My dear chocolate readers. It’s been 9 months since I have last written.  Besides a huge project, I have no excuse except laziness. I apologize. Promise to make it up to you!

For four of those months, I attended L’Art du Gateau at the French Pastry School in Chicago. I met lots of wonderful people, who like myself, only wanted to talk cake, dessert, and food. I introduced a few of them to the dark side of chocolate. I even converted a confirmed non-chocolate (gasp!) eater. I learned taste combinations, the making of cakes, fillings, icings, filling, sugar, chocolate, fondant, sugar flowers, pastillage, and so much more I honestly can’t even remember.  I was taught by the winners of the 2011 National Pastry Team (my chefs were the two on the right – Chef Scott and Chef Josh – aren’t they cute ladies?) and the famous Chef Nicholas Lodge! They also offer a program in pastry, bread, and continuing education if you’re interested. Come one, come all.

For my first post back, I have ventured over to the United Kingdom!  You may remember me writing about Willie Court-Cooze participating in Chocolate Unwrapped as part of the Real Food Festival in London. If you missed it, click here.

I was lucky enough to receive two samples of Venezuelan Black chocolate – Indonesian 69. First, you should know that the wonderful Willie Court-Cooze, also goes by Organic Willie.  The chocolate bar also has yet another brand – Willie’s Delectable cacao. They are all one in the same, confusing…but I’m sure they have their reasons.  Hopefully, they will pick one and go with it. Organic Willie is the only small producer of Theobroma cacao in the United Kingdom. For over ten years, Organic Willie has been farming at Hacienda El Tesoro which is his farm overlooking Henri Pittier National Park, one of the oldest national parks in Venezuela.

All of the cacao trees on the farm are not only grown without pesticides, but they are irrigated by water that runs all the way down from the mountains. Once the beans are harvested and fermented, they head to Organic Willie’s factory in Devon in Southwest England where they will be turned into Venezuelan Black goodness!

Willie’s Delectable Cacao Indonesian 69 is not made from Organic Willie’s organic chocolate. These beans come from Java. I believe the beans are a blend. One of the nice things about this packaging is that there are two separately wrapped bars in one box so you can enjoy one now and enjoy one later. Freshness and chocolate are always nice. I liked this bar. I was a bit surprised at that though. Upon opening the bar was quite dark, but not at all shiny or smooth. The aroma, however, was amazing! My nose was tempted with scents of caramel and strawberries. Not a hard snap either, which again, worried me a bit. Once popped in my mouth, I forgot about the”standards” which I look for in chocolate, because taste and mouth feel are what it’s really about in my mind. Caramel was the first taste, followed by a spice I couldn’t quite put my finger on, a quick woodsy taste, followed by the strawberries. Delightful. The chocolate completely covered my mouth and my taste buds were dancing. Downside, I had a bit of a metallic taste in my mouth afterwards which lasted quite awhile. Needed to drink some water. It felt thick.

Now for the Venezuelan Black 100% Rio-Caribe-Superior . It was awesome! First, you have to remember that this is all cocoa mass. No sugar, no nothing. It is bitter, which is to be expected, but full of fruity fruity aroma and taste. The label says citrus, but I wasn’t getting the citrus. It was more like red fruits. The color was a nice dark brown with just a hint of purple. Still not that shiny either, but we’re going to cook with it. Yes, cook with it. I made chili with this. The tomatoes from the chili and the fruitiness from the chocolate melding together to make for a great dinner experience!

You should give Organic Willie’s a try. You can check out their website Venezuelan Black and find great sweet recipes featuring chocolate on their site under recipes, or click here.

