Forum Activity for @Howard & Hanna Frederick

Samoa: the Chocolate Treasure Island of the Pacific

Posted in: Travels & Adventures

Have finally had time to start a open-to-the-public Pinterest board about Samoan cocoa. Did you know that Robert Louis Stevenson wrote Treasure Island while he was in Samoa. Thats why we call Samoa the Chocolate Treasure Island of the Pacific . Cocoa has been cultivated throughout Samoa for more than 120 years. Cocoa plantations are concentrated in the two 'rain shadows' along the northwest coasts of both islands. A great share of Samoan cocoa is Criollo and Trinitario varieties.

Koko Samoa is Samoas national beverage and forms an important part of the diet. By developing country standards, Samoa already has a large domestic market. Spurred by tradition and knowledge, on average, 60% of households serve 5 cups per week per person (about 200g of koko malu) (Agriculture Census, 2009). Another report shows that about approximately 12,300 households in Samoa consume three cups of cocoa per week, on average. Hence, around 43,000 cups of cocoa are consumed in Samoa per week . This is equivalent to approximately 900kg of dry cocoa beans per week (Ministry of Agriculture 2004). A largely female cohort roasts unfermented beans, pounds them into a paste, and sells them in 200g cups in open-air markets for SAT5-6 / AUD2.20 (that is, SAT5,000/t -- about four times the current world price for cocoa beans ).

According to 2009 trade figures, Samoa imports more chocolate and cocoa products than it exports. Total cocoa and cocoa preparations (HS6) exports totalled USD23,000 while imports came to USD328,000, thus showing a net trade deficit. When drilling down to chocolate alone, Samoa exported only USD1,000 while it imported USD227,000! (Trade Competitiveness Map of the International Trade Centre, www.intracen.org ).

updated by @Howard & Hanna Frederick: 04/18/15 06:42:49

Samoan Gold Standard Cocoa now available for testing

Posted in: News & New Product Press

A potential customer in Tasmania asked whether Samoan cocoa is good in hot chocolate. What, is the pope Catholic? Samoas national beverage is called Koko Samoa and the average Samoan drinks 5 cups a week. That would be 200g or 10kg a year. That puts it in the leagues of Switzerland in terms of per capita consumption. You can see a good recipe at http://www.samoafood.com/2010/10/koko-samoa-samoan-cocoa-recipe.html Now, in my shop I have been focus-grouping it to a variety of customers. Mostly they go yuck that looks like cocoa water. Australians expect a think gooey syrupy milky substance with lots of cream and sugar, maybe some added corn starch to make it even thicker. Or they prefer the ubiquitous powder (even Starbucks uses it) with West African beans and probably Fonterra dried milk. No, mate, this is the really McCoy. It is a bit like when you were a teenager and someone said try this for the first time . . . coffee, and you said how can anyone drink this. Or maybe when you first tasted wine. The way they make it in Samoa is the farmer goes into the plantation and picks some ripe pods of cocoa, takes out the beans, dries them in the sun, and roasts them slightly on a BBQ. Sometimes they ferment it before they dry it, but often not, and I cant taste the difference. Then they pound it by hand with a wooden mortar and pestle. The result is a think cocoa paste still containing morsels. You can buy this paste in the markets everywhere in Samoa and also in the Samoan Food stores e.g. in Auckland and Brisbane. You just shave off a couple tablespoons with a serrated knife, two T to 1 cup water, and you gently boil it for five minutes. My wife the Choc Diva loves it straight, but I usually put a T of raw Queensland sugar. Some people add a bit of coconut milk. Ive experimented with adding Chai Spice.

But Australians turn their noses up at it. Id say about only one quarter like it, and no one prefers it given the choice of gooey.It just goes to show you that chocolate consumption is a very cultural phenomenon.

Samoan Gold Standard Cocoa now available for testing

Posted in: News & New Product Press

Hi everyone: Just an update. I brought ~30kg of Samoa Gold Pacific BioKoko to Melbourne with my proper phyto-sanitary certificates and had to pay only Australian GST. You have to make a declaration of how much it was worth, so I gave my price.

