General Operations Manual
Frequently Asked Customer Questions & Answers
1. Are your cocoa beans fair trade?
The term “Fair Trade” as it relates to the chocolate industry is hardly “fair”. It takes approximately 3200 man
hours to harvest and successfully process 1 metric ton of cocoa beans. For those 3200 manhours, the
minimum price as mandated by various world fair trade organizations is $1750 per ton (only when the price of
cocoa is above $2,000 USD per metric ton), or about 54 cents per hour, IF the farmer doesn’t take his cut
before paying his employees. There is currently no incentive for chocolate producers to pay more for the
beans than that price, hence it’s both a floor and ceiling price.
We completely disregard the “fair trade” hoopla and propaganda, and pay considerably more than market
prices to the growers for our cocoa beans. Our mandate is to create a sustainable living environment for the
grower, thereby ensuring a long, exclusive, and prosperous relationship with us.
2. Do you make organic chocolate?
To be quite candid, almost all cocoa beans are by design, “organic”. This is because the farmer is paid so little
for his crop that he can’t afford the sprayers, or chemicals, or even an education to be able to read the
instructions if he did have the equipment. With regard to other ingredients – the sugar, cocoa butter, and
vanilla, we haven’t found organic products of the quality and price we would be happy making chocolate out
of. Most organic cocoa butter I have sampled has been horrible. It’s also VERY difficult and inconsistent to
obtain.
3. Is there any dairy in your dark chocolate?
None at all. Our dark chocolate contains 4 simple ingredients: cocoa beans, fat from the cocoa beans (called
cocoa butter), sugar, and Madagascan bourbon vanilla.
4. Does your chocolate contain lecithin?
Lecithin in chocolate is used as a form of lubricant – to allow the particles in the chocolate to move around
more easily. It is commonly used in varieties of chocolate where there is low fat content, and high solid
content.
Our dark chocolate recipes contain enough cocoa butter to allow the chocolate to be very fluid, and melt very
nicely on the tongue without feeling thick or gummy, and as a result needs no lecithin.
Our milk chocolate however has a very high solid milk and sugar content, and as a result does in fact need
lecithin in order for us to pour it into molds. Having said that, the amount of lecithin in our milk chocolate is
only one half of one percent by weight.
General Operations Manual
Frequently Asked Customer Questions & Answers
5. Does your chocolate contain gluten?
Our recipes call for no gluten to be added to the chocolate we make. However…. Our shop works with flour
daily, and as a result, a small amount of flour dust may be present in the air, and settle on a piece of
chocolate. Also, some of our truffle coatings contain gluten, and because they are side by side in our truffle
assembly line, a small amount of cross contamination may occur. Some of our customers have celiac issues
and regularly buy our bars and certain types of truffles with no problems. Due to flour being present in our
shop we simply cannot legally state that our products are gluten free.
6. Do you sell baking chocolate?
At this time, the only chocolate we make and sell is in the form of eating bars, or our own confections. We are
currently attempting to source a supply of beans that will allow us to make a chocolate that could be used for
baking.
7. If I buy some of your bars, can I bake with them?
Our 80% dark chocolate bars could feasibly be used for baking. However our milk bars, and our 70% dark
barks are too high in fat, and don’t have enough flavour intensity to work effectively in a baked product.
Further to that, all of the flavour nuances found in our chocolate would be lost in the baked product you are
creating.
A good comparison in this regard would be the use of wine in cooking. Sure, you can use a $30 bottle of red
wine in your stew, but you would see no more benefit from it than you would if you used a much more value
priced bottle.
8. Do you offer discounts for large orders?
When determining our pricing model, the definition of “a large order” was impossible to pin down. To some
people 20 truffles is a large order, while to others 5,000 truffles is a large order. We wanted to be fair and
allow everyone to indulge in luxury chocolate once in a while – even those on a tight budget. We reviewed
the offerings of our peers, and across the board, set a price point approximately 30% lower than them. In
some cases, the price of our product is less than half that of our peers, while at the same time the quality,
freshness, and service is far superior.
By offering a consistently low price to everybody for a product that is far superior to even the best of our
peers, our demographic market widens, and as a result, those who place “large orders” are able to take
advantage of the buying power of each individual in the larger demographic and offer their clients “the best of
the best” without breaking the bank, or trying to “wheel and deal”.
General Operations Manual
Frequently Asked Customer Questions & Answers
9. Do you sell wholesale chocolate to businesses?
We don’t, and it’s not likely we ever will. The reason is simple: We work hard to bring in the rarest cocoa
beans, and make the finest chocolate that can be made. Once our chocolate walks out the door we can’t
control the quality. If a restaurant were to buy some, make a horrible recipe out of it, and then proudly
announce that their crap was made with our chocolate, it would reflect badly on us. We would rather close
the doors than let that happen.
