The story of Chocolate in St Lucia

Discussion in 'Off-Topic Discussion' started by Jenny namaste, Feb 9, 2013.

  1. Jenny namaste

    Jenny namaste Total Gardener

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    The Tree to Bean tour :
    First, let me introduce our guide and mentor. Cuthbert Monroque is head of the Estate's nursery. What he doesn't know about Cocoa trees just isn't worth knowing. He is committed to producing the finest new trees, planting them and enab The story of chocolate  Cuthbert Monroque head Nursery man on the Rabot Estate.jpg ling St Lucia's farmers to enjoy a good standard of living.
    And here is the HC Superbean, the star of the show.
    The story of chocolate - the  HC superbean.jpg To get these, you need these. The flowers on a Cocoa tree grow directly from spurs growing out of bark - from the trunk or from more mature branches. They are pollinated by humming birds, bees and mosquitoes. Yep, the mosquito is all part of the team!! The story of chocolate  flowers on the trunk of the Cocoa tree.jpg
     
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    • Jenny namaste

      Jenny namaste Total Gardener

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      The pods produce 2 crops a year and vary in colour depending on type and ripeness. Green to yellow to purple or the The story of chocolate. green pods that will ripen yellow.jpg coat of many colours.
      The story of chocolate  young pods developing.jpg The story of chocolate.  nearly ripe purple pods.jpg
      The story of chocolate  HC Superbean.jpg The story of chocolate  evidence of rat invasion of pod.jpg
      Evidence of rat invasion
       
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      • Jenny namaste

        Jenny namaste Total Gardener

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        The ripened pod is removed either by hand, twisting it gently round and round until it "gives"
        The story of chocolate twisting a yellow pod from the tree.jpg or by using this tool which requires greater skill. It is vital not to damage the spur underneath as further flowers will emanate in time from that site. All very labour intensive - hence the high price of very good chocolate.
        The story of chocolate  the tool used to remove pods from the tree.jpg
         
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        • Jenny namaste

          Jenny namaste Total Gardener

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          Now we are off to the Nursery - the "business" end.
          The beans are put into wooden boxes complete with their sticky food. They are covered with banana leaves and a heavy plank to keep Mr Rat out.! Over a period of a week, fermentation develops ( smells very much like a brewery) and they give off an incredible amount of heat. They are turned often to ensure eveness of ripening and the bean goes from milky white to brown and dries. Every stage of the process from tree to bean has it's own important part to play.
          The story of chocolate  beans fermenting in wooden box.jpg The story of chocolate  beans drying in the sun.jpg
          They are then moved to shallow drying racks where they are are turned and inspected daily. Any deformed or weak bean has to be removed as it is likely to create "cocoa must" in the final chocolate making stage and can ruin the whole batch.
          Hotel Chocolat  St Lucia  January 2013 107.JPG

          And a sack of these precious beans - all ready for roasting,winnowing ( removal of the outer shell) and conching (making a smooth shiny chocolate block) Aaaaah :wub2: .
           
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          • Jenny namaste

            Jenny namaste Total Gardener

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            And so to the Nursery, my favourite place.
            These are cuttings taken from the "gene pool" which will be used today
            The story of chocolate  cuttings from the gene  pool for todays graftings.jpg
            They are completely bound in a tape coated with parafin wax
            The story of chocolate  comepletely binding the grafted cutting.jpg
            We were guided by this man, Cuthbert's "Guru" from the St L. Botanical University. He taught Cuthbert everything he knows about grafting cocoa cuttings. It's inserted into a slit on the main stem of the Forastero rootstock plant and thetwo elements are tightly bound.
            The story of chocolate  inserting GC's cutting into the root stock.jpg
            And here it is ! Gardeners Corner's very own Cocoa tree with our name on it. It will be planted on the Estate and we can get annual updates of its performance. It will remain in the Kindergarten tunnel for 6 months to develop a strong root base. It will be organically fed with a "brew" devised by Cuthbert and sprayed with his organic mix to deter pests at this vital stage.
            The story of chocolate -Cuthbert Monroque with GC's cocoa plant.jpg
            The kindergarten tunnel with other young recently grafted trees.
            The story of chocolate.  in the poly tunnel with recently grafted trees.jpg
             