Enjoy your daily chocolate and I’ll see you soon! Annmarie Kostyk

Baby it’s cold outside isn’t just a song, and I am not even sure that is the actual name of the song, but it’s pretty chilly here in Chicago. I know my blood has thickened up again (after my 8 year hiatus in Austin, Texas) for the brisk winters, because when I ran errands this morning and I thought to myself how nice it was out.  It was 3 degrees F!  Coat was unzipped, no gloves and the sun was shining with no wind.  The day is what you make of it. I headed for Trader Joe’s grocery store where they sell Barry Callebaut chocolate for absurdly low prices under their private label and purchased $20 worth of chocolate.  Just sitting down to drink my Caribbean Hot Chocolate that I prepared with my 85% chocolate bar.  Thought I would share some tidbits with you about the Caribbean and chocolate/cocoa while I enjoy my Caribbean Hot Chocolate and dreaming about the gorgeous beaches of the islands. I am also going to be more proper in my Theobroma cacao terminology from now on and will be using the proper term of cacao rather than cocoa so everyone will be on the same page.

Map of the Caribbean

The Spanish Capuchin friars who grew criollo cacao in Ecuador in about 1635, previously there had been little success growing Theobroma cacao in any of the Spanish Caribbean territories.

As the need for chocolate in Europe increased, France introduced cacao to Martinique and St Lucia in 1660, the Dominican Republic in 1665, and Grenada in 1714.

The Dutch had taken over cacao plantations in Curaçao after they seized the island in 1620.

England had Theobroma cacao growing in Jamaica by 1670.

The share of the cacao market in the Caribbean is quite small compared to other countries.

The Dominican Republic produces the most cacao beans in the Caribbean islands, but only represents about 2% of the world’s prodcution.

Other Caribbean producers of the cacao bean include Haiti, Jamaica, Cuba, Trinidad and Tobago and Grenada.

Cacao beans from Trinidad and Tobago have a cinnamon spiciness with a complex fruitiness. Very well-balanced.

Cacao beans from Jamaica have notes of pineapple and are rather bright and fruity with appealing aromas. The cacao beans are complex and well-balanced.

Dominican Republic’s cacao beans possess a deep earthy flavor with fragrant tobacco notes. Some of the cacao beans have delicate red wine and spice notes too.

Grenada Chocolate Company Organic Dark Chocolate Bar

The Grenada Chocolate Company is an organic Trinitario cacao plantation and chocolate maker’s cooperative.  They are small scale growing on 150 acres and are also completely environmentally friendly using solar power.  I like that they are tree to bar with no one in between!  Rococo Chocolates works in collaboration with The Grenada Chocolate Company to make their famous house blend.

Rococo Chocolate's Orange & Geranium Organic Dark Chocolate Bee Bar

Hotel Chocolate owns the Rabot Estate Cacao Planation in St. Lucia.   They actually have a hotel when you can stay ont he estate called simply The Hotel. The cocoa trees of Rabot Estate are primarily Trinitario Theobroma cacao species rich in Criollo genes.

Some of the other chocolate makers and chocolatiers using cacao beans or chocolate from the Caribbean include Amano Chocolate, Valrhona Chocolate and Michel Cluizel Chocolate.

Caribbean Hot Chocolate

(Serves 2)

Ingredients:
4½ oz (125g) dark chocolate (70% or higher cocoa content), grated
2 cups (500ml) whole milk (cream for complete decadence and for my vegan friends almond milk is fabulous!), divided
2 tbsp raw sugar
½ egg yolk
½ vanilla pod
½ cinnamon stick
pinch ground nutmeg

Directions:
Mix grated chocolate, raw sugar, egg yolk and ¼ cup milk in small bowl. Split the vanilla pod. Put vanilla pod, pinch of nutmeg and cinnamon stick in a heavy saucepan with remaining milk. Bring to a simmer. Slowly pour chocolate mixture from bowl into saucepan while stirring with whisk. Remove from stove. Continue stirring until thick. Serve immediately.

Caribbean Hot Chocolate

I bid you creamy, thick Caribbean Hot Chocolate and warm sunny beaches!