10. Do you offer private chocolate events? If so, when?
Yes we do. We only host them in the evenings after 7:00pm, as the shop is open during the day, and nobody is
allowed back in the food preparation area. The best date availability is between October 1st and March 31st.
We will also not host events on statutory holidays, or within 3 days prior to a seasonal event such as
Valentines, Easter, Thanksgiving, etc.
11. How long are they, and what happens during your chocolate events?
The events, called “Choklat Snobbery 101” are about two to two and a half hours in duration. During this
period, the speaker gives a brief history of the shop, and chocolate in general. After that, the registrants are
stepped through the entire process of making chocolate – right from selection of the beans, through to the
making of chocolate bars.
Once that is complete, the participants are given a series of samples of each of the dark chocolates we make,
along with a comparison of what many people think is good quality chocolate. The comparison is drastic and
very surprising to many.
After that, there is a brief wine pairing with a selection of chocolate and wines chosen by a local sommelier.
12. What is the maximum capacity of your chocolate events?
The largest number we prefer to host is 12 at a time. This size is strictly based on the limitations of space in
our shop.
13. Do you hold events at other locations, and if so what is the cost?
Yes. We can host a “Chocolate Snobbery 101” event at the location of your choice. We have a fully prepared
Powerpoint presentation, along with all of the multimedia equipment necessary to host the event. The price
for it is a $200 flat fee for the presentation, and then $5 per person for the chocolate. Depending on
availability of staff we are able to host this event during the day as well at your location.
General Operations Manual
Frequently Asked Customer Questions & Answers
14. I purchased a ticket to one of your events, and need to reschedule. How do I do that?
You can’t. Reservations for our events are non-refundable, and non exchangeable. If you can’t make it to an
event, you may give away, or sell your tickets to someone who can make it.
15. Can you donate chocolate to our event?
Choklat has a very extensive community contributions program in place called “A Million Smiles” as such, our
focus is centered on that program. You can find out more about it by visiting
http://amillionsmiles.sochocklat.com
16. What are your hours?
Our Inglewood shop hours are 10:00am to 6:00pm 7 days per week. We are closed on statutory holidays.
17. If you’re the only chocolate maker around, what do other chocolatiers do?
EVERY other chocolatier in Western Canada buys bulk chocolate from either a manufacturer or supplier, then
melts it down and uses it to create their confections. This includes Bernard Callebaut, Purdy’s, Rogers, Secord,
Ganong, and all smaller ones.
18. What difference does it make if you make the chocolate or a large manufacturer makes it?
The difference is drastic. First of all, because we make our chocolate in smaller batches, we have a level of
control over the type and quality of the beans we use that most chocolate manufacturers don’t, and that
chocolatiers never will. Second of all, we control the roasting, which is one of the most important steps in
developing the flavour of the final chocolate. Third, because we are able to control every aspect of making the
chocolate, we are able to create a product that matches perfectly with the end confection. There really is no
comparison.
19. What does the percentage mean on the dark chocolate bars?
According to both food regulatory agencies here in Canada and the US, the percentage denoting cocoa solids
you quite often see on the packaging of dark chocolate refers to the combination of cocoa beans AND cocoa
butter (the fat from the cocoa bean). For example, a 70% bar could typically be a combination of 50% cocoa
beans and 20% cocoa butter, or 60% cocoa beans and 10% cocoa butter.
In most manufactured chocolate, the cocoa butter is quite often the most expensive ingredient, so chocolate
manufacturers will do whatever they can to reduce the content of cocoa butter. Quite often this means using
a high percentage of cocoa beans, a small amount of cocoa butter, and then augmenting the fat content with
another type of fat, such as anhydrous milk fat (clarified butter), or palm oil, or palm kernel oil.
General Operations Manual
Frequently Asked Customer Questions & Answers
In the case of Choklat, we actually put the recipe right on the side of the bar, so you see exactly what our
percentages are made up of. We don’t play games or take short cuts when it comes to our chocolate.
20. Where do the cocoa beans come from?
In general, cocoa beans come from an area of 20 degrees north and south of the equator, with approximately
95% of the world’s cocoa supply coming from the Ivory Coast of Africa. Our cocoa beans come from other
regions of the world more renown for producing fine flavour cocoa – areas such as Venezuela, Brazil, and
Mexico.
21. How do you actually “make” chocolate?
Chocolate is made by first harvesting and fermenting the seeds of a tropical fruit called Theobroma Cocoa.
Fermentation is the most important part of developing the flavour of cocoa beans, and takes place right at the
plantation where the beans are harvested.
Once the beans are harvested and fermented, they are dried in the sun, then put in sacks and either taken to a
local co-op for sale, or in our case, put on pallets and shipped to us.
Once in our shop, we roast the beans. Roasting does a number of things: It loosens the shells on the beans. It
kills any pathogens that may have hitched a ride along the way. It drives off acids that were present during
the fermentation period. It also helps further develop the chocolate flavour that we enjoy so much.
