The Chocolate Life - Discover Chocolate and Live La Vida Cocoa!

Discover Chocolate and Live La Vida Cocoa!

A community for chocophiles - and aspiring chocophiles - to explore, learn, and share.

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Videos

Cacao Sampaka in Channel 4 UK

Added by Vercruysse Geert
Tobagos first single estate chocolate bar

Added by Masur

Latest Activity

Clay Gordon added 3 photos

1 hour ago

Melanie Boudar added a discussion to the group Classifieds - For Sale or Wanted

Wanted-Used Tempering Machine

Looking for a used tempering machine. Needs to hold 25-30 lbs chocolate minimum. Prefer another Selmi Plus so I can use the same attachments but will consider other brands like JKV etc.

3 hours ago

Andre Volchinski is attending Christine Doerr's event

The 4th Annual San Francisco International Chocolate Salon at Fort Mason Center Festival Pavilion

March 20, 2010 from 10am to 6pm

The premier chocolate show on the West Coast takes place this Spring at the 4th Annual San Francisco International CHOCOLATE SALON, Saturday March 20th, 2010 at the Fort Mason Center's Festival Pavilion in San Francisco. Chocolate aficionados, fanat…

6 hours ago

Matt Caputo replied to Matt Caputo's discussion 'Favorite Chocolate Bar Retailers'

Scott, Thanks for the suggestions. Next time you are in SLC stop by and ask for me. Matt Caputo

6 hours ago

Matt Caputo replied to Matt Caputo's discussion 'Favorite Chocolate Bar Retailers'

Mike, Thanks for the suggestion. If you are ever in Salt Lake, stop by and see us. Matt Caputo Director of Marketing Tony Caputo's Market & Deli www.caputosdeli.com

6 hours ago

Matt Caputo replied to Matt Caputo's discussion 'Favorite Chocolate Bar Retailers'

Thanks for the suggestions. If you are ever in Salt Lake, stop by and see us. Matt Caputo Director of Marketing Tony Caputo's Market & Deli www.caputosdeli.com

6 hours ago

Matt Caputo replied to Matt Caputo's discussion 'Favorite Chocolate Bar Retailers'

Thanks Scott. Next time you are in Caputo's ask for me and we can taste some discontinued stuff from my stash. Matt Caputo

6 hours ago

Kerry replied to Christina Durta's discussion 'Chocolate Silk Screen Supplies'

Signature Fine Foods in Toronto has the guitar sheets.

7 hours ago

Brad Payton replied to Christina Durta's discussion 'Chocolate Silk Screen Supplies'

Thanks for your help. My family owns a screen printing shop. I own a chocolate shop. After reading your adventure it has inspired me to play around with it myself. Where can I buy proper sheets?

8 hours ago

Gabriella Irving, Lynn Green, Courtney Ralph and 5 more joined The Chocolate Life

2 more…

9 hours ago

Jeff Stern and Mark Hare are now friends

12 hours ago

Annick Vliegen commented on Vercruysse Geert's photo 'Lollysoldiers'

They where lovely and very tasteful last night at the opening of the exhibition of Katrien's work.

15 hours ago

Roxanne Browning updated an event

Chocolate & Wine Pairing at The Northport Tasting Room & Wine Cellar

March 20, 2010 from 5:30pm to 7pm

MARCH 20 4PM- Northport, Long Island Wine and chocolate - the perfect combination. The right chocolate paired with the perfect wine can create a sensational tasting experience. Move over cheese, learn how to identify the complimentary flavors of win…

19 hours ago

Robyn Wood commented on Ian's blog post 'Double Your Capacity, Not Your Budget'

I really like this baffle, it does help with heat distribution. I'm going to be testing the increased capacity over the next week.

21 hours ago

Adriennne Henson is attending Clay Gordon's event

The Return of The Chocolate Wonk at Jimmy's # 43

April 25, 2010 from 3pm to 5:30pm

The Return of The Chocolate Wonk. Subject TBD. SAVE THE DATE.

21 hours ago

Mark Hare joined Clay Gordon's group

Startup Central

Are you looking to start a chocolate business? Want to talk to others who've been there or done that - or have you been there and done it and want to share with others? This is the place to discuss it.

