Just finished producing the chocolate bars made out of the fine Arriba bean from Ecuador. There are 15 bars for sale. Order 70 % Arriba | 2013 | Ecuador chocolate
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I'm getting ready for my next batch, this time with fine Arriba beans from Ecuador. I got about three kilos through a small chocolate producer in Switzerland. One of the critical steps along the production process is roasting. Different roasting profiles can be applied, depending on the bean. I roast in a regular kitchen baking oven, usually with the same temperatures, and control the roast by time alone. For this Arriba beans I decided to try an intense roast and left it a little longer in the oven as usual. Let's see how it will impact the taste of the chocolate.
Trinidad and Tobago has a rich history of cocoa cultivation. I would like to provide you the following interesting facts:
Out of my last batch I runned two weeks ago, there are 15 bars of fine dark chocolate availabe for sale. The beans come from the small cooperative "Montserrat" in the Eastern part of Trinidad. The region is called Gran Couva and well known for its fine flavour cocoa. Probably the finest chocolate that I produced so far. Taste notes: fruity & caramelly 70 % Trinitario | 2014 | Trinidad. , CHF 8 per 60g bar As a micro producer of premium chocolate my focus is on quality and not quantity. I run one batch at the time, paying attention to small details during the production process that can vary depending on the different beans. There are limited bars of chocolate available for sale from each batch (usually between 15 and 40 bars of 60 gramms, depending on the level of personal use). They are meant for friends and people who appreciate the unique taste of handcrafted chocolate. Each batch is unique in terms of flavour as I'm constantly experimenting with different roasting profiles and the length of grinding and refining process. I will keep you updated whenever there are new bars available.
Let me give you a short overview what's going on in my little workshop (size of about ten square meters) when I produce small batches of fine chocolate: RoastingThe first step in processing the beans is roasting. I use a conventional oven and apply different temperatures and time periods, depending on the beans. Winnowing / CrackingAfter roasting the beans, they need to be cooled, cracked and winnowed. Cracking means running the beans through a special mill that cracks the beans into small pieces and separates the husk Winnowing is a procedure to remove the husk, so that I can work with only the cocoa nibs that remain. Grounding / Refining Afterwards, I grind and refine the nibs. As the nibs are ground, they release cocoa butter and the solid nibs turn into cocoa liquor. Eventually, I add sugar and a small amount of additional cocoa butter and let the chocolate refine for a certain amount of time. TemperingThe last step before molding the chocolate into bars is tempering. This procedure ensures the uniform sheen and crisp bite of properly processed chocolate.
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