Brendan's Comments

Comment Wall (14 comments)

At 12:06pm on September 11, 2010, ricardo villanueva said…: Anyway, the Innoconcepts grinder works like many form India, stone plate and rollers driven by about a 1/2 to 3/4 hp motor, connected by a belt, which also drives fan. The electrics consist of a simple on-off switch. Simple is good -- easy to use and, if need be, repair. I modified mine ( the one for sale) by adding cocoa butter ( which I made in an arbour press like the one at Greneda chocolate) and by running the nibs through a hand crank meat grinder. Cleaning secret: chocolate laughs at dish soap. Plain water cleans very effectively and quickly if under high pressure. Hope this answers your question.

At 11:52am on September 11, 2010, ricardo villanueva said…: About the Innoconcepts Ultra: Well first. cocoa is about the the most difficult thing to grind because it is a non newtonian fluid. Roughly, that means the more you compress it, the harder it gets. Ever see the Mythbusters show when they walk on a pool of liquid corn starch -- as long as they are quik they can can actually walk on liquid. I they stop, they sink ( as the solid quickly changes properties. ) That means a cocoa grinder has to be tough. As an experiment, I send cocoa beans to this company that makes blenders. They advertise their blenders under extremem conditions, chopping up a cell phone, chuncks of wood, etc. The chocolate beans over heated their machine. They had to admit it could not handle cocoa. more...

At 10:56am on October 19, 2009, Hector Velásquez said…: Cocoa Arriba Ecuador? very good, ... hecdave123@yahoo.com

At 8:11pm on September 26, 2009, Ruth Atkinson Kendrick said…: I could be interested in the NC3006. I haven't used that size, but have used their 4 and 9 piece. ruth at sweetchocolot.com

At 12:11pm on September 23, 2009, Joshua D. Rector said…: Hi! I'm Erin, Joshua's partner. Thank you! You've made some very important points. We've already put some focus on our location with regards to demographic. One thing I didn't consider is waste. It's going to be tricky keeping waste to a minimum in the beginning stages, or not falling to the latter of being under stocked. I guess it's all part of the dance. When do you think the best time to start a chocolate business would be? Should we start well before the season, giving some time to get the word out, or should we start closer to the opening so there's lower risk in waste?

At 7:34pm on April 23, 2008, Alan McClure said…: Hi Brendan,

I hope that things are going well for you. I am apparently chocolate-life-illiterate, because I can't figure out how to send you a private message. I just wanted to ask you where you had seen people badmouthing chocolatiers as mentioned in your post here:
http://www.thechocolatelife.com/profiles/blog/show?id=1978963%3ABlogPost%3A3361
Of course, I didn't want to ask you to mention any names publicly, so I was hoping to send a private message, but since I can't figure it out, maybe you could just send me a private message back.

Best,

Alan
P.S. I look forward to trying those peanut butter cups again!

At 10:33pm on April 7, 2008, Valerie said…: Lionettes is perfect, thanks. Good luck on finishing up your kitchen.

At 10:01pm on April 6, 2008, Valerie said…: Does La Tene have a storefront? You're chocolates look and sound delicious, I'd love to stop in and pick up a box. I visited your website, but couldn't find an address.

At 9:45pm on March 20, 2008, Chocoflyer said…: PS- your photos are beautiful! thank you!

At 9:44pm on March 20, 2008, Chocoflyer said…: Brendan- Im rooting for your shop in Boston to be a big hit- we need more and better chocolatiers there- can you give us a name and address yet? Is it open?

At 10:28pm on February 27, 2008, Chocoflyer said…: Hi Brendan- Did You make the beautiful chocs in the photos?

At 11:55am on February 17, 2008, Clay Gordon said…: Brendan:

Welcome to The Chocolate Life. Thanks for jumping right in with your comments and photos. We look forward to your future contributions. -- Clay