Forum Activity for @Clive Brown

Chocolates in India

Posted in: Allow Me to Introduce Myself

Looking to find a partner to expand India's chocolate consciousness, growing, manufacturing, supplying etc.Big challenge! Anyone interested email me cliveeta@yahoo.comAm in Delhi now, will travel if neccessary, cheers Clive
updated by @Clive Brown: 04/16/15 12:41:33AM

New guy here, Looking to setup a chocolate nad confectionery business!

Posted in: Allow Me to Introduce Myself

Oh yes and get yourself a reliable tabletop tempering machine ( I have good experience with Chocovision but not sure what is available in Wales) you def need that to start.

New guy here, Looking to setup a chocolate nad confectionery business!

Posted in: Allow Me to Introduce Myself

Being a chef you prob have the nous to get along well with chocolate. No its not impossible to start up a self taught choc business. Some instruction is handy. Online resources and books can teach most theory but you will need time to experiment and perfect your recipes. The Greweling book is excellent but many of the recipes are more complicated than what you might like to start with. Also you need a passion and desire to succeed to keep you focused while learning from your mistakes. I would say that its entirely possible to teach yourself chocolate making but having business success depends on whether you can make the right products for your market, how much business you get vs initial investment, location etc Good luck!

chocolate franchise

Posted in: Opinion

Hi Suresh, are you interested in starting your own chocolate business rather than franchising? I am looking into expanding into India , drop me a line. Clive

chocolate franchise

Posted in: Opinion

Fazloor, when is the Ooty chocolate fest? I would love to attend!

Chocovision vs. Melter

Posted in: Opinion

You can temper the chocolate as you described. But why go through the hassle when the Chocovision will do it for you. We have 2 of them and they are marvellous, turn it on, melt, wait for a beep, press a button, wait for another beep and its done. There are so many other things you can do while the machine is tempering, whereas doing it yourself you have to be on it constantly.

Gami tempering Machine

Posted in: Allow Me to Introduce Myself

Boby, I will be in India in March and would love to talk more about your chocolate growing and making experience.

If you have not found the machines you need maybe the AHAAR Food India trade show in Delhi in March might be of help. I am planning to attend, see you there?

Clive

How do I have better bases?

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, & Techniques

These look like hand rolled truffles which you dip/enrobe. It may be more time consuming but you could dip just te bottom of the fondant/truffle in tempered chcoate and when it sets dip it all again. You will have a double layer on the bottom and a base to sit on. ( A bit like piping onto a disco )If you can get away from the round truffle shape you could roll the fondant/center to be enrobed into a flat sheet and scrape a layer of chocolate on one side, then cut into pieces and enrobe. This way you will get more of a square/rectangle shape though.

Raw chocolate, how raw is it really?

Posted in: Make Mine Raw ...

Having read more about the subject it seems that the accepted temp limit, in order to be considered raw, is below from 114 degreesF to 122. Some people will argue, and I tend to agree, that the fermentation needed to bring out the best flavors will take the beans up to as much as 160 degreesF. Then roasting of course will take it to a temp. that the raw foodists believe destroys some health benefits.Here you have to weigh the apparent loss in health value with the potential inability to develop the best taste.To many gourmet 'tasteurs' the 'Raw' label has become a marketing tool.

Raw chocolate, how raw is it really?

Posted in: Make Mine Raw ...

Well, I have just finished reading all the fascinating posts, fallacious and fact-filled on the 'Raw chocolate-- what is it really?' and Xocai fora and much of my curiousity is now sated!Health benefits have been explored in great detail - what a great site this is.I conclude that terminology and semantic differences will extend this discussion. But I would still love to see a controlled study on chemical contents and changes made using different methods of bean processing, from fermenting and drying to roasting and grinding.I appreciate what Steve is trying to do at Sacred Chocolate as much as I value the issues raised by questioning skeptics.Glad to be part of such an informed group.Clive

Raw chocolate, how raw is it really?

Posted in: Make Mine Raw ...

Working and selling our confections in the Bay Area I get a lot of people coming up to me and asking if my chocolate is raw. Mostly these types are more interested in the health benefits of chocolate- taste is secondary. When I tell them, no it is roasted, they would seem to assume that it is less heathy.Generally I would, feeling a little slighted, compare chocolate to coffee - you really wouldn't want to drink a cup of coffee made from unroasted beans, I say. But I believe, and I am in the process of comparing controlled batches of similar beans roasted and unroasted, that there might not be such a difference in flavor between 'raw' and roasted cacao beans as there is in coffee.Recently, at a San Francisco chocolate event, I overheard the people at the Xocai booth telling the public that the heathful anti-oxidants in chocolate are destroyed by roasting, which is clearly not the case when you look at ORAC ratings. However I would be very interested to hear any thoughts on actually how much of a change roasting makes, and any references to studies on this. Raw chocolate has not been cooked past 114 degreesF I believe, does it taste as good?......
updated by @Clive Brown: 04/09/15 10:23:34AM

Chocolatiers = Re-melters?

Posted in: Opinion

Just means that the Tcho employee does not understand the complexities of 're-melting'!