Would folks be interested in a cocoa bean like kind exchange? I like to trade cocoa beans of any volume for other cocoa beans. I am interested in Ecuadorian Nationales that are organic certified. I can trade fair trade and organic Peru beans. This exchange may give us all a chance to work with cocoa beans outside or in addition to our normal supply channels.
Hi Colin,
I like your theory that there is a thin coat of shellac in the pan. The two surfaces collide. I've always panned with dark chocolate then reset and used ribs for polishing and shellac. It never occurred to me to shellac back to back. The weight and velocity impact with residual shellac theory feels right.
I'm not the best at polishing. Mostly due to limits in RH and environmental temp. I get breaking from over polishing a rather heavy center. I have not used a shellac powder.
What percent is the dark chocolate?
Cheers,
Paul
Hi Colin,
That's cool that the rep from Capol stopped by to have a look. Dissapointing not to have an answer. I was going to guess that the RH might be off. 43% seems pretty good.
Are the dots kiss marks or does it look like something migrating from the under layer?
Can you tell me the temp and relative humidity of your environment? Are you using ribs during polishing?
I guess I deserved that comment Omar.
I have used silicone from Silicone, Inc and from Make Your Own Molds. MYOM is easy to use.
I don't really get the "bib" that is being described. I'm going to assume there is a negative for the silicone. Silicone captures a lot of little bubbles that need to be removed. A vacuum is the best device for this but not practical. $$$. I use a two pour technique. Mix using a scale according to manufacturer directions. Then long pour that mix into a new clean bucket. Long pour that mix to make your mold. The long pour is a thin strand of liquid silcone that stretches and reduces the air bubbles. Then I use a vibrator. Yes, that kind of vibrator to agitate the mold for several minutes. Remove as many air bubbles. It's pretty good not perfect.
Wear gloves because it can get messy.
Tell me more about the mold negative. Do you want a thin sheet to cut a bib from for the machine?
Hi Edward,
I have silicone mold experience. Send me a note. paul at elemental dash chocolate dot com.
Paul
Hi Ellen,
The local library can direct you to many business analyst resources. The SBTDC can also provide you with a copy of an IBIS report on Chocolate.
Best wishes,
Paul
