Forum Activity for @Carol

Of course I will ship them. Local pick up was an error

I think it will accept shipping now

Hi Carol,

your eBay listing only shows local pickup, would you willing to ship them? I am in North Carolina.

Thank You,

matthew

New

Asking $12.00 for 58  3-1/4x1-5/8x1-1/4"- 2 Pc Boxes 

Pearl White Double Truffle Boxes for gourmet candy packaging. Great for wedding favors! Made from 100% recycled boxboard. Green Way® Eco-Friendly Packaging. Made in the USA.

Located in Forest Hills, NY

See photos here

http://www.nashvillewraps.com/candy-boxes/truffle-box/sku-tbr2pl.html

For ease of purchase click here:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/-/132126218234?

Hi ! I'm traveling to Switzerland for a buddhist retreat and will expand the trip for chocolate! I do have a chocolate shop and we carry very little swiss chocolate....none in fact outside of Milkboy. I'm interested in all chocolate experiences. any suggestions?

Downside is that if you're shipping bars, thin ones are more likely to break in transit.  A little bit of a low melt point fat actually increases flavor perception, believe it or not, as flavor release of fat soluble aromatics is a function of the melt characteristics of the fat system.  A chocolate bar that is softer (ie melts at a lower mp) will release it's flavors differently than a high mp bar, creating the perception of more flavor.  You're correct from the perspective of 'volume fraction' of flavorants - 2% milk fat addition will depress all other components by 2% - so straight-line mathematically there's less of everything else.

There is another option which I'm surprised that nobody has touched on, and that is to simply mold up a thinner bar.  Lots of advantages to this option, rather than adding a different fat to the bar.  While it won't make the chocolate "softer", it will be easier to break, and the flavour won't be diluted by the addition of more fat.

Virgilio,

Is the pump a transfer pump or a metering pump?

If the latter, what is the range of the piston displacement per stroke; i.e. how many grams/oz per shot, min & max?

Thanks.

Matt -

The vast majority of the fermentation that goes on in the world is not instrumented. People throw out five days and six days - such as "if you go from five days to six days you will get 'better' results - as if they know what they mean. But, you cannot control what you do not measure.

What they don't know, or seem to care to learn or understand, is how variables such as water and sugar content of the pulp, pH of the pulp and the cotyledons (this is a significant marker), and which specific species of yeasts and bacteria are doing the work - affect the chemistry of the beans.

It's not just five versus six days, it's also understanding when the turns are made and how many there should be. Good examples are the Ingemann double- and triple-turned Chunos. Same length of fermentation, the major difference is in the number of turns.

It also depends on what you're looking for in terms of flavor. Longer fermentations tend to result in greater presence of chemicals that contribute to cocoa/chocolate flavor. Shorter fermentations tend to result in the presence of chemicals that contribute to more complex flavors ... but fail and 80% well-fermented cut test, so people write them off as under-fermented.

The first step in getting a handle on things is to instrument and document from the point of collection. Then you can get an understanding of how changes affect flavor and correlate them back to something concrete.

Large processors are very often very well integrated throughout the supply chain. Hence part of the reason they're spending 10's of millions of dollars.  In many cases, the processing is occuring at 3rd party fermentation / drying centers, where there are information protection controls in place, as well as massive financial implications. I won't go into what those are, and i'm sure there's some info leakage to be sure.

But are the big buyers not generally purchasing dried beans? If so then the post harvest processing has already taken place on the farm for better or worse. If they are involving themselves at the level of the farm this must involve large scale farmer engagement and information dissemination and thus don't the best practice guidelines leak out? 

What do small-scale growers in more developed parts of the world, e.g. Hawaii, have to say about best practice for fermentation and drying? Are they more happy to share successes and failures?

I would say that most cocoa processors/farmers really don't understand the drivers of post harvest quality well at all - but often think they do.  The 'big buyers' as you say spend 10's of millions of dollars on this, and understand it very, very well - but because of the significant investment, don't make that information publicly available because, well, they've made a huge investment into something that gives them a competitive advantage.  It's like any other business.  With understanding the levers one can pull on post harvest control and their impact, there is a tremendous amount of flexibility that it generates.

Thanks, Sebastian and Clay. I understand that it is a very expansive topic. I find the black-box nature of the process fascinating though and would like to learn more. I will have to get over to Ecuador at some point - maybe on one of Dandelion chocolate's farm visits. It seems a missed opportunity that the research on fermentation and drying that must be being done on a fairly large scale by the big buyers is not being disseminated more freely. Would this not result in better bean quality/yield/grower loyalty (i.e. not switching crops)?