21 hours ago

Events

March 13

Saturday

"tischdekoration - leider nicht eßbar" table decorations - unfortunately not edible

March 13, 2010 at 11pm to March 27, 2010 at 4pm – munich, germany

March 20

Saturday

6th Annual Northeast Family Chocolate Festival

March 20, 2010 all day – Washington Avenue Armory
The 4th Annual San Francisco International Chocolate Salon

March 20, 2010 from 10am to 6pm – Fort Mason Center Festival Pavilion
Chocolate & Wine Pairing

March 20, 2010 from 5:30pm to 7pm – The Northport Tasting Room & Wine Cellar

March 23

Tuesday

"Chocolate heaven on Earth"

March 23, 2010 from 7pm to 9pm – Home, the shop...

May 10

Monday

Mark Seaman's International Pastry Tour

May 10, 2010 to May 20, 2010 – Paris and Lyon, France

May 23

Sunday

The World of Chocolate, Bucks County

May 23, 2010 from 10am to 4pm – New Hope, PA

June 2

Wednesday

Second Chocolate Festival Ilheus, Bahia Brazil

June 2, 2010 to June 6, 2010 – Ilheus Convention Center

September 5

Sunday

Speciality Chocolate Fair

September 5, 2010 at 9:30am to September 7, 2010 at 5pm – Grand Hall, Olympia, London

Forum

Favorite Chocolate Bar Retailers 7 Replies

Wondering what are the best shops around the country to buy chocolate bars? Thoughts anyone?

Started by Matt Caputo in Opinion. Last reply by Matt Caputo 6 hours ago.

Chocolate Silk Screen Supplies 13 Replies

Can someone please help me locate a source for chocolate/pastry silk screen supplies. I want to make or buy custom screens. I saw that Chef Rubber will make them for you, but it costs $180. Do other…

Tagged: screen, silk, chocolate

Started by Christina Durta in Tech Help. Last reply by Kerry 7 hours ago.

Cement mixer as coating pan? 7 Replies

I came across this cement mixer and thought it would make a decent coating pan. It's a fraction of the price of any other coating pans, is freestanding and looks easy to disassemble. Opinions?

Started by cheebs in Geek Gear - Cool Tools. Last reply by cheebs 1 day ago.

Unfair Trade in Belize - How Kraft Shafts Cocoa Farmers 8 Replies

FAQ: Do Fair Trade certified cacao farmers reliably earn more money than cacao farmers who are not Fair Trade Certified and reliably benefit from increased world market prices? Answer: Probably n…

Started by Clay Gordon in Opinion. Last reply by Clay Gordon 1 day ago.

Chocolate Panning, process and equipment 6 Replies

Greetings, I'm investigating the art/science of chocolate panning for nuts, primarily hazelnuts and almonds. This would be for a small side business to our hazelnut farm here in Oregon. I'm looking a…

Started by Bob Aman in Tips, Tricks, and Techniques. Last reply by Kerry 1 day ago.

Belgian Chocolate Makers 6 Replies

I recently read somewhere online that in Belgium there are only 2 companies who make chocolate from the bean. Two I know of are Belcolade and Barry Callebaut.First of all, is this true? Are there o…

Tagged: Belgium

Started by Lowe in Opinion. Last reply by Brad Churchill 1 day ago.

Guittard/callebaut/Valrhona ? 14 Replies

I'm looking to get a good basic chocolate for enrobing (and using in ganaches). As my truffles tend to fall apart and not set up very firm (despite butter & invert sugar), I'm guessing I need a "…

Started by Amber B. in Top 10 Lists. Last reply by xinhong liu Mar 10.

Unfair Trade: Is Fair Trade Scalable? 4 Replies

Another reason why FairTrade fails is that it's not scalable on the producer side. As I mentioned in my original post Unfair Trade in Belize - How Kraft Shafts Cocoa Farmers, the international FairT…

Started by Clay Gordon in Opinion. Last reply by Clay Gordon Mar 10.

Stabilizing Chocolate Sauce 11 Replies

We usually don't stabilize anything (we encourage refridgeration and timely consumption) and some of the retail stores we are looking at have asked us to do just that. Our current recipe includes e…

Tagged: sauce, preservation, shelf-stable

Started by Andy Ciordia in Recipes. Last reply by Yves Methot Mar 10.

Unfair Trade: Does FairTrade Discriminate?

Wow. What a thought. Is FairTrade discriminatory? Actually, yes. The institution of FairTrade (as exemplified by FLO) is, in practice, discriminatory even though this outcome is counterintuitive and…

Started by Clay Gordon in Opinion Mar 9.