We have had inquiries from Brooklyn to Perth of master and craft chocolatiers who are interested in testing this product.

At this point, I need people who can roast, give me a flavour profile (e.g. is there a note of coconut?, how much cocoa butter is there?) , and "tame" a single-origin bar. If you have an idea where I can have a craft chocolatie, I'd appreciate it.

PS This is the logo we used on the first export bags from Samoa. We designed to be a collector's item. BioKoko refers to the fact that our factory will use a biowaste generator which sequesters carbon. I have a stock of empty bags for $50 each. The Polynesian Vaka will cruise the Pacific on a publicity tour, if anyone is interesting in hosting an event? I know it's an arcane hobby, collecting cacao sacks, but I once had one with "Cocoa from Revolutionary Nicaragua" that I then onsold when I became an entrepreneur.

Samoan Gold Standard Cocoa now available for testing

Posted in: News & New Product Press

Hi! Im Howard Frederick, chocolatier in Australia and Samoa. Im writing to see if any master craft chocolatiers would like to have a free shipment of Samoan Gold Cocoa beans? We'd love you to evaluate them. We now have a renewed supply of Samoan cocoa beans. Our BioKoko Single-Origin Samoan Cocoa is organic, fairtrade and . . . carbon-neutral because we use only biogas energy in our production.

I am not sure you know but the Samoan cocoa industry was started by German settlers before World War I. See the photo of 120 year old cocoa trees still producing.

Samoa was devastated by cyclones and a tsunami and is just now getting back on its feet. Before the cyclone, Samoan cocoa was designated as Fine and Flavourful (the top category) by the International Cocoa Organisation. There are 5000 acres under production and about 1200 farmers. Right now were re-starting the industry with beans export, and the moving up the value chain. You can see below an artists concept of our factory under construction. Our energy source is a biogasifier using agricultural waste, so we make a positive contribution to the planet by sequestering carbon. We believe the LOHAS markets will find them an attractive marketing angle.

Cocoa orchards are concentrated in the two 'rain shadows' (see map) along the northwest coasts of both islands. Ninety percent of Samoan cocoa is Trinitario. Samoa's fine chocolate quality may be due to the unique soil composition of Samoa's cocoa growing areas. The northwest rain-shadowed coast of both islands experiences marked dry seasons; trees seemingly grow out of rocks. Almost no mechanization is possible, even walking is difficult. Land is difficult to clear, but once established, cocoa trees on the lava flow thrive on the weed-free environment, where their own leaves cover the earth so their feet stay cool.

So my question to you is, can you use some Samoan FF beans or likor? May I send you some product? Im happy to air freight you 2 or 10 kg for you to bench test. I know youll be very happy about the re-entry of Samoan Gold Standard Cocoa into the world market.

Kind regards, Howard

Prof Ahorangi Howard Frederick

Mmor Chocolates & High Tea Szaln

153 Johnston Street, Collingwood (Melbourne), VIC 3066 Australia

T: 03-9419-3869, M: 0435-622-446

On behalf of
Cocoa Samoa Ltd
P.O. BOX 488, Apia, Samoa, South Pacific
Saleufi Street (opposite Chan Mow Complex)
Apia, 'Upolu Island, Samoa
Telephone: +(685)27122 Fax: +(685)27122

updated by @Howard & Hanna Frederick: 04/12/15 05:31:25

What happened to Samoan cocoa?

Posted in: History of Chocolate

Here's something else we're trying to figure out . . .

In its heyday, Samoan cocoa enjoyed a high reputation in the world of chocolate making because of reputedly having the highest level of cocoa butter in the world. Why would that be?

