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"It is dark as the AlChemist walks along the corridor, rough stone under his feet, air warmed from well smoldering hearth fires stirring his cowl. He opens a hewn timber door, worn smooth at the threshold over years of use. He breaths deeply the comforting smells of this laboratory. Hints of wood and smoke linger in the air from the last time he roasted raw materials for his elixirs. Another smell, heady and almost intoxicating, brings a smile to his face as he remembers the smell wafting up as he was last grinding his pastes and powders. He looks about. Everything is in place. The roasting drum is cool in the hearth. The mortars and pestles are laid out neat and tidy, only a small amount of deep brown paste marring their finish. The cracking mill is sitting ready, waiting for the next batch to be crushed fresh out of the roaster. It is time to begin his magic, his devotion, his passion, his Alchemy, yet again. He prepares himself for the work ahead. The roasting, the cracking, the winnowing, the grinding, the mixing. The transformation of base materials into something more than they were. The transformation of cocoa beans to chocolate, the work of Chocolate Alchemy."
2456306 visits and counting.
A little while ago I acquired an antique roaster. It’s in the process of being refinished, but in the meantime is completely functional. As a result, all cocoa beans are now available as Roasted. The odd 35 lb option is because that is the capacity of the roaster. Right now I don’t have an option […]
Filed under: Products, Cocoa Beans, Roasting, Refining & Conching, What's new & Updates, Alchemist's Musings | No Comments »
It seems to be generally known I don’t promote raw chocolate. It’s not that I don’t approve of it (although I have some issues about it), it more that I just don’t really care for it and even more so, just don’t ‘get it’. Although they are not my words, there is an article that […]
Filed under: Roasting, Refining & Conching, What's new & Updates, Cracking & Winnowing, Alchemist's Musings | 3 Comments »
Update: After a few final tests this weekend, I have finished up the review and photos. Pluses and minuses, but overall a good product.
So what is the same?
They have 110 V, 1/4 hp motors
They refine in about the same time.
They look a lot a like.
The bowl is not dishwasher safe.
What is better?
Steel parts.
Lighter wheels.
Easier […]
Filed under: Products, Refining & Conching, What's new & Updates | 2 Comments »
My dear partner Penelope put this together, noting that so far there is not one single page outlining the entire chocolate making procedure start to finish. Well, now there is.
Chocolate Making at Home 101
It won’t give you everything you need in detail (hence the ‘101′) but gives a great overview. For all the detailed […]
Filed under: Products, Cocoa Beans, Roasting, Refining & Conching, Grinding, Cracking & Winnowing, Alchemist's Musings, Tempering | 8 Comments »
The newest shipment of Melangers have arrived in port. They are available and we are taking orders but they won’t ship until next week sometime due to back logs. And for those paying attention, Santha has requested that they be referred to as Spectra now. It’s the same item.
And look for more […]
Filed under: Products, Cocoa Beans, Refining & Conching, What's new & Updates | 2 Comments »
For some reason, there have been a few spats of difficulties lately with too thick or thin chocolate in the Melangers.
One person reported only being able to get 4 lbs of chocolate into the Melanger before it spun itself out. The culprit was 3 times the cocoa butter the recipe called for. I […]
Filed under: Refining & Conching, What's new & Updates, Alchemist's Musings, Tempering | 4 Comments »