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Clay's 2009 Euro Chocolate Road Trip Blog Posts

Euro Chocolate Road Trip - Off to London
Euro Chocolate Road Trip - London Chocolate Unwrapped
Euro Chocolate Road Trip - London Day 2
Euro Chocolate Road Trip - London Day 3 and Sophisticated Pairings
Euro Chocolate Road Trip - Off to Paris and the Salon du Chocolat
The Best Coffee and Gelato in All of Rome
The New New European Chocolate Weight Loss Diet

Blog Posts

Double Your Capacity, Not Your Budget

ChocoVision introduces the capacity-increasing Holey Baffle fo

… Continue

Posted by Ian on March 8, 2010 at 3:09pm — 1 Comment

February Tour: In the heart of chocolate darkness

Before I moved to Paris, I had only a vague understanding of the city’s layout and, more important, its sweet spots. Now I can feel (and taste) my way around. And whenever I have to do an errand in the first arrondisement, I prepare myself for lusting after things I can’t afford on rue St-Honoré, but taking solace in the fact that I can at least splurge on <span style="font-style:italic;">something</span> sumptuous: chocolate—in solid or liquid form—at one of city’s, nay country’s, b… Continue

Posted by Sweet Freak on March 7, 2010 at 12:54pm — 1 Comment

One day in Paris

Next week I'll be in Paris for a day. It'll be my first time, and I'm skipping the landmarks and museums in favor of chocolate shops. Any advice from those familiar with the scene would be appreciated. I'm currently planning to visit Patrick Roger, Jacques Genin, Jean-Paul Hevin and Michel Chaudun. I might stop at Maison if I pass one, but I can always find them in NY.

Any other places I should include? For those with more than one shop, is there a particular location I should visit? I… Continue

Posted by Brendan on March 2, 2010 at 7:56am — 3 Comments

Max Brenner - Review?

So, I went to Max Brenner in Philly for the first time, today. I decided I'm going to try to review what I have their. That way I can keep track (have something new every time), learn about chocolate, and feel like I have a good excuse to spend that much money on food.

I ordered an italian thick hot chocolate. It comes in one of their hug mugs (that doesn't have a handle, and is more wedge-shaped than roun

… Continue

Posted by Dee on March 1, 2010 at 7:28pm — 2 Comments

The Making of Chocolate - Cacao beans to???

Two days ago, I attempted to make chocolate from home grown beans.
I live in the tropics - Trinidad - where some of the world's best cocoa beans allegedly come from and have quite a bit of cacao trees on the land left from a time that Cadbury owned the entire area. My husband and I decided that it was time to rehabilitate the existing trees and replant new ones and we ended up with quite a bit of cocoa pods. the seeds were picked, fermented and sun-dried in our good, HOT and dry weather tha… Continue

Posted by Camille Harripersad on February 26, 2010 at 11:30am — 4 Comments

Ecuadorian Cacao Analysis Project. CyD, INIAP

I am working on a project for Conservacion y Desarollo (CyD) here in Ecuador. The project is related to physical, chemical and organoleptic analysis of Ecuadorian cacao. There are 11 growers associations from various regions of Ecuador participating in the project. INIAP (instituto nacional de investigaciones agro-pecuarios) is also involved in the project and we are using their cacao laboratory in Quevedo. INIAP is akin to the dept. of agriculture.

My first assignment was to head

… Continue

Posted by Eric G on February 17, 2010 at 3:00pm — 1 Comment

Getting away this weekend to Europe...sort of

I made impish chocolate cupcakes with a black current balsalmic ganache and since, I’ve kind of had it with the snow and decided to get away for the weekend…sort of…I’m going to be at TheStockton Market. Featured on

… Continue

Posted by Gretchen Tartakoff on February 13, 2010 at 6:00am

The Most Unusual Cacao Pod I Have Ever Seen

At The Chocolate Experience in Mexico City I was presented what has to be the most unusual cacao pod I have ever seen. This pod was on the stand of CACEP, a co-operative in the Tabasco area of Chiapas and was described to me as "cacao prehispanico." Or, a type of cacao pod that existed before the Spanish arrived in Mesoamerica. The person who showed this to me is the manager of marketi… Continue

Posted by Clay Gordon on February 12, 2010 at 9:30am — 1 Comment

Describing Flavors

So, I was reading a little about how to describe flavors of chocolate. It makes a lot of sense. I think I could do pretty well with chocolate if I tried. (Well, for a beginner, anyway.)

But it got me to thinking about flavors that I have trouble describing. They're not usually in chocolate, but I thought maybe you might know something about it. No one ever knows what I'm talking about and they deny these flavors exist, but I'll give it a shot anyway. :)

… Continue

Posted by Dee on February 10, 2010 at 11:00pm — 2 Comments