Annmarie Kostyk

Theobroma cacao

Chocolate comes from the cocoa beans from the Theobroma cacao which can only be grown and produced fruit between 20º north and 20º south of the equator. This are is known as “the cocoa belt.” Theobroma cacao has been successful grown as a tree elsewhere, but will not bear fruit. It is very particular. The Theobroma cacao are grown primarily in West Africa, Central America, South America and Asia. According to the International Cocoa Organization, the vast majority of cocoa comes from Cote d’Ivoire (38%), Ghana (21%), Indonesia (13%), Nigeria (5%), Brazil (4%), Cameroon (5%), Ecuador (3%), Malaysia (1%) and the last 10% are made up of cocoa coming from Sri Lanka, parts of India, Venezuela, Belize, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Madagascar, Peru, Colombia, Guatemala, Hawaii, Mexico, Fiji and other countries near the equator.

Three Varieties of Cacao

There are three main varieties of chocolate, the Forastero, Criollo and Trinitario. There are some fantastic debates on the varieties of hybrids and original species from these three varieties, but we will keep that for another time. Keep in mind when tasting chocolate, that most chocolate today is made up of a blend of cacao beans from different regions or different varieties. If you are dealing with a certain exclusive bean from a specific region, the chocolate maker will indeed tell you as this is an exceptional treat. In these cases, the chocolate maker will let you know if it is single-origin (made with the beans from one region or an entire country), single-plantation (estate grown), made up of only one variety of bean, a special blend, organic or fair trade.

Forastero-Theobroma cacao

The Forastero tree is the most widely grown of the three cacao trees as it is the most hardy. It is, however, the cacao bean offering the least amount of flavor from its beans. The Forastero is the most commonly used of the cacao bean in all chocolates throughout the world. The Forastero is thought to have started growing in the Amazon. It now grows in other countries such as Nigeria, Cote d’Ivoire, Brazil, Costa Rica, Ghana, the Dominican Republic, Venezuela and Ecuador. Forastero makes up approximately 70% of the world’s cacao supply.

Crillo-Theobroma cacao

The Criollo is a rare and fragile variety of Theobroma cacao. It gives little in way of crop and it is very susceptible to disease. Pure Criollo is usually found on the western side of Columbia. It is commonly cultivated in the regions of Mexico, Nicaragua, Venezuela, Madagascar, Columbia and the Comoros Islands. Pure Criollo is not often used in any chocolate production. A chocolate maker using pure Criollo in their chocolate bar is going to let you know that you have an exceptional experience waiting for you in your dark chocolate bar. If it says Criollo, it is most likely a hybrid version of the Criollo and Trinitario trees unless noted otherwise. Criollo makes up approximately 10% of the world’s cacao supply. The Criollo beans are known to have a fruity flavor and to be

Trinitario-Theobroma cacao

slightly acidic. The Criollo known to be the most flavorful and aromatic of the three varieties.

The Trinitario is a hybrid of the Criollo and Forastero. The cocoa beans from the Trinitario are thought to be very aromatic and robust. The yield is high, but not a high as the Forastero. The Imperial College of Tropical Agriculture began to experiment with this variety in the 1920s in Trinadad. Varieties of the Trinitario are now growing successful all over the world, primarily in the same countries as that of the Criollo. The Trinitario variety of the Theobroma cacao makes up about 20% of the world’s cacao. It possesses notes such as oak, honey and balsamic.

Theobroma cacao

Annmarie Kostyk

Mayan Indian Art Work

Theobroma cacao is indigenous to Central America as it falls in the cocoa belt which is an area where the chocolate tree prefers to grow and flourish. The cocoa belt falls exactly twenty degrees both north and south of the equator. Theobroma cacao can grow in other areas, but it will not flower. No flowers mean no cocoa pods. It is believed that the cacao has been grown in the country of Belize for over 3,000 years. Actual farming began in the year 250 BCE. Today, cacao is still grown by the Mayan Indians (yes there are still Mayan Indians) in the Toledo area of Belize. Interestingly enough, Hershey’s, a United States company, is working with them along with the United States government for commercial export.

