theconche

“Foreigner”. Cacao trees of the “forastero” variety are probably the “original” cacao tree. Compared to criollo and trinitario strains, forastero has a high yield and is resistant to disease. It was therefore widely cultivated by European colonists, who brought the strain to Africa and South Asia. The flavor of Forastero tends to be stronger and blunter than criollo, and the beans are generally less desirable. Over the past couple of centuries, forastero cacao has replaced criollo in most of Central America.  Most African cacao, and indeed, most of the world’s supply of beans, is forastero.

“Native”. Criollo is a strain of cacao known for its more sophisticated flavor. The trees are relatively low yielding, and susceptible to disease. These two qualities suggest the strain was deliberately bred from the hardier “forastero” variety. Criollo trees were common to Mexico and originally planted widely, but due to the difficulty in growing them, growers and plantation owners replaced the majority of cacao crops with forastero. The reality of cross pollination means there is no such thing as “pure” criollo trees today, but strong criollo strains are found in Venezuela and Mexico.

The conche was invented in the early 19th century by Rodolphe Lindt (yes, that Lindt). Supposedly he accidentally left his grinder on overnight and in the morning found the chocolate wonderfully smooth and mild. He went on to develop a machine that would continuously work the chocolate, refining and smoothing it. Concheing may slightly reduce the size of the particles in chocolate, but it also coats the sugar evenly with fat (cocoa butter), giving the chocolate a much smoother, more homogeneous mouthfeel. The continuous agitation of the mass also mellows the flavor. This is desirable to an extent, ridding the chocolate of funky flavors developed in fermentation. If the process goes on too long, however, distinctiveness will be lost and the chocolate will become bland.

Cacao nibs are roasted cocoa beans broken into small pieces. Typically nibs are what remains after cocoa beans have been roasted, ground, and winnowed, before they are fully ground into liquor. They are small and crunchy; while their flavor varies considerably, they generally have a “roasty” flavor mingled with fruity or nutty tones.  They have become increasingly well known as an ingredient and snack in their own right.

A trend has developed in recent years of chocolate manufacturers selling chocolate made from cacao beans of a particular region. The geographical scope of such chocolates varies widely, from multinational regions (the Caribbean) to single plantations (Ampamakia). Descriptions of such products often borrow from wine terminology to describe the resulting chocolate (eg. terroir, grand cru).  While the basic concept of showcasing the unique qualities of a certain region’s cacao is a sound one, the market has been flooded with poor quality products attempting to cash in on the trend.  There is also no real way to verify manufacturers’ claims regarding the origin of the beans in their chocolate.

To temper chocolate is to cool the finished product in such a way that the cocoa butter within crystallizes in a stable state, evenly distributed throughout the chocolate mass. Properly tempered chocolate contracts slightly when cooled (making it easy to remove from molds) and takes on the shape and texture of the surface on which it crystallizes. It exhibits a smooth, semi gloss finish without streaks or blemishes. When thin enough, breaking well-tempered chocolate yields a snapping sound. Tempering involves raising the chocolate mass to a certain temperature range while agitating it, then gradually cooling it to a particular temperature range that promotes creation of stable crystals. Tempered chocolate can be thrown “out of temper” through improper storage (e.g. temperature fluctuations, humidity).

Despite the name, has nothing to do with alcohol. Liquor is the name given to fluid, unfinished chocolate: beans that have been ground, winnowed, and possibly conched.

The naturally occurring fat making up roughly half of the cocoa bean. It is solid at room temperature. When cooling, it can form six different types of crystal structure; the most stable of these is responsible for giving chocolate its “temper”. Cocoa butter is pressed from cacao mass after the beans have been ground. It is later added back into the chocolate liquor for conching. Some artisanal producers neither press the cocoa butter from the beans (the equipment required is large and expensive) nor add in extra cocoa butter for practical concerns. Chocolate made in this way is arguably a more faithful representation of the beans used.

In recent years it has become common for premium chocolate products to display a percentage on the packaging. This percentage refers to the portion of the chocolate that is made up of cocoa beans. The higher the percentage, the less sugar is present. The percentage of cacao solids includes cocoa butter, and extra cocoa butter is often added to chocolate either to make it more suitable for processing or as a cost saving measure (cocoa butter can be cheaper than chocolate liquor). Because the percentage of cocoa solids is not further broken down into cocoa butter and chocolate liquor, this figure is only a rough guide to flavor and composition. One 70% bar may taste darker than another.

The seeds of the tree Theobroma cacao, found surrounded by pulp within a pod that grows from the tree’s trunk. Cacao beans were consumed as a beverage and used as currency by the Aztecs, Mayans, and possibly earlier cultures. The modern chocolate industry makes a distinction between high quality “flavor” cacao and poorer quality bulk cacao; further, chocolate makers describe them as “criollo”, “forastero” and “trinitario“, a quality distinction based on the tree’s genetics. In actuality, the genetics of modern cacao are heavily mixed, and there are a large number of small strains and cultivars with different characteristics.

The cacao bean, when fermented in its pulp, dried, ground and winnowed (separated from its husk) is used to make chocolate. It is comprised of roughly 50% cocoa butter; the remaining compounds contain a great deal of flavor-producing compounds. It is therefore possible to evoke a wide range of flavors depending on how the bean is processed. Cacao beans contain an insignificant amount of caffeine, but also a similar compound called theobromine. The stimulating effects of theobromine are milder than caffeine but longer lasting.