Is there any good source of flavour characteristic information for the commonly cultivated varieties? The grower in Sarawak currently has a very mixed crop and is looking to plant out another 100 acres,. He is interested to know which varieties would deliver best flavour for smaller makers (who are prepared to pay more than the MCB).

me too

I have to disagree to some extent with what Vicente says, especially given that he is in Ecuador: very few people would agree that CCN-51 is a not bad variety from a flavor perspective.

Given what we now know about fermentation - the inoculated ferments that Camino Verde uses, as well as the guided wild ferments that Ingemann in Nicaragua uses - there is such a thing as improper fermentation, whether over- or under. It is also important to recognize that drying plays a huge role in flavor development and less is know about the effects of drying than fermentation.

That said, I also have to say that not every bean deserves to stand alone in a single-bean chocolate ... and that could be a combination of variety and post-harvest processing along with an all-too-common lack of understanding among small makers who think they know what "good" cocoa is, and actually don't.

K+M Extravirgin Chocolate 70% Peru

First Impressions

After spending more than $16 ($14.95 + tax for 70gr) at a Williams Sonoma store in White Plains NY, and given the reputation of Chef Keller, I expected … more. A lot more .

The first disappointment came immediately upon opening the box: the bar was broken.

The next disappointment came when opening up the flow-wrap. The bar itself was visually damaged with wear lines down the center of the back of the bar, scuff marks all around, and chocolate flakes from the edges of the bar because the mold appears to be under-filled and the chocolate creeps up the side of the mold when when it cools. These thin lips are prone to breaking off - and they had in the bar I bought - and in riotous abandon. (That’s not a good thing.)

As for the “chocolate” itself (“chocolate” because the product contains olive oil it does not meet the standard of identity set forth in CFR 21.163.123), I give it a strong Meh .

Tasting Notes

The aroma is somewhat complex but is composed mostly of a bright sweet top with mid-notes dominated by over-roasting. Paying close attention there is a faint green vegetal note - presumably from the olive oil - that would be easy to miss without multiple sniffs with your nose buried in the bar.

The snap is surprisingly sharp, given the presence of the olive oil, which I expected would have softened the bar somewhat. This extends to the texture of the chew which is also firmer than I would have expected. The melt is pretty uncomplicated but there’s a brightness to it that I don’t hate, but I don’t know that I like, either.

The taste is bland and boring, with over roasted notes predominating. There is considerable dustiness to the texture as the chocolate leaves the mouth that - finally - resolves into some stronger green vegetal notes from the olive oil. There is also some interesting and nice - but fleeting - astringency that darts around the mouth and then … it all fades away into nothing surprisingly quickly. There bottom drops out of the middle and there is literally almost nothing on the long finish. Waiting for five minutes or so reveals a sugary sweetness with a faint chocolate note in firmly in the center of the mouth above the tongue.

Conclusions

I don’t think that there is actually anything truly revolutionary about this “chocolate,” despite the claim on the label.

After thinking about it, the whole raison d’être of these bars is their marketing. It’s not really about chocolate (after all, it is faux chocolate). It’s the combination of the chocolate with the olive oil, a matching of a famous chef with a famous olive oil producer in an attempt to convince people that the way to overcome the reduction in antioxidants through processing is to use olive oil.

Given the cutesy spelling of “extravirgin” (perhaps that is what is revolutionary?) and the emphasis on antioxidants over everything else in the language on the label, it’s seems pretty safe to assume that this attempt is not really about the "chocolate," a point further underscored by the fact that there is no mention of the quantity of antioxidants in or near the nutrition facts panel.

Finally, like many single-origin bars whose origin is an entire country, there is nothing about this bar that says “Peru” to me. In part, that’s because I know that Peru as an origin is host to many, many different flavor profiles from up north in Piura and Amazonas to Marañon, Huanuco, San Martin, and Ucayalli, and down into Cusco in the south. The provenance of the beans is important from a marketing perspective but little else . I was not in the mood to spend an additional $16 on the Madagascar bar to see if it had any of the characteristic aromas and flavors of Madagascar - but that’s not the point of these bars: the olive oil is the point.

Rating

On my scale of 0-4, I give this a 1.