Green and Black's Mayan Gold Chocolate Bar

Green and Black’s, a company of the United Kingdom, was the first to export organic cocoa out of the Belize in 1992. It was the first Free Trade commodity in the United Kingdom. Green and Black’s sold the cocoa under the label of Mayan Black. Since then the growth of cacao has diminished due to lack of government subsidies for cacao, high-cost production, improvement of job opportunities in other sectors and the damaged from Hurricane Iris in 2001 that virtually wiped out Theobroma cacao.

Map of Costa Rica

Another country producing substantial amounts of cacao was Costa Rica. Theobroma cacao was brought to Costa Rica in the 1800s by the Jamaican workers who were working on the railroads and were already successfully growing cacao. Costa Rica already had large crops of banana trees which were perfect cover trees for the Theobroma cacao as the cacao likes to be shaded from direct sunlight. The cacao plantations thrived and cacao farmers prospered. In the 1960s, pod rot hit the entire country of Costa Rica resulting in the loss of 95% of the country’s cacao.

Painting of Theobroma cacao

From the 16^th century through the end of World War I, the farming of Theobroma cacao was dominate in the Caribbean islands. During this time, the islands producing the most cacao were Jamaica, Trinidad and the Windward Islands which include Dominica, Martinique, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent, the Grenadines and Grenada. After that time, West Africa took over as the leaders in cocoa production.

Spaniards and Cacao

Theobroma cacao was introduced to the Caribbean islands by the Spanish in the early 16^th century. The Spaniards brought the tree from Venezuela and records indicate that the first planting of Theobroma cacao was in Trinidad. There is a rumor that the British burned a ship to the ground in the late 16^th century thinking the cocoa beans were sheep’s droppings. Oops! At the turn of the 17^th century, Spanish physicians noted the medicinal qualities present in chocolate, many of which are still alive today, and chocolate as medicine was brought into England. Cocoa demand increased.

Raw Cocoa Beans

Venezuela was the largest producer of cacao in the 18^th century. The Caribbean began to increase cacao in both the amount of trees they were growing as well as the amount of cocoa beans they were exporting. Spain tried to prohibit the export of the Venezuelan raw cocoa beans to create a monopoly. From 1728 through 1780, they succeeded. A group of Spanish noblemen controlled the entire Venezuelan crop of cocoa. Cocoa started coming from the Caribbean and other countries, mostly illegally, during this time. Privateers flourished in these years basically taking over control of the cocoa trade which some say lasted until the 18^th century. Pirate ships were seen all over the Caribbean waters making a lucrative living bringing cocoa to Europe. A lot of the ships carrying cocoa were often either seized or burned to gain control of the cocoa trafficking. People wanted their cocoa.

Europeans Drinking Cocoa

As you know, Theobroma cacao will only grow 20 degrees north and south of the equator.  It’s very temperamental.  People have had luck growing the tree in other regions, but it will never flower, this never produce fruit.  This article I’m passing on to you today is the original.  Why summarize something that was so beautifully written. In addition to the cocoa plantations, Steelgrass Farms Chocolate farm isn’t mentioned.  Their trees have not yet matured.

Chocolate Paradise by Wanda Adams, Star Advertiser.com, 7/7/10

Hawaii-grown chocolate.

The very name has it all: the romance of the islands married to the almost universal love of chocolate.

Cacao, the bean from which chocolate is made, likes tropical climates, moist and hot conditions and midges (a tiny bug that is cacao’s sole pollinator).

Hawaii has all of the above.

Interest in high-quality chocolate has risen dramatically, with high cocoa-fat chocolate and single-estate chocolate — made from a specific growing area — becoming sought-after in the manner of vintage wines.