Samoas fine chocolate quality may be due to the unique soil composition of Samoas cocoa growing areas. On the northwest rain-shadowed coast of both islands (see attachment), trees seemingly grow out of rocks. Soil is buried deeply in the fissures. Almost no mechanization is possible, even walking is difficult. Land is very difficult to clear, however, once established, cocoa trees on the lava flow thrive on the weed-free environment, where their own leaves cover the earth.

According to studies, Samoan soils are unbalanced in respect to nutrients; calcium is too high or potassium is too low for optimal crop yields. Potassium-deficient plants are more susceptible to certain diseases. Potassium-rich treatments could include seaweed or compost rich in decayed banana peels. Wood ash has high potassium content, but should be composted first as it is in a highly soluble form. It is possible that potassium deficiency has led the plant to exude a higher than usual cocoa fat content.

What happened to Samoan cocoa?

Posted in: History of Chocolate

Yes, they were Criollo and Trinitario. And there is still heaps of Trinitario. What is you opinion of Amelonado? I know it is more disease-resistant, but disease resistance can be greatly aided by proper "sanitary pruning" See e.g. http://aciar.gov.au/system/files/node/9136/MN131%20full%20text.pdf What would one recommend in terms of over time replacing the Amelonado with Trinitario? Regards.

What happened to Samoan cocoa?

Posted in: History of Chocolate

Hello everyone: I've been doing research into Samoan chocolate. Twenty years ago it had one of the best reputations in the world with most of its crop being classified as "fine and flavour" (top ICCO category). Today, despite having 5000 acres of fine cocoa, Samoa has only a (very strong) domestic market and a (very small) export to New Zealand (Samoans). I'm working on a plan to revive Samoa's chocolate industry with a group of NGOs and private sector. One of the things I'm researching is what led to Samoa's decline. I've come up with the following narrative, and I'd appreciate if anyone can add or change anything to it. Kind regards, Howard Frederick Mamor Chocolates in Melbourne Australia

• The mid-seventies were Samoas peak period in terms of cocoa earnings. Cocoa exports had been declining from the early 1960s to 1972, but from 1972-1977 world cocoa prices septupled, and average receipts were US$5.83 million per year. Exports peaked in 1977 at a level that was never to be achieved again. The problem was that, although the industry had been prospering, yield had been declining from the 1960s due to the widespread adoption of poor planting material. Thus cocoa export values declined during the early 1980s due to the triple effect of falls in prices, decline in quality, and decline in yields.
• But a recovery of sorts began in 1983 after a cocoa rehabilitation program in the 1970s and early 1980s that entailed replanting areas with high-yielding, more disease-resistant but less flavourful Amelonado varieties. The volume of cocoa bean exports almost trebled and their unit value almost doubled, remaining above US$1 million until 1987. For the remainder of the decade, however, falling world prices led to a rapid decline in cocoa export values that were only US$0.26 million in 1989.
• The decline to this date had nothing to do with cyclones. Samoas planting of amelonado substantial premium traditionally earned by Samoan cocoa in world markets when Trinitario cocoa dominated, making it eligible for sale as 'fine or flavour' cocoa, had disappeared. Samoan beans were being sold at an appreciable discount by 1982-83 and quality continued to deteriorate throughout the 1980s due to poor fermentation, drying and storage practices, and increased plantings of the lower-value Amelonado cocoa varieties.
• The death blow came when devastating natural and biological disasters destroyed the industry. These included Cyclone Ofa in February 1990 and Cyclone Val in December 1991, the latter being the most devastating cyclone to hit the country in a century.
• Despite aid-funded efforts in the 1980s to rehabilitate cocoa, chronic problems evident in previous decades persisted into the final decade in these industries. The devastating effects of Cyclones Ofa and Val, and the drought that followed Cyclone Ofa, compounded the negative impact of an extended period of low world prices and virtually destroyed the cocoa industry from 1990 to 2000.
• Tree losses of 20-30% were heavy due to the long duration of the cyclones and the long exposure to salt spray. Trees older than 10 years were the most affected. After virtually no exports to 1996, cocoa export values at least recovered to US$44,000 in 1996, but exports remained at negligible levels throughout the decade. [1]

updated by @Howard & Hanna Frederick: 04/14/15 22:44:14

Weird Flavors and Inclusions in Chocolate

Posted in: Tasting Notes

Melbourne's Chocdiva Dr hanna Frederick Famed for her innovative chocolate creations, Dr Hanna Frederick of Mmor Chocolates & High Tea Szaln is back to her creative best, this time creating chocolates infused with red wine from McLaren Vale, South Australia.