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            • Jenny namaste

              Jenny namaste Total Gardener

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              If you like, the real Chocolate lovers can join me on the Bean to Chocolate bar session. Anyone else interested in making the stuff? :wub2:
              Jenny
               
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              • "M"

                "M" Total Gardener

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                :wow: we have our own baby cocoa tree? :dancy:

                Such an informative read and the pictures are wonderful, Jenny! :thumbsup:
                 
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                • Jenny namaste

                  Jenny namaste Total Gardener

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                  Glad you liked them Mum,
                  Jenny
                   
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                  • Lolimac

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                    Amazing Jenny...just fab:dancy:
                     
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                      Sheal Total Gardener

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                      Fascinating, thank you Jenny. :dbgrtmb:
                       
                    • Jack McHammocklashing

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                    • Jenny namaste

                      Jenny namaste Total Gardener

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                      Thank you everyone,
                      Jenny
                       
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                      • Jenny namaste

                        Jenny namaste Total Gardener

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                        Bean to Chocolate bar
                        Hotel Chocolat's Cocoa beans are grown in both St Lucia and Ghana,West Africa ( under licence) and then dried beans are shipped to Lindt of Switzerland. They have great skill and the finest machinery to make good chocolate. The process begins with roasting the bean and temperature is critical to obtaining the finest aromas. Then comes winnowing when the outer crisp shell is cracked and blown away to leave the dark,shiny bean. These are reduced to small "nibs" and then fed through a series of hot steel rollers to produce a smooth substance which will eventually liquify.The liquid has naturally split into cocoa butter ( which rises to the top) and cocoa mass. The butter is a pale creamey yellow, the nib is a very dark brown. The ratio of each varies depending on many factors. Bean type, growing conditions and the soil. Between 40% and 60% either way. The surplus of cocoa butter is removed and goes to making many different foodstuffs, soaps and cosmetics. The final stage is conching which is a skilfull process perfected by Randolphe Lindt in 1879 when all of Europe went crazy for chocolate. Up until then, it was rather gritty and bitter and needed a lot of sweeteners to make it palatable. The tale goes that, at the end of hard working day Mr Lindt consumed more alcohol than was sensible, walked out of the factory forgetting to turn off the grinding machine - and lock up afterwards. Arriving the next morning, he was greeted by a puzzled employee who said he found the door open and the machine still grinding. To their amazement, the product was smooth, glossy and in a liquid form ! On tasting, it was found to have a superior flavour unlike any tasted before with a velvet like consistency. The secret of prolonged conching only remained with Lindt for a while after that as you can imagine.
                        So Lindt send the Chocolate "Liquor", in blocks, to England where the chocolates, their flavours and fillings are created for Hotel Chocolat The story of chocolate.of to make chocolate on the veranda at the Colonial house.jpg .
                        These facts were explained to us Trainees as we assembled here, on the veranda of the old Colonial bungalow to make our very own Chocolate.
                        The story of chocolate the white raw bean and the roasted nut inside - shell removed.jpg
                        The roasted bean and shell at the top and a white bean fresh from the pod this morning, covered in it's mucilaginous pulp. We were all invited to suck one. "Do not bite or swallow. Describe taste. fascinating: creamy, sweet and sour together but somehow full of goodness. It feeds that bean growing inside the case and was highly regarded by ancient growers as the food of the gods. It makes a nice addition to a St Lucian cocktail or a unique sorbet!
                        The story of chocolate  the crushed bean ready for grinding.jpg
                         
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                        • Jenny namaste

                          Jenny namaste Total Gardener

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                          The story of chocolate  we are about to make chocolate.jpg
                          We are ready to start with grinding the cocoa nibs in the hot pestle with a mortar - think grinding coffee beans. It's bloomin hard work and takes 40 minutes to achieve a feel of smoothness without grit in it! Towards the end, you can see it start to look more oily as the cocoa butter tries to separate. The aroma of cocoa is quite overwhelming. The ingredients in the 2 little kilner jars ( cocoa butter and ground cane sugar) were then worked in and followed by more furious grinding until it became a viscotic liquid.
                          The story of chocolate  we are about to make chocolate.jpg
                          And finally pouring it into your very own mold.
                          The story of chocolate pouring the liquid chocolate into the mold.jpg
                           
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