Las Vegas at Chef Rubber on July 28th-29th.
Thanks!
I didnt even look into those because on first glance they appeared to be only for milling powder. If nothing else that expands my options - who wouldnt want "The Rolls Royce of Grindeurs"...
You may want to look at CocoaTown's line of larger melangers that they call grindeurs. The come in 30, 40 and 65lb versions.
http://cocoatown.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&...
Yeah, I just canceled my order after a week of them not answering the phone or responding to my messages. Do you recommend any other Melangers?
Im really dissappointed because I was excited about the 40L volume and the variable speed control. Alas, I should have known it was too good to be true...
The only other models I can find on the internet are the Cocoa Town melangers ( http://www.cocoatown.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=48&Itemid=55 ) and the Ultra Melangers on Chocolate Alchemy ( http://shop.chocolatealchemy.com/collections/equipment ). But neither really have the throughput Im looking for.
Yes the machine is not reliable I have 3 of them (sigh)
Ernesto
When I first started making chocolate in my home in 2005, I used a small version of the Santha, and pretty much destroyed it. The end result was a complete rebuild with a more powerful motor, fibreglass belts, and numerous changes to the bin where the nibs are ground.
I know there are artisan chocolatiers out there who are using the machines you refer to, but given their design and original intended design (not to grind cocoa beans, but rather grind soft beans into pastes for East Indian food), they will all inevitably fail. In the end, the question is: How handy are you? I guarantee you will be replacing belts, and having to add some type of heating mechanism to the machine to keep the chocolate warm enough to stay liquid.
I don't want to discourage you from starting your own venture. It's fun, and exciting, and rewarding, and scary all at the same time. And... Like I said, there are micro chocolatiers out there who are using modified versions of this machine. I'm just trying to tell you from experience what to expect from it going in!
Cheers and best wishes.
Brad
Greetings Fellow Chocophiles,
I have recently begun the process of purchasing a Spectra 40 Stone Melanger - http://www.santhausa.com/Spectra%2040%20Melanger%20Speed%20Controller.htm
Is there anybody out there on the Chocolate Life who has experience using this equipment, or who knows anyone who has?
I am receiving an extremely low level of customer service, and the warranty is very limited on the product, as well as there being no facility in the United States (where I am) to service the melangeur in the event of mechanical problems. On top of this, I have been told I will have to wait several months for the Spectra 40 to ship directly from the manufacturer in India.
With an investment of this nature, my business simply cannot afford for this type of equipment to be anything other than top-notch for many years to come, if not decades. Any advice or information regarding the Spectra 40 Melanger specifically, or Santha in general, is greatly appreciated.
.:SiriuS:.
Does anyone know of any great websites that sell packaging particularly good for chocolate making...I am not going big here, just local markets and fairs....eco friendly preferable.
Hi Nat, Just wondering which island you are on. I live on oahu and am just getting started in the chocolate trade, still very much in learning mode and if you are on Oahu I might come check out your chocolate at farmer's market.
carrie
Nat,
You might want to try something like this:melt compound chocolate (which appears to have a melting temp of 110 or so) and soy wax together and mold. I tried this with some bon bons and they survived just fine for a few hours in the low to mid 80's, out of direct sunlight. They got soft but did not appear visibly melted and re-gained their shape when cooled. And, they look just like chocolate: 
Things to remember, that I did not realise with mould copy's, when doing market research is:
1. Some children will inevitably put the copy in their mouth.
2. People get really disappointed if the product looks different to the copy.
3. Colour and appeal are actually very important, an ugly copy will impact sales negatively.
I reckon mixing food grade beeswax with cacao powder may provide a similar sheen / lustre and also make the beeswax melt at a higher temperature. Whether the result is convincing and appealing will take experimentation.
Thanks for the tip, Clay. I've made some molds with silicone but the compound always comes in garish colors of purple or blue and as nothing sticks to silicone, trying to paint this is impossible. Paint peels right off. The mold companies won't explain how to color silicone to your preferred color. They'll do it for you if you order 50 lbs of mold compound but I don't need 500 sample bars!
Nat:
There is food-grade silicon used to make ... molds. It can probably be colored, too. Available through Chef Rubber, among others.
:: Clay
We sellchocolate bars every week at 2 localfarmers markets in Hawaii. Temp control isdefinitely an issue, especially in the summers in Hawaii. We keep all the bars in a cooler with ice packs, put dummy bars out on display (cardboard wrapped in foil & labels) that won't melt, and keep smallamounts of samples in sampler trays with ice underneath.
A bigger problem for us is that we want to display our beautiful molds, but unless we can make them out of some other material that won't melt in the heat, that's not possible.
If anyone has figured out a somewhat durable material that is also food safe and they feel comfortable putting in theirchocolate molds their using for other things, please, let us know!
Thank you, Clay. As always, I appreciate your comments and insights here. I have a shop, licensed commercially for wholesale (and retail is allowed) by the Ag Dept. In Minnesota, Ag usually licenses food establishments that are not restaurants. I will definitely call and ask my Ag guy. Would still value thoughts, experiences, etc from those who are farmers' market veterans.
Robyn -
The health department regulations are going to vary state by state, county by county, and city by city (where is Scandia?). The only way to find out is to go ask, or if you are lucky, go on-line. NYC government bureaucracy is messed up in a lot of ways, but the nyc.gov web site does an excellent job of letting any who wants to open a food business in NYC know that they need to know to open any kind of food business. Unfortunately, none of that applies to where I live in Westchester if I wanted to open up exactly the same business in Westchester.
The only way to know is to ask your local health department. Oh, and keep in mind that there may be state and/or county permits and/or licenses that may be required as well as local ones.
As for the type of mobile unit you're talking about ... decide what you want to do, then choose the vehicle (pun intended) that will let you do it. A small hot-dog cart may be good only for selling prepared items. A food truck would mean that you can prepare stuff to order ... if that's what you want to do. Another thing to consider is that except for storage (ingredients, finished product to be sold), a food truck, kitted out properly, could be large enough to produce product for a million dollar plus business and could cost less than the same amount of space in a commercial structure.
As for farmer markets, there are a number of ChocolateLife members who've started successful businesses at the markets and I will let them tell their stories ...
Hi all. I'd love to hear from those of you who have sold your chocolates at farmer's markets. I have some memory of a prior discussion about suggestions for keeping the temp constant, but can't recall specifics (point me in the right direction please if you know the thread).
I would also appreciate any sense of demographics/psychographics you might have formed at farmers' markets. For instance, for those of you who sell this way, what impressions do you have of the audience/customers? Where do you think they fall on the sophistication and price continuums?
Anyone doing a mobile chocolate unit yet? If so, are you using a hotdog-style cart? A catering pickup truck? A full size food truck? Something else?
And finally, anyone have a sense of health dept. regs regarding mobile units when no heating is required (i.e. chocolates only)?
Thanks very much! --Robyn