I don’t hate this “chocolate,” but it’s not something I would go out of my way to buy, or ask for as a gift. I would consider eating it if gifted it and there was nothing else on hand.

It’s clear that the product is mis-labeled as chocolate. It does not conform to the standard of identity for chocolate. So, I am going to deduct a rating point and give it a 0 .

Keller+Manni Chocolate

I'm not aware of any publicly published comprehensive information sets on this.  This is a specialized area, where knowledge is developed over decades and typically held as trade secrets.

and me

also interested.  

any info pictures and price would be appreciated (owgdominus@hotmail.com)

thanks

Anything you can give me to point me in the right direction?

Hello all,

I wanted to share the latest episode of The Slow Melt - the only podcast focused on the full story of chocolate. T he majority of chocolate we know and love - 70 percent - comes from West Africa, and in the last few weeks, the price these farmers receive for their cocoa has plummeted to historic lows. We decided to wedge this program into our podcast schedule to make clear this is NO cause for celebration - and to help everyone who loves chocolate understand the economics behind what they are buying and how their decisions can help farmers who are earning less than $1 a day.

Guests include:
Laurent Pipitone , director of the economics and statistics division at the International Cocoa Organization, on the impacts of historically low cocoa prices on subsistence cocoa farmers in West Africa.

Antonie Fountain , managing director of the VOICE (Voice of Organisations in Cocoa in Europe) Network, on how the money consumers pay for chocolate is allocated.

Sako Warren , global executive secretary of the World Cocoa Farmers Organization, on what farmer empowerment in cocoa really means.

Please listen and share if so moved. https://theslowmelt.com/portfolio/the-high-price-of-cheap-chocolate/

Also, here is an article you chocophiles may enjoy: The Many Benefits of Making (and Eating) Chocolate Right Where It Grows , written by our host, Simran Sethi.

That, my friend, is probably a 2 week long discussion involving a great many details.  The old adage of 'believe none of what you hear and half of what you see' probably applies here.

Thanks, Sebastian, I appreciate your comments.

What roast time/temp would you recommend as a ball park for lower end forestero type beans? Long and relatively low temp?

I am working to improve things at my end I promise, but my grower is very receptive to feedback and often complains that the Malaysian Cocoa Board offer him little guidance on best current practice. Having heard comments out of Camino Verde along the lines of 'there is no such thing as a bad variety, just inadequate /unsuitable fermentation' makes me wonder as to possible adjustments on the farm end too.

Bitterness can be coming in from many, many reasons - i'm afraid there's no quick and easy answer to your question that one can answer briefly on a forum.  I suspect it's a combination of genetics, pod age (maturity), fermentation protocol (too short), and how he's drying.  washing the beans is likely providing no material benefit.

Remember you can influence bean flavor by processing on YOUR end as well.  Roast time/temp/grind conditions/formula all are part of the equation.

Hi all,

I am looking to amass as much detailed information on post-harvest/fermentation techniques as I can get my hands on. I am particularly interested in any stages of the process that might be used to reduce bitterness in the processed beans.

I am currently sourcing my beans from a grower in Sarawak, Malaysia. He grows a range of high yield genetic strains in his sun plantation (over 10 types from places all over the world including Ghana and Brazil). He harvests pods on day 1 of his cycle, splits pods on day 2 and leaves in baskets, he begins a 3 box fermentation on day 3 (shifting beans from box to box after 40 and 80 hours). He halts fermentation at 120 hours, briefly washes in a  bucket and then sun dries over 3-4 days if the weather is good.

Would more frequent aeration in the later stages of fermentation reduce bitterness? Would a longer period of pre-drying before fermentation be useful? More pod storage? Better insulation of fermentation boxes to reach higher peak temperatures? Should the microbial fauna be kickstarted with additions i.e. sourdough starter etc?

I have read some vague descriptions of an interesting bag fermentation process being used by the Camino Verde farm in Ecuador. The sources imply that it yields very good flavour results from basic high yield varieties. Does anyone know the details of this approach?

Any assistance at all with these questions would be greatly appreciated!

Best regards

Matt

The boy with the machete is watching us. We’re sitting in an SUV in the middle of a rugged, red-dirt road about 10 miles outside the city of Abengourou, in eastern Ivory Coast. It’s just after 8 a.m. on a Saturday, and the early morning haze hasn’t yet burned off, so a mist hangs over the fields around us. We’ve been slowly bumping along on our way to meet some farmers in a nearby village called Appoisso but stop for a moment to take in the scene. Suddenly the boy is standing right next to us. He looks curious, but wary too.

