Bean To Bar Videos

Feb 8, 2023

When you step into the realm of bean-to-bar chocolate, you are confronted with flavours in chocolate you may have never expected. In this case, I’m talking specifically of plain single-origin dark or even milk chocolate. As those who have tried various fine chocolate bars made by artisan bean-to-bar makers, you will understand what I mean when I say your fine chocolate can taste nothing like chocolate at all. Fine chocolate has flavour that goes beyond just “cocoa” found in all commercial chocolate brands. The unique array of fruity, nutty, baked, woody notes found in fine single-origin chocolate come from the variety of cocoa bean used and how it was processed to make chocolate, not by adding vanilla or any “natural” or artificial flavour enhancers.

However, as artisan makers pop up around the world trying to make some of the best chocolate they can, some may produce chocolate that may contain less favorable flavours we refer to as off-notes. As a consumer, you may come across these off-putting notes. Sometimes they are subtle, and sometimes they are very prominent. Here I will discuss some of the major off-notes you normally do not want in a fine single-origin chocolate bar. You can also watch my YouTube video here as well if you wish.

Mold

Mold is an off flavour that you may find in dark chocolate. This doesn’t mean that the chocolate itself is moldy or has gone bad, but usually it is a case where the cocoa beans absorbed moldy aromas at some point before the chocolate making. Keep in mind that chocolate, especially plain dark chocolate, is a non-perishable food. Showpieces made of chocolate can exist for years, without being covered, and never go moldy. Some people assume it is the sugar in chocolate which preserves it, but this is not so. In fact, milk chocolate with high levels of sugar and lower amounts of cocoa are more likely to grow mold if left in wet damp areas. It is the high fat content as well as the tannins which inhibit mold and microorganism growth. Contrary to what people think about “cheap” chocolate, chocolate doesn’t actually need preservatives, as it is the preservative in a way. This is why nuts and cookies and wafers and dried fruits are covered with chocolate. Not only does it taste incredible, but it preserves the freshness, inhibits the oxidation of the fats in the nuts which may lead to them going rancid, keeps the cookies and wafers crisp and prevents them from going stale. Chocolate is pretty incredible in this way. So where then would these moldy off-flavours come from?

The mold likely grew on or near the cocoa beans if they were dried improperly or during when they were being stored at the site of where they were fermented and dried. This is most likely the case if your chocolate has a strong moldy flavour. Keep in mind that normally the flavour is usually quite prominent, and is obvious at the beginning and middle of tasting the chocolate.

Don’t confuse mold with very earthy tones such as mushroom, peat, wet woodsy aroma, etc. If the flavour you’re picking up is a slight earthy aftertaste that your brain decides on as blue cheese or mold like, this may not be a case of improper cocoa curing and actual moldy tones. This could just be what your brain has concluded, and this is especially true for new tasters who are not familiar with the deeper darker notes in fine chocolate.

Sour

Now if you are familiar with the world of fine chocolate you will know that many origins or bars can have a tart note to them. Now, sour/tartness is not really a flavour, but a tastant. Something you pick up in the mouth, and not an aroma induced flavour perception. However, most people conflate that and for simplicity sake I will do that here as well as it is a major factor in fine chocolate flavour.

Commercial chocolate manufacturers eliminate all or nearly all sourness in chocolate. This is one reason some people can’t appreciate fine chocolate, as the tart notes tend to be off-putting. Normally I use “tart” in a more favorable way suggesting slight sourness, and “sour “ in a more negative fashion. Fine chocolate should not be very sour. There are some chocolate brands and or bars that are extremely sour where you can actually feel the acidity go down your throat like drinking a sour drink or vinegar. This is not optimal.

Now, a little tartness does enhance the perception of fruity flavours in fine chocolate, or complements actually fruity notes in the bar. Some makers who conche their chocolate or prefer a more traditional European flavour profile usually aim for no tartness at all or very little. I will discuss the contentious issue of sour notes in chocolate in more depth another time.

So, where does this sourness come from? Mostly from the fermentation of the cocoa beans. Cocoa beans are fermented to reduce bitterness and astringency which is found in fresh cocoa beans. It also allows carbohydrates and proteins in the cocoa bean to break down in order for favorable aroma compounds to develop later, especially during roasting. During fermentation, the acetic acid and lactic acid bacteria do their business, much of which results in acidity. This acidity is usually evaporated at various stages including drying, roasting, and even refining. Very sour beans indicate that perhaps they were not dried properly. The taste of the fruit itself (which is part of the fermentation process) and any pre-treatments to the fruit (such as pressing juice out) may also greatly impact the level of acidity in the beans. If you are a chocolate maker, and you are using reputable cocoa beans that are not usually overly sour, but your chocolate tastes very sour, it could be that you have not roasted your cocoa beans enough or refined them long enough. Most beginners tend to under-roast and under-refine their chocolate (perhaps due to being impatient?).

Burnt

The burnt flavour can sometimes be confused for a burnt smokey flavour as well. Generally, if it taste burnt, it was likely that the cocoa beans were roasted too dark. Over roasting cocoa or even coffee beans is usually done to poor quality beans as a way to burn off the poor flavour components and mask it with that burnt flavour. However, if you are roasting your own beans for chocolate making, be sure not to roast over 300 degrees Fahrenheit. Normally between 255-265 Fahrenheit is a good range to start.

