Forum Activity for @ChocoFiles

Describing chocolate

Posted in: Tasting Notes

That's fascinating and well worth pondering. I can't say that I follow all the nuances of every point, but the idea of intensity over time should be taken seriously. I wish I knew something about the technical aspects of the composition of symphonies, but i know very little about music. In my limited experience, the Amedei Chuao and Porcelana bars are much like a symphony. They have 3 or 4 movements and a variety of tastes that come in at different times with different intensities. When one fades another builds. Using this symphony metaphor, perhaps one could say that lower quality chocolate is like a symphony with fewer instruments thus there are fewer notes.

Describing chocolate

Posted in: Tasting Notes

Clay,

I read with great interest on your blog about attempts to find new ways to describe the taste of chocolate that isn't dependent on other food terms. I'm especially curious about what you mean by using music terminology.

To make it easier for others here's what Clay said,

"Develop new ways to talk about flavors in chocolate (that aren't dependent on other foods). Right now, most of the vocabulary of chocolate (and certainly virtually all of the taste vocabulary of chocolate) comes from wine. While this is not bad, I think there has to be some way to talk about flavors in chocolate in more general terms so that more people "get it" without thinking we chocophiles are being snobby. The new chocolate company Tcho, which is currently in "beta" on its first chocolate, has developed a "taste wheel" that lists what they think are the dominant flavor characteristics of one of their chocolates. I think that this is a step in a good direction. My own explorations in this area include trying to adapt terms from music to chocolate and I plan to continue this work for myself and on behalf of my consulting clients in 2008. What do you think? Good idea? Bad idea? Share your thoughts in a comment."

Would you elaborate on this concept a little more? Also can you give more details about what Tcho is doing in this area? I couldn't find anything about it on their website.

updated by @ChocoFiles: 04/09/15 11:40:08

Hershey's Bliss- 10,000 House Parties

Posted in: News & New Product Press

Did anybody go to one of these Hershey's Bliss house parties? Although I'm not a big fan of Hershey's one of my life rules is never to pass up free chocolate.Here's the info: You're Invited to Experience Bliss -- The Hershey Company Celebrates the National Debut of Hershey's Bliss(TM) Chocolate by Hosting 10 Thousand Launch Parties Rich, Creamy, Bite-Sized Hershey Bliss Chocolate Debuts in Three Unique ExpressionsHERSHEY, Pa., March 27 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Tens of thousands of consumers are invited to experience bliss nationwide -- in celebration of the launch of Hershey's Bliss(TM) Chocolate, a new rich, creamy, bite-size chocolate indulgence from The Hershey Company. As part of the April 2008 launch, Hershey's Bliss Chocolate is hosting 10 thousand chocolate parties in homes across America over the weekend of April 25. The bliss-themed launch parties will introduce guests to Hershey's Bliss Chocolate while transporting their senses into a state of bliss with the world's most indulgent chocolate.Available in three unique expressions, Milk Chocolate, Dark Chocolate and Milk Chocolate Meltaway, Hershey's Bliss Chocolate is specially crafted to ensure that every detail contributes to the overall chocolate experience. The slight domed shape of the individual square fits the mouth perfectly allowing the chocolate to melt evenly cascading rich, creamy chocolate notes across the tongue. The finish is satisfying and sophisticated, a lasting reward."The chocolate masters at Hershey created Hershey's Bliss for consumers who appreciate the everyday joys in life," said Michele Buck, Senior Vice President, Global Chief Marketing Officer, The Hershey Company. "Hershey's Bliss Chocolate is meant to celebrate that joy and the Hershey's Bliss Chocolate parties brings this experience to life by encouraging party goers to experience and share everyday bliss with their own friends and family."The weekend of April 25, Hershey's Bliss will be the guest of honor at 10 thousand Hershey's Bliss Chocolate launch parties nationwide. Targeting female chocolate lovers, the parties will celebrate everyday bliss by gathering with friends and family to share personal stories of bliss while sampling Hershey's newest indulgence. To sign up to host a Hershey's Bliss Chocolate Party consumers should visit http://www.houseparty.com/hersheysbliss for more details or to register.Hershey's Bliss Chocolate is now available nationwide in 9.6 oz lay-down packages at grocery, mass and drug stores. Hershey's Bliss chocolate is a delicious reminder that "Bliss is everywhere. You just have to unwrap it.(TM)"You can also find this on the Hershey's website .
updated by @ChocoFiles: 04/12/15 23:25:15

