Hello everybody,
First of all, I would like to thank Clay for this wonderful website. It is a great source of invaluable information for chocolate lovers.
I am located in Toronto, Canada, and have been looking at different options to store finished chocolate truffles and pralines, for a small scale operation. It is not easy to find climatized chocolate cabinets, and if I find them, they are very expensive.
I think one of the options would be a wine cooler. According to Callebaut, the ideal temperature for storing finished products is between 12C and 20C, and the maximum relative humidity should be no more 70%. Here is the excerpt from Callebaut:
'Humidity
Chocolate must be protected against humidity. As a general principle, the maximum relative humidity in the warehouse should be 70%. Storage of chocolate products on floors or against walls should be strictly prohibited because this greatly increases the risk of absortion of humidity.'
Based on this, wine coolers manage the ideal chocolate storage temperature range, and their humidity is around 70%, making them an acceptable storage option.
Has anybody used or tried a wine cooler to store finished chocolate truffles and pralines?
If humidity is too high, how could be reduced? Maybe loading a try with rice or salt into the wine cooler?
Thanks for your feedback.
Omar
updated by @chocochoco: 04/12/15 03:17:58