Hawaiian-grown cacao has a reputation for producing very high quality chocolate. Jim Walsh of Hawaiian Vintage Chocolate, a pioneer in cacao-growing in the islands, said there’s a check list of qualities to consider in selecting which chocolate to use: flavor, the style’s suitability for the recipe, creaminess and smoothness, ease of tempering (melting and shaping) and shelf life.

Some chocolates are more tricky to work with than others and may belong solely to the purview of trained chocolatiers, who work in climate-controlled environments with special tools.

Betty Otsuka, an enthusiastic home baker from Pearl City, says that, while she can’t always afford to bake with Hawaiian chocolate, she uses it on special occasions.

CRAIG T. KOJIMA / CKOJIMA@STARADVERTISER.COM

“You know, the simpler the recipe, the more the quality and flavor of the chocolate count, so if I’m making a pudding or a mousse or a frosting, something like that, I use the best, and Hawaiian chocolate, to me, is the best,” Otsuka said.

MORE ABOUT HAWAII CHOCOLATE
» www.thechocolatelife.com: This social network offers a section on Hawaii cacao
» hawaiicacao.com: Click on “History of Hawaii Cacao” to see an excellent overview by Skip Bittenbender, a University of Hawaii researcher
» www.HawaiianVintage Chocolate.com
» The Original Hawaiian Chocolate Factory
» www.maliekai.com
» www.waialuaestate.com

Though it was unknown to precontact Hawaiians, cacao has been growing in Hawaii for more than 150 years: botanist Wilhelm (aka William) Hillebrand planted it on his Honolulu estate, now Foster Gardens, in the 1850s. In 1917, when the price of chocolate shot up because of a shortage prompted by World War I shipping embargoes, the Hawaii legislature ordered a study of the viability of growing cacao here, and the answer was favorable. But interest waned in the post-war years.

In the mid-1980s, there was great fanfare when media-savvy Walsh partnered with Hershey‘s to start a Hawaii cacao industry on the Big Island. His then culinary muse, Philippe Padovanni, proved that isle-grown beans could produce extraordinary hand-made chocolates.

Today, Alan Wong‘s restaurant pastry chef Michelle Karr features Oahu’s Waialua Estate chocolate in her confections, as do a number of exclusive resorts.

Chocolatier Melanie Boudar of Sweet Paradise Chocolate on the Big Island, known for sophisticated, fancifully decorated confections, sells a line of confections made with Waialua Estate chocolate, often combined with local produce: pineapple, pepper, chili, cloves, kaffir lime and other unusual flavorings.

“I think it’s the best (of the local chocolates). It has a very high cocoa butter content so it’s very nice to work with, it molds easily, and it tempers (melts and cools to hold its shape) easily,” she said.

CRAIG T. KOJIMA / CKOJIMA@STARADVERTISER.COM

Cacao is grown on all the major islands and the chocolate has a stellar reputation internationally, winning awards and critical praise from food writers. But the industry remains tiny and there is only one small chocolate processing plant here, the 13-year-old Original Hawaiian Chocolate Factory on the Big Island. All remaining cacao beans in Hawaii are processed into chocolate in mainland plants. Waialua Estate, owned by Dole Food Co., partners with Guittard in San Francisco and sells under its own brand, as well as to such local companies as Malie Kai.

Hawaiian chocolate is sold in the form of finished sweets, molded pieces, dark and milk chocolate bars, bittersweet and semisweet baking bars with varying degrees of cocoa fat and even nibs (roasted cacao beans).

Chocolate is produced in three stages: cacao growing, fermentation and drying of the cacao beans (which takes place on the farm) and processing of the beans into various forms of chocolate, which takes place in specialized plants. The character of the finished result is a product of all these factors: the quality of the root stock, soil and weather during the growing season, care in fermentation and drying, and how the chocolate is processed.