Mmor's Red Onion Confit and Poached Pear Chocolate Truffles Hanna isnt your average chocolatier. A food chemist by profession, she loves a culinary challenge and has already brought the world Kangaroo salami chocolate, beer infused chocolate, garlic chocolate, and even aphrodisiac chocolate to rave reviews.

Now she turns her attention to the produce of her adopted country along with the flavours of red wines from the greatest wine region in the world along with spicy and delicious local ingredients.

The wines of Australia are just extraordinary, says Hanna. Weve done chocolate wine-matching before, but never with wine-flavoured chocolate, so we thought, lets do it!

She partnered with a local wine distributor Re-Find Wines for the project, eventually opting for a Way Wood Shiraz 2009 (McLaren Vale) as the perfect ingredient for her chocolate creations.

And after a month of experimentation, the result is two outstanding examples of chocolate couture that would inspire any dedicated foodie.

Hannas Mmor Red Onion Comfit Chocolate Truffle has glorious Way Wood Shiraz, balsamic vinegar, and orange marmalade tastes.

And her finale, the Mmor Poached Pear Chocolate combines Shiraz with lemon, cinnamon, Victorian Pepperberry, and well-ripened, locally grown Corelli pears.

Hanna said that the ingredients certainly presented their challenges, but likewise inspired surprising results.

We had so much fun creating these chocolates, making sure that there were many delicious flavours, but ensuring that the rich tones of the Shiraz shone through, says Hanna.

We couldnt add cream to some of the ingredients, so experimented with spring water instead, which resulted in a wonderfully tasty, yet low-fat chocolate in fact both chocolates are able to be labeled Vegan, something we intend to do a lot more!

They may be the first of many Vegan truffles in Melbourne?! said Hanna.

Andrew Wood, wine maker for Way Wood and sommelier, praised the complementary wine and chocolate making philosophy and noted the subtleties of the Mmor wine match.

We were just delighted by the chocolate creations Hanna developed from our Way Wood Shiraz, says James Atkinson of Re-Find Wines.

Hannas abilities with chocolate are un-matched and it is an honour to see her in action with our Shiraz.

We often say that there are chocolate notes in our Shiraz, but now we can say there is Shiraz in our chocolate! he said.

For more information or high resolution photos, contact:

Dr Hanna Frederick; Mmor Chocolates & High Tea Szaln ; Ph: +61-3-9419-3869 or Mobile +61-435-622-446 , email: hanna@mamorchocolates.com

153 Johnston Street, Collingwood (Melbourne), VIC 3066 Australia

www.mamorchocolates.com

James Atkinson; Re-Find Wine, Rediscover Real Australian Wine; Mobile: 0408377702 ; email: refindwine1@gmail.com

www.refindwine.com.au

Weird Flavors and Inclusions in Chocolate

Posted in: Tasting Notes

Trained as a food chemist, Melbourne's Chocolate Diva, Dr Hanna Frederick, is now consulting with large chocolate companies on her theories of taste and sensory analysis.

• Dear all Chocolate Lifers: I've followed this wonderful topic for some years now and beg your indulgence to post an article from my blog.

"Shes pioneered beer-flavoured chocolate and kangaroo and venison salami chocolate, so what could Hungarian-born chocolatier Hanna Frederick come up with next? Here are four recent taste sensations.

