PUNTOITALY N°2 - July - December 2012

THE ITALIAN MAGAZINE FOR INTERNATIONAL BUYERS IN GELATO, PASTRY AND TRENDY FOOD-AND-DRINK 61 CRIOLLO The Criollo variety is found mainly in Mexico, Colombia and Venezuela. It is very delicate but not widely used even if its flavour is particularly strong and aromatic. Pure Criollo is rarely found, but it is often used in mixtures to help improve the aroma of other less aromatic cocoa beans. FORESTERO Its tree is much stronger than the Criollo one, and is the most harvested in the world. It grows naturally from Amazon Rio to Orinoco river up to Guyana. It can also be found in Africa even if its quality is a little lower than the South American one. TRINITARIO It is the mix of both, it has got the aroma of the Criollo and the strength of the Forestero. It origi- nally came from Trinidad and now is harvested in Latin America, Sry Lanka and Indonesia. HARVEST Part of the final aroma is formed during the early stages of the production. Cocoa pods are harvested by cutting them from the tree using a machete, or by knocking them off the tree using a stick. It is important to harvest the pods when they are fully ripe be- cause if the pod is unripe, the beans will have a low cocoa butter content, or there will be insufficient sugars in the white pulp for fermentation, result- ing in a weak flavor. The cocoa pod is similar to a rugby ball and is not heavier than 1 kg, usually less. Every pod, containing inside between 20 and 30 beans, is opened after the harvest and all the cocoa beans are re- moved. The beans with their surrounding pulp are placed in piles or bins, allowing access to microor- ganisms so that fermentation of the pectin-containing ma- terial can begin. This treatment is particularly important because at this stage the most part of the aroma is formed and the cocoa gives its imprint to the final chocolate. Chocolate: a wonderful concentration of flavour and technology.