As a local crop, cacao has a lot going for it. Though the Islands are at the extreme of its growing region (the vast majority of cacao is grown within six degrees of the equator; Hawaii is at latitude 20), Dole agriculture manager Michael Conway suspects challenging growing conditions contribute isle-grown chocolate’s characteristic dark, deep flavors.

Walsh said Hawaiian chocolate is known for “long back notes” — a lasting, “winey, beany” flavor.

Knowledgeable tasters have detected hints of powerfully flavored, jammy fruit in the chocolate: raspberries, blackberries, black cherries or prunes, said Conway.

“It has a lingering taste: When you put the chocolate in your mouth, it doesn’t just sit there, it slowly comes up on you,” Conway said.

Bob Cooper of the Original Hawaiian Chocolate Factory on the Big Island said that Hawaiian chocolate is special because it’s unblended and it’s a single-origin product, the characteristics of which remain true to the plant variety, growing conditions and processing method.

CRAIG T. KOJIMA / CKOJIMA@STARADVERTISER.COM

Big processors blend chocolate from multiple sources to create certain flavor characteristics, and for supply and financial reasons, but Hawaii chocolate is unblended.

“Hawaii chocolate is very strong, very forthright and very fruity. Once you start blending, that fruitiness fades way,” he said.

It’s the kind of chocolate you can eat just as nutritionists suggest: in small, slowly savored bites from which you emerge satisfied with less.

For isle farmers, the cacao tree is relatively care-free and still all but pest-free, perfect for a family farm or a small farm where other crops are produced, each requiring tending at different times of the year. It is harvested in stages year-round, spreading the work load.

The typical Hawaii cacao grower is a very small farm; Dole’s is by far the largest operation with 20 acres. Cooper farms an acre, 1,350 trees, and buys from about 15 local farms, with another 15 or so contracted when their trees mature (this takes about 4 years). The state estimates there are 50 or 60 acres of cacao growing here.

Cooper thinks it’s important for the industry to grow with care, in a “responsible” way. This means, among other things, instituting a quarantine on the import of cacao growing stock, to prevent the unintended transport of pests and diseases that are devastating crops elsewhere, something for which he has long campaigned.

And, since a big part of what the industry has going for it is its uniqueness — Cooper’s operation is the only one in the U.S., and the only one in any industrialized nation, to take cacao from farm to finished chocolate — it means truth in labeling, protecting the integrity of single-estate or single-source chocolate.

Both Conway and Walsh agree that, while cacao has a place in the islands’ future, it likely isn’t that of a commodity crop — one grown in the hundreds or thousands of acres — but as a niche market. Conway said there would need to be at least 150 acres in production to justify even the possibility of a major chocolate processing plant here. Walsh thinks the figure is more like 300 or 400 acres.

“We’ve gotten through the (research and development) stages; we’ve proved it’s a viable crop and that the market is excited about it,” Conway said. “Now, it’s a matter of money.”

CRAIG T. KOJIMA / CKOJIMA@STARADVERTISER.COM

Criollo (Courtesy of Amano Artsian Chocolate)

For what seems like years now, I’ve been writing about the three types of cacao that grows in the world – the Forastero, Criollo and the Trinitario.  Today I was surprised to learn there is  a fourth type of cacao – the Nacional (also known as Arriba Nacional).   I didn’t learn much about it except that it has origins in Ecuador.  It is considered to be part of the Trinitario family with characteristics of the Criollo which make me think that some brilliant feat in nature crossed the Trinitario with the Criollo.  The tree and the pods are considered to be like those of the Trinitario in beautiful

Trinitario (Photo Courtesy of Cocoa Puro)

shades of violet to purple and are in the small to medium range when it comes to size.  No coincidence that the flavor is a range from subtle nuances to full-robust flavors juts like the Trinitario and Criollo.  So from what I read, this version of the Theobroma cacao is still around, however it is lumped into the category of Trinitario most frequently.  Isn’t it beautiful?

Nacional (Arriba nacional)