Mmor Mountain Goat High Tail Ale Chocolate Truffle Hanna finally uncovered the secret of how to coax malt to compete . . . and win . . . against dark chocolate. The result is pure harmony! It's Mmor's Mountain Goat Hightail Beer Truffle . We have tried beers from all over the world, but we found the perfect one here in our own backyard in Melbourne, says Melbourne's Choc Diva Dr Hanna Frederick. The new dark chocolate truffle is being rolled out for Good Beer Week in Melbourne. Mountain Goat Hightail is an English-inspired Amber Ale, light copper to light brown in colour, with a balance of caramel and malty flavours. Hanna, a trained food chemist, found a trick that allows the floral components of the 71% Dark Belgian Callebaut chocolate to come through to match the strong hoppy and malty notes. The Hightail Chocolate Truffle has its own nose too. You can smell a mixture of toffee and fruit aromas with a lovely aromatic lift. Burnt phenolic even nicotine characters with fresh slightly sweet flavours.

Mmor's Dracula's Last Kiss Garlic Truffle Draculas Last Kiss - garlic chocolate truffles with dark moulded lips and white chocolate fangs! It is a whole new world of flavours, said Hanna, whose company Mmor Chocolates in now Collingwood is world renowned for exciting chocolate ideas. It took me back to my Transylvanian heritage to create a vampire-killing flavour, she said. Her result is an extraordinary taste sensation of luxurious chocolate paired with the tangy taste of roasted garlic.

Mmor's Ghost Pumpkin Pie Chocolate Draculas Last Kiss complements her other Halloween truffle, the famous American Pumpkin Pie flavour, shaped in the head of a ghost featuring real baked pumpkin filling, with cinnamon and other sweet pie flavours. I love it, says Hanna. I think there are so many more opportunities for these kinds of flavours!

Mmor Kangaroo Salami chocolate Another taste sensation is the amazing Kangaroo Salami chocolate . Using smoked salami from a bespoke producer in South Australia, some people find this to die for. It is especially good before dinner as a starter or hors d'oeuvre. You can taste little bits of meat along with some amazing smoke and chilli.

Trained in chocolate-making in Australia, Hungary, and New Zealand, Dr Hanna Frederick is a former food chemist who gave up the corporate life to follow her passion and make chocolate. Her Collingwood Mmor Chocolates Szaln, where the window is dressed up with pumpkins, jack o lanterns and spider webs, produces more than fourty flavours. Hanna has made headlines around the world with her innovations, as her website shows . Her beer-chocolate mentioned in the New York Times and her aphrodisiac-chocolate made with exotic herb Tongkat Ali was reported in the USA and Europe on the Fox news network.

Hanna lovingly calls her taste sensations couture chocolat , as you'll see in her blog "My Philosophy of Couture Chocolate" . Chocolate is the ultimate pleasure-food, she says. There will never be enough ways to indulge in this gorgeous elixir. And if garlic is not your thing, try the spring season flavours: Jasmine Tea, Lavender, Rosewater Cardamom, all topped with edible flowers. Here you can see Hanna applying the fresh dried Jasmine blossoms."

Weird Flavors and Inclusions in Chocolate

Posted in: Tasting Notes

Hi everyone: A fascinating discussion because I have been working on new flavours for sometime. My training is not actually as a chocolate chef, I'm actually a PhD food chemist. Currently I am producing about forty flavours for high-end clients in Australia and New Zealand (although I'm a Hungarian-American). In the past I've not only done all the alcoholic flavours (see beer chocolates at right) but also deer velvet and venison salami chocolates. Plus we have our line of aphrodisiac chocolates for men and women using rain forest herbs from Southeast Asia. The numbers of men enjoying Tomcat Alley certainly swelled to epic proportions! My Pocket Venus truffles revive a flagging female libido too. They are best served as a matching set. Just now I got lots of attention for my garlic truffles and kangaroo salami truffles , which are actually an hors d'oeuvre. I'm brewing up now something that I can only reveal now as an "Operatic Chocolate". Kind regards, Hanna Frederick, Mamor Chocolates and High Tea Szalon, Melbourne, Australia