Caffeine and theobromine

Posted in: Opinion

I've read that chocolate may not even have caffeine in it after all but only similar stimulants, one of which is theobromine. What do you think? Can anyone point to a definitive answer to this?A related question-- I've seen lists of how much caffeine is in dark chocolate. How do they measure that, and doesn't the amount of stimulant vary with the cacao percentage? Surely a 100% bar of 100g has more stimulant than a 55% bar of the same size.
updated by @ChocoFiles: 05/18/15 03:35:43

White Chocolate- is it really chocolate?

Posted in: Tasting Notes

Thanks for the info Gwen.Another question- does cacao butter have any theobromine, caffeine, or other stimulants that dark chocolate has or are the stimulants only in the "cocoa mass" or "cocoa liqueur"? I ask because I wonder if it's safe for me to eat white chocolate at night since I'm very sensitive to caffeine and related stimulants.

White Chocolate- is it really chocolate?

Posted in: Tasting Notes

P.S.- I can't get the Add hyperlink thing to work. Can someone please give me instructions how to do it? I want to have it be a word that is really a hyperlink that takes you to the site without showing the URL.

White Chocolate- is it really chocolate?

Posted in: Tasting Notes

I took Casey's suggestion from her Chocolate Note blog ( http://chocolatenote.blogspot.com/2007/11/el-rey-icoa-white-chocolate.html ) and I'm currently tasting El Rey's Icoa White Chocolate, but I'm not really sure that it's chocolate since it's so different. I guess that the ingredients are pretty similar to milk chocolate (in order: sugar, cacao butter, whole and skim milk powder, soy lecithin, vanilla) but the only cacao product is "cacao butter". Is that enough to consider it to be chocolate? It's a nice little change of pace, kind of like reading a good detective novel as a break from classic literature, but is it really chocolate? It tastes more like candy to me. Is there any consensus out there? What do you think?
updated by @ChocoFiles: 04/10/15 03:52:26

Mast Brothers Chocolate- bean to bar producer out of Brooklyn, NY

Posted in: Tasting Notes

Mast Brothers bars were among the most enjoyable of the bars I reviewed in 2010. They're doing fine work!

Here are my personal enjoyment ratings (on a 0-10 scale):

Venezuela 9.4

Brooklyn Blend 9.4

Domican Republic 9.1

I consider any rating >9 to be in my "Top Favorites"

My ratings can be found at ChocoFiles .

American, Bean-to-Bar Chocolate Makers: A Complete List

Posted in: Tasting Notes

Nancy,You should add your company information to the TCL Chocolate Makers database . That's a good place to store the information more permanently.

American, Bean-to-Bar Chocolate Makers: A Complete List

Posted in: Tasting Notes

Wow, Bob and Pam must be really old... if they've been doing this since the 1850s! ;>)
updated by @ChocoFiles: 06/14/15 17:32:25

American, Bean-to-Bar Chocolate Makers: A Complete List

Posted in: Tasting Notes

Here's my U.S. list:AmanoAmbrosiaAskinosieBittersweet CafeBlack Mountain ChocolateBlommerChocolate HavenCioccolatoDeVriesDe ZaanEscazu ChocolatesFearless ChocolatesFrescoGarden Island ChocolateGhirardelliGuittardJacques TorresKraft ??Lillie Belle FarmsLulu's ChocolateMarsMast BrothersMerkensNestleOlive and SinclairOriginal Hawaiian Chocolate FactoryPatric ChocolatePetersRogue ChocolatierSacred ChocolateScharffen BergerSeeds of ChangeTazaTheoVan LeerWilburWorld's Finest Chocolate

American, Bean-to-Bar Chocolate Makers: A Complete List

Posted in: Tasting Notes

I've attached 2 lists.1) A list from TCL of all the bean to bar makers. I've got a couple that aren't on the list above.2) A list of U.S. bean to bar makers only. (I just deleted everyone on the first list that isn't in the U.S.)Personally, I think it's easier to just maintain one list.Unfortunately, the TCL database still has very limited usefulness. Until the data can be printed, and until various reports can created from it, and queries made, it's not as useful as it could be. It's nice to have a definitive list in one place, though. I'd really like to be able to download all the data so that I have it for my own use, though (preferably in MS Access format).

