Description
Two Zoto chocolates together. To be able to taste something very special.
We have already written about it elsewhere, but Zoto is the company of Zoï and Tom, and they are involved in cocoa fermentation scientifically and as a job. The cocoa grows (of course) as fruit on the tree, but what happens after harvesting is -essential- for how your chocolate tastes later. Then we are talking about (wild) fermentation and drying.
Performing the fermentation in a controlled and specific manner is exactly what you will not (or very rarely) encounter in supermarket chocolate. This generally concerns cheap bulk cocoa, where the roasting at high temperatures obscures the mediocre flavors and defects, and added flavors largely determine the taste.
We know that this is exactly what is different about craft chocolate / bean to bar chocolate, but that is also something we really like to share and let people taste. You can’t really say ‘oh, this is a cocoa from Uganda so it tastes like this’ – no, if they dry the same cocoa just a little slower or faster, or approach the fermentation just a little differently, that cocoa also tastes different, and you can definitely taste that in the chocolate.
You can see it this way: the flavors are already captured in the cocoa bean (the kernel of the cocoa fruit), but the choices you make afterwards ensure that certain flavors come to the fore. Knowing exactly what temperature the cocoa must reach during fermentation and how long you need to dry it, that is the trick – and that is what actually makes cocoa so fascinating. This way you can create different flavor profiles with exactly the same cocoa. And of course there is also the influence of which language variety(s) you use, the influence of soil and weather conditions during the growing and flowering of the cocoa tree, and of course once the cocoa is ready and bagged, the work of the chocolate makers, who through grinding and roasting can direct the taste in certain directions.
A complex whole, difficult to put down in a few words, and something you can learn and discover a lot more about. Fascinating, for those who like it. But also great for those who just want to taste delicious chocolate, because you can taste the difference in fermentation here! In this case between fermentation in boxes & fermentation without boxes.
How does that work? You will receive two chocolates from Zoto, for which they have developed the fermentation profile themselves. Exactly the same cocoa as it comes from the cocoa tree, and also the same processed by the maker of the chocolate (Mario from Chocolatoa). The difference is purely that one chocolate has been fermented in wooden boxes (with a total of 350 kg), and the other in a large heap (120 kg). That’s all’.
Besides the fact that they are incredibly tasty chocolates in themselves, which we highly recommend, we can also highly recommend them for a chocolate tasting. Just as fun as some of the chocolates that Mikkel Friss Holm makes, with variants in which only the number of ‘turns’ (skimming the cocoa so that more air is added) changes during fermentation, or only the drying time varies.
Ingredients: cocoa, cocoa butter, beet sugar.
Cocoa 72%. 67% cocoa beans, 5% cocoa butter. The cocoa is a regional blend from the Bundibungyo area in Uganda.
Two chocolates, 2x 45 grams. Allergy note: may contain traces of nuts.
Fermentation: one chocolate 7 days heap (120kg), 3 turns. Other: 7 day box (350kg), 3 turns
Drying: pre-dry for 24 hours, sun-dried for 6 days under a sunscreen
Roasting: 120 degrees, 25 minutes.
Flavor notes described by the makers:
Bar 1 (box fermentation): amber wine, honey, menthol, pecan nuts
Bar 2 (heap fermentation) dry cherry, cognac, eucalyptus, floral
This allows you to order a beautiful duo of bars that are beautiful in themselves, nice for anyone who wants to taste a fine cocoa from Uganda in a beautiful shape and certainly also for anyone who wants to bring something special to a chocolate tasting.
Other tips for a real fermentation-oriented tasting: take a look at the offer from Mikkel Friis Holm for ready-made sets or the (famous award-winning) double & triple turned Chuno. And of course
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