Around 1500 AD, a Spanish soldier who was part of the conquest of Mexico and who had observed the emperor of the Aztecs, Moctezuma II, stated that he took no other beverage than chocolate, served in a golden goblet and flavoured with spices like vanilla; his chocolate beverage was whipped into a froth that dissolved into the mouth. Sounds yummy doesn’t it? That was the first introduction of cocoa to the Europeans and became a very popular beverage by the mid 17^thcentury; the rest is history as we say. Cocoa comes from the Theobroma cacao tree which is native to Central and South America, grows the fruit and inside the fruit; there are about 20 to 50 beans.

Hi please let me know your asking price for the equipment.

My direct email is vrubini@chocostyle.ca

Thanks.

Selmi 400kg Melter A13-75 (2011) Never Used

Selmi Top Ex Tempering Unit (2011) Used Very Little

Business is being Closed.  Please inquire for pricing or make offer.  Equipment located in Vancouver, WA

Hi Deb.

It was made in 2008.

FREE SHIPPING within US and Canada.

DESCRIPTION:

-melter temperer

-capacity :75KGS (220 pounds)

-permanent circulation of water

-electronic thermostat :

for melting temperature

for chocolate temperature

for keeping temperature

-stainless steel construction

-automatic control of inlet water and temperature

-drain valve

-agitator

-220Vpower

-security switch

Hi there - Is this still for sale? If yes, please contact me at:

bunkburger@yahoo.com 

Thanks, Sue.  I have had several custom molds created and will add you to my list of vendors.  My thought on this particular one, however, was that because there are so many promotional companies using it, it may be a mold I can purchase.

@luv-ice-cream I have uploaded pictures and a copy of the spec page.  It does not have a separate depositor.  It only has a side valve dispenser.

What would the freight be to 55109?

I am assuming each sack is 50 lbs?

Thanks!

This is a great bean that comes from Uncommon Cacao. We are changing direction and no longer have use for them. We are letting them go for cheaper than you can get them from the source! Super clean nice rich bean..

$ 2.50lb

FWIW,

LUV Ice Cream now makes sugar-free, organic stevia sweetened bean-to-bar using direct trade Nicaraguan beans. 

Hi,

Does this unit have a depositor?

Also, any pics would be appreciated.

Thanks!

We make chocolate molds. You supply the graphics and we can make the molds. If interested email me at sue@sasquatchchocolate.com

I'm looking for a chocolate mold of a small shovel.  I've seen the finished piece on numerous promotional item websites, but have looked through all the typical places I search for molds and am coming up with nothing.  Anyone have any suggestions?

 shovel.jpg - 91KB

I can’t resist its siren calls.  Whether it’s dark, white, semi-sweet, or milk chocolate – I answer every time.  I try and be polite that way.  Whether in cake, brownies, fudge sauce, candy bars, cookies, ice cream, mousse etc., chocolate makes the blissful world of desserts go-round.

Here is a list, by state, of the American small-batch, craft chocolate makers who make chocolate from bean-to-bar. They roast the cacao beans, crack and winnow them, grind them into chocolate, conche and then add their own unique spin while tempering, molding and packaging the chocolate. Many of these chocolate makers sell on their website, through retailers or at their own chocolate shops and cafes. I understand that there are many more large manufacturers, but this list is specifically about the craft movement.  If you see that I have missed any, please feel free to add it to the Comments below and I will then include it in this list, which will be updated regularly.

Mercedes Farm is located at an elevation of ~3600 feet, in Peñas Blancas within the Isabelia Range, a protected forest area. Lushly green forests surround the coffee trees, and large hardwood trees provide shade and animal habitat throughout the farm. Several beautiful streams flow through the farm and provide natural irrigation, helping to contribute to the plump sweetness of the juicy-ripe beans.

Well one would certainly think so, and if you’re buying real coffee beans let’s hope they are not artificial, but that does not mean they are natural….processed that is.  You see when we refer to a coffee as natural we mean it is natural vs washed or semi-washed in the processing.  Originally, all coffee was processed naturally, allowing the cherries to dry on the beans, but inconsistencies in this method led to bad,  over fermented, and sometimes downright nasty coffee. Eventually the washed method became more popular.