American, Bean-to-Bar Chocolate Makers: A Complete List

Posted in: Tasting Notes

This surprises me to hear that Dove is bean-to-bar. Is anyone else surprised by this as well?

American, Bean-to-Bar Chocolate Makers: A Complete List

Posted in: Tasting Notes

QUOTE: "I have created a simple database that will enable us to track these companies more easily. It is located here. PLEASE DO NOT ADD ANY MORE COMPANY NAMES HERE. Please add them in the database. If you have added a company to this list, please consider making an entry in the database for it." /QUOTEClay,Has any more progress been made on updating this database? I seem to recall that you were going to look into other options to make it more usable. For instance, going with the theme of this thread, it would need to be able to produce a report with U.S. bean to bar makers. Other reports needed are 1) a report for each company that lists all of the data collected for that company , 2) Reports by country, 3) A complete list of just the chocolate makers grouped by country.Ideally, it would be great to have a way to import this data directly into an Access database so that no data re-entry has to be done. At a minimum there has to be a way to print these reports so that we can have it in a hard copy.I think this is a very useful project, so I hope it will continue to grow and improve.

American, Bean-to-Bar Chocolate Makers: A Complete List

Posted in: Tasting Notes

If a chocolate company is NOT bean to bar, but uses couverture what is that kind of company called? I've heard them called "chocolatier", but is that an accurate and widely used label?

American, Bean-to-Bar Chocolate Makers: A Complete List

Posted in: Tasting Notes

I'm adding these from the other discussion of worldwide bean to bar makers:Jacques TorresKraftNestleComplete listAmanoAmbrosia (ADM-owned, bean-to-couverture)AskinosieBittersweet Chocolate Cafe (Seneca is doing some really micro-batch bars)BlommerChocolate Haven (Jacques Torres)Cioccolato (located in Wyoming and Mexico--bean-to-bonbon)DeVriesDe Zaan (ADM-owned, bean-to-couverture)Escazu Chocolates (just starting to release a bean-to-bar line)Fearless Chocolate Company (raw)Ghirardelli (Owned by Lindt in Switzerland)GuittardJacques TorresKraftMarsMast BrothersMerkens (ADM-owned, bean-to-couverture)NestleOriginal Hawaiian Chocolate Factory (also grows their beans on American soil)Patric ChocolatePeters (Cargill-owned, bean-to-couverture)Rogue ChocolatierSacred Chocolate (raw)Scharffen BergerSoma Chocolatemaker (actually in Canada)TazaTchoTheoVan Leer (Belgian-owned)Wilbur (Cargill owned, bean-to-couverture)World's Finest Chocolate

American, Bean-to-Bar Chocolate Makers: A Complete List

Posted in: Tasting Notes

What does "ADM-owned" mean?

American, Bean-to-Bar Chocolate Makers: A Complete List

Posted in: Tasting Notes

A question about Escazu...They're in my city, so I recently visited their store. The building is only the size of a small one story house, and the shop seems to take up most of the space, so I got to wondering what is the minimum amount of space for the equipment that one would need to be able to make chocolate from bean to bar? I've only been to Theo in Seattle, (but I didn't have time for the factory tour) but they have a very large warehouse size building. I've also seen pictures on the internet and the equipment for each stage ooks really large, but maybe that's for a huge company. Would Escazu be considered microbatch?