This burnt flavour might also come from a more smokey/burnt flavour which happens at the stage where the cocoa beans are dried, if dried artificially (not sundried). In some areas where cacao is grown, it can be very damp and rain a great deal which may not allow the cocoa beans to be sun dried as easily as regions which are more hot dry and sunny. Usually a wood burning oven directs heat by way of metal flutes to an area under where beans are spread out. Sometimes if the equipment is not sealed off or made well enough, the smoke from the oven can seep into the air and be absorbed by the drying beans. Although this is more of a “smoke” flavour, it may lead you and others to think “burnt” such as a burning cigarette or burning wood.

Also keep in mind that a lighter flavour profile of “toasted” like a well toasted crust of break, or a slight smokiness in a more favorable way such as a smokey incense is not necessarily an off-flavour, and can really be enjoyable and add great character to the overall flavour profile of the chocolate. Higher percentage bars (75%+) tend to bring out these heavy toasted and smokey notes as well.

Hammy

A hammy flavour is something which someone tastes the way ham smells, and not in a positive way. I often encourage people to enjoy their fine dark chocolates on a charcuterie board with various cured meats and cheeses, as it can pair quite nicely. However, this is not the hammy flavour I am suggesting. Thankfully you likely won’t encounter this off-flavour very much. It is something usually caught at the chocolate maker’s stage, and is a flavour that is imparted to the cocoa bean usually as a result of over fermentation. Isobutyric acid is something that may be overdeveloped during fermentation, which likely adds to this hammy flavour. This is likely something a chocolate maker may pick up in a bad batch of beans, or if they were fermenting their own cacao beans, but not likely a taster would pick up or experience as it would be (hopefully) caught before it reaches you!

Cheesy / Putrid

Again, this is an off-flavour that usually is developed due to over fermentation. Butanoic acid and propanoic acid are a couple culprits of this. These compounds may be found in most cacao beans after fermentation, but like the hammy notes, it is the high concentration of them that will lead to these detectable off-flavours. This is thankfully also not a flavour I come across too often, and it can also be a bit subjective believe it or not. For instance, did you know that many of the aroma compounds that give our under arms, sweaty socks, and sweaty feet that “smell” are also the exact same compounds found in cheese, butter, and other dairy products? The same aroma compounds in different instances can illicit very different responses form us as either disgust or delicious.

Now back to chocolate. There are some single origin dark and milk chocolate bars that may suggest a sort of cheese or dairy like flavour. Not putrid, but your brain may definitely go towards the cheese and dairy. I often ask tasters if this impression was favorable or not, and usually they say “no, it’s cheesy in a good way”. However, there are those (usually those who have very specific expectations of chocolate) who find it cheesy but in an unfavorable way.

So, there is some flexibility there when it comes to finding favorable vs unfavorable cheesy notes. However, very strong blue cheese, cheese, and especially more “putrid” flavours is not favorable and usually a sign that the cocoa beans were not cured optimally.

Fermented / Barn

Fermentation is crucial to flavour development in cocoa beans and important for chocolate which tastes robust, profound, and interesting. However, although fermentation is important to flavour development, it also leads to many unfavorable compounds. Normally, these compounds are dried, roasted, and refined away before the finish product hits the shelf. However, in some cases if the cocoa beans were fermented improperly or over-fermented, there may be a deep lasting “barn” or “fermented” taste. When I say barn, I mean more how a barn smells. Since flavour incorporates aroma, we can associate “flavours” to things we have only smelled.

You do find a slight fermented taste in fine chocolate often enough. Some makers (especially conche users) or those more traditional may reject any ferment flavour as favorable. I can understand that, and I will speak more on this another time. However, a slight ferment can lead the taster to think of favorable ferment foods depend on the other aromas in the chocolate. For instance, it may lead them to think of rum, yogurt, or wine! Not too bad, huh?

Metallic / Medicinal

This is a flavour I absolutely detest. And sometimes I find it in very good quality bars where I actually love the overall flavour, but this slight medicinal or metallic element just ruins it for me. Think of medicinal as medications you were forced to take as a child, or perhaps if you ever chewed a ibuprofen pill before swallowing it. You’ll remember that there is an element of bitterness as well. I find that these metallic and medicinal off-notes are usually found in chocolate that have this underlying IPA Beer or bitter melon “bitter” flavour (taste) to it. You may disagree with me if you are a seasoned taster, but I find that certain bitter (not just intense) undertones tend to be more likely to elicit this metallic/medicinal flavour perception.

Keep in mind that cocoa beans or many seeds want to be bitter in a way. Bitter seeds means herbivores will not swallow and consume the seeds of the tree, and rather disperse them so new trees can grow. There can be fine cacao beans that haver very interesting flavour but unfortunately have a certain set or amount of alkaloids that can’t be removed and ahve this bitter/metallic/medicinal note to it. Again, like burnt, you will normally find this in 75% or higher bars.

You may think that this type of chocolate is very dark with high tannins and very bitter. There is a fine chocolate bar made by a reputable maker. This bar is a high 70% range bar, and is so light in colour you may be food to think it is a milk chocolate. It looks even lighter than most “dark milk” bars I carry. It has wonderful flavour, but it does finish with this bitter/metallic note at the end which unfortunately ruins it for me. Keep in mind, that if you are someone who devours bitter foods regularly, your body may not pick up on this note as strongly, and you may actually not be bothered by it. Keep in mind that there are various types of bitter receptors, not just one. As well, different people detect bitterness differently as well, and then there is also the built tolerance of it from those who enjoy it.

Conclusion

These are not all but some of the more prominent off-flavours found in some bean-to-bar chocolate. Sometimes it is due to what occurred during the curing stage of the cocoa beans, or what the chocolate