After the beans have been roasted, and are cool, the shells are then removed and the beans are ground with
sugar, vanilla, and a small amount of cocoa butter until such time as all of the particles are so small that our
pallets can’t detect them anymore, and the chocolate is silky smooth.
22. Are your cocoa beans single origin?
Single origin denotes a single geographical area of a country that the beans come from. In our case, ALL of our
beans are single origin. In fact, with the exception of our Ocumare, and Cuyagua, all of our beans are single
estate varieties.
23. Why don’t your staff use gloves when working with our truffles?
These days, when you see people working behind counters with food, you often see them wearing plastic
gloves. This is because they are often assisting customers at the same time, and the gloves are designed for a
single use. When we suggested to the regional health inspectors that we were also interested in using gloves,
they advised against it for our business. Their reasoning was that the gloves are actually a breeding ground for
bacteria, and that a good hand washing program in place is far more effective than a glove system. As a result,
we put in place a very extensive hand washing system, including the use of single-use paper towels.
General Operations Manual
Frequently Asked Customer Questions & Answers
Over time we also realized that because we were continually getting chocolate on our hands, and had to
remove it to keep the shop tidy, the only way would be to wash with soap. Subsequently, we actually wash
our hands more than what the health department recommends!
24. How long do your truffles last?
Because of the higher cream and butterfat content in our truffles, their shelf life at room temperature is only
10-14 days. You can extend the shelf life be refrigerating them, but we advise it due to the fact that chocolate
is very hygroscopic. This means that it is very susceptible to absorbing odor and moisture from its immediate
surroundings. Within a couple of days of being in your fridge, your chocolate will taste like the inside of your
fridge. Yuck!
25. How many calories are in your chocolate?
We don’t count calories, and neither should you. Balance your life with exercise and eat whatever you like.
26. How should my chocolate be stored?
Chocolate is best stored at room temperature, in an area that is void of strong odor. Chocolate bars will last
indefinitely if stored properly. Truffles will only last about 10-14 days.
27. Do you sell cocoa nibs?
We get a lot of requests from people for nibs. At this time we don’t sell them, as the price would be far too
high.
28. What does fermentation mean as it applies to cocoa beans?
Fermentation is the process of changing the chemical structure of the inside of the cocoa bean. Over a period
of several days, the natural yeasts and bacteria in the air where the cocoa beans are harvested act upon the
sweet pulp that encases the cocoa bean. It converts the pulp into various polyphenols and acids which
chemically alter the inside of the bean, and aids in the development of the flavanoids and other compounds
that make it become chocolate.
29. What gives chocolate its bitterness?
Bitterness in chocolate is the sign of improperly processed cocoa beans. When the beans are first harvested,
and before the fermentation period begins, the cocoa beans are very bitter and terrible tasting. However if
they are fermented properly, that bitterness abates, and a very strong chocolate flavour develops. If you were
to taste the roasted nibs in our shop you would find them very strong tasting, but not bitter.
General Operations Manual
Frequently Asked Customer Questions & Answers
30. What does “astringency” mean?
Astringency can be best described as the unpleasant feeling that you get when you put something in your
mouth, and it’s as if it sucks all the moisture from you. Another analogy would be that the product has a
“chalky” feel and taste. Quite often if you’re eating chocolate made from poorly processed cocoa beans both
the bitterness and astringency come hand-in-hand.
31. Does your chocolate contain nuts?
It might. Our facility does process various types of nuts, and also offers a peanut butter truffle center. While
we do what we can to ensure that nuts are contained in our truffle processing area, and that we don’t use
nuts with our chocolate “making” equipment, we can’t guarantee that a fragment or shell, or something to
that effect won’t fall in by accident.
32. What kind of chocolate do you use for your truffles and confections?
We use our Brazilian chocolate for all of our confections, with the exception of our hot chocolate, and some of
our barks.
33. What is white chocolate?
Technically white chocolate isn’t chocolate, as there are no cocoa solids in it. Legally it can be called
“chocolate” because it contains cocoa butter. However it’s just cocoa butter, powdered milk, sugar and
vanilla.
34. Do you make white chocolate?
We both purchase white chocolate and make white chocolate. The white chocolate we purchase is for our
truffle centers which require white chocolate. The white chocolate we make is specifically for our
pomegranate white chocolate truffle centers that we offer in the summer.
35. How do you flavor your truffle centers?
Our truffle centers are flavoured with all natural ingredients. For example, our orange truffle centers are
flavoured using the zest of navel oranges infused into the cream before it’s mixed. The same applies to our
key lime truffle center. For our raspberry truffle center, we simmer and reduce fresh raspberries, puree them,
and then filter out the seeds before mixing the reduction in with the cream. Where other chocolatiers use
“essential oils” we don’t. We use all natural ingredients.