American, Bean-to-Bar Chocolate Makers: A Complete List

Posted in: Tasting Notes

This list is very helpful. Alan, you really know your stuff and you must have access to some good resources to add so much to this list! The list is getting so long that I alphabetized it. If you add to the list please put new entries in their correct spot in the alphabetized list.AmanoAmbrosia (ADM-owned bean-to-couverture)AskinosieBittersweet Chocolate Cafe (Seneca is doing some really micro-batch bars)BlommerChocolate Haven (Jacques Torres)Cioccolato (located in Wyoming and Mexico; bean-to-bonbon)DevriesDe Zaan (ADM-owned bean-to-couverture)Escazu Chocolates (just starting to release a bean-to-bar line)Fearless Chocolate Company (raw)Ghirardelli (Owned by Lindt in Switzerland)GuittardMarsMast BrothersMerkens (ADM-owned bean-to-couverture)Original Hawaiian Chocolate Factory (also grows their beans on American soil)PatricPeters (Cargill-owned, bean-to-couverture)Rogue ChocolatierSacred Chocolate (raw)Scharffen BergerSoma Chocolatemaker (actually in Canada)TchoTheoTazaTchoVan Leer (Belgian-owned)Wilbur (Cargill owned, bean-to-couverture)World's Finest Chocolate

American, Bean-to-Bar Chocolate Makers: A Complete List

Posted in: Tasting Notes

Complete List:GuittardScharffen BergerTheo

My Chocolate Journal

Posted in: Tasting Notes

Patrick,I got your email. Thanks. I've just been putting time into other things, so I haven't replied to you yet. It's no big deal, but I'll try to get to it.

My Chocolate Journal

Posted in: Tasting Notes

Patrick,My Chocolate Journal is a good site with lots of potential. I was a member there before I joined here. I have a question for you, but I can't find a way to contact you. Would you please email me at olorin7 (at) gmail.com ?Thanks.

To conche or not to conche?

Posted in: Tasting Notes

I didn't like the texture of the Taza 70% bar. It was chalky and crumbly and way too grainy, like white sugar grains. I also didn't like the taste very much, because it was really strong on red wine / red fruit. But I don't really prefer red wine/ red fruit flavor anyway. The flavor seemed a little "wild" too.I rated it 3 out of 10.I guess I like the European style. To conche or not to conche? I say, by all means, conche!

Pralus packaging

Posted in: Opinion

The Neuhaus Occumare bar had a very durable inner wrapper of tan foil lined paper. I was impressed that it was the most durable I've ever seen. I didn't care for the ribbon tied cardboard "book" outer wrapper, though. (And I was really disappointed by the chocolate.)Green and Black's gold foil lined paper is also quite durable and nice looking.I, too, agree that the Dolfin tobacco pouch is the most functional package I've seen, plus it's water proof! It's kind of funky, though, since it's so different from all others. It seems somewhat plebeian compared to other fancier packages.

notes on flavor

Posted in: Tasting Notes

Brady,I just found an article about this topic called " Five Facets of Fine Chocolate ". This seems to be pretty much the same thing that you were saying, only expanded a little. It makes sense to me. Your point 3 would be their "Chocolatier's Technical Expertise". I'm going to study it more and learn what I can.

notes on flavor

Posted in: Tasting Notes

post deleted by Theo B

notes on flavor

Posted in: Tasting Notes

Brady,I'd like to comment on part of what you said, "3. styles of the individual chocolate maker. ...As I'm sure you are aware, many chocolate makers have a trademark flavor that you can identify in any one of their bars and say this is Pralus, or this is Amedei, no matter which bar you pick up."This is exactly along the lines of my interest. I'm mainly on here because I'm on a quest. Simply put-- I'm looking for the chocolates that I like best. Gathering information about the style of each maker would help further this objective. I already do it in my head, with reference to the notes in my database, anyway. I think that a great start would be a simple table similar to the one you've already done. Just put the maker in the left column and note common characteristics in the right column. We'd want to know if the company is Bean-to-bar or a Fondeur.In fact, if I had the notes I could easily track this in my own Access database. I just don't have the expertise or the depth of experience to make authoritative statements so I leave that to others with more credentials.To get the ball rolling I'm going to start another thread on this very topic...So start posting any notes and observations at " Chocolate Maker Trademark styles ".

notes on flavor

Posted in: Tasting Notes

Brady,Your notes are Excellent and very helpful! Good job!!

Quotable Quotes

Posted in: Opinion

Put "eat chocolate" at the top of your list of things to do today. That way, at least you'll get one thing done.

Quotable Quotes

Posted in: Opinion

Money talks. Chocolate sings.

Quotable Quotes

Posted in: Opinion

Q. Why is there no such organization as Chocoholics Anonymous?A. Because no one wants to quit.

Chocolate and Health News

Posted in: News & New Product Press

I just found this thread about health too. (It's amazing what the Search function can turn up

Comparing the styles of Chocolate Makers

Posted in: Tasting Notes

Brady,Your disclaimer is well noted. Maybe for some makers it's too much to make generalizations about a trademark style. It does seem to me, though, that at least some makers have a characteristic style. To me Valrhona, Scharffen Berger, Hachez, and Amedei have each had a certain style for all of the chocolate I've tasted from them. (The first 3 I don't care for, but I love everything from Amedei that I've tasted.)

Comparing the styles of Chocolate Makers

Posted in: Tasting Notes

Since it's relevant to this discussion I'll put the info for the article " Five Facets of Fine Chocolate " here too. All 5 facets contribute to the maker's trademark flavor and style.And here's the star illustration of the 5 points too.

Comparing the styles of Chocolate Makers

Posted in: Tasting Notes

Brady on AmedeiAs far as the Amedei characteristic, alot of people describe it as raisin and or licorice (which is probably your Twizzler taste). I always describe it is as wine or mild rum. That's just what I get everytime, but I would assume what I call the wine/rum notes is the raisin everyone else gets. Other people describe their characteristic trait as dried fruits/figs.

Comparing the styles of Chocolate Makers

Posted in: Tasting Notes

AmedeiAll 8 of the Amedei's that I've tasted also have a distinctive characteristic. They've become my favorite maker. How would you describe their common traits?As a neophyte I feel like I can only dance around it but not nail it. I'd call it something like malt, hay, caramel. There's even something that I can only compare to the aftertaste of Twizzler's black licorice. (Is it OK to compare such a majestic chocolate to something as plebeian as Twizzler's?)

Comparing the styles of Chocolate Makers

Posted in: Tasting Notes

Scharffen BergerAll of the 7 Scharffen Berger bars that I've tasted have had a very distinctive dominant taste. but I'm such a novice that I don't know how to describe it. The best I can do is "red wine" or "red fruit" like raspberry or red grape. How would you describe this taste?

Comparing the styles of Chocolate Makers

Posted in: Tasting Notes

This is a good start, but the most important item I'd like to see would be descriptions of "Characteristic taste"."Characterisitc style" would also be good to have. It could be a bit more comprehensive and could include items such as appearance of the squares, texture, mouthfeel, artistry of packaging, cost...When the field names are finalized I'll add this to my own Chocolate database and keep track of the info, as I have time.So here are the current fields I've got. (The names can be changed if there are better terms.)CompanyCountry:Ingredients:Roast:Conching time:Fermentation:Characteristic taste:Characteristic style:Misc:

Comparing the styles of Chocolate Makers

Posted in: Tasting Notes

Has anyone ever invited Hans-Peter Rot to join TCL? I enjoy his reviews on seventypercent.com

Chocolate Slotting Mapping Idea

Posted in: Travels & Adventures

Have y'all seen this map that will show you the chocolate stores near you? http://chocomap.com/chocolate-map.php

Reclassification of cacao varieties?

Posted in: Opinion

Any updates on this issue? Is this new 10 varieties classification scheme gaining acceptance or are the Big 3 still firmly in place? Any thoughts on where this is heading?

Reclassification of cacao varieties?

Posted in: Opinion

I quickly looked over the article, but it raised a few questions about their methodology:1) The map shows that only plants from South America and Central America were used. What about all of the other cacao plants in other parts of the world? Africa, Indonesia, Hawaii... In order for a new classification system to be implemented it would seem that you'd want to do it on a worldwide basis. What if more germplasms are found in Africa or elsewhere?2) What happened to Trinitario? It just seems to have been dropped with no explanation. (Clay's article on this subject at Serious Eats does the same thing.) Look back at Brady's original list1. Criollo2. Forastero2a. Nacional3. TrinitarioIf you compare the new list then you'd assume that there were only 2 real classes to start with: Criollo and Forastero. The new list keeps the sub-type of Nacional and the other 8 are supposed to be variants of Forastero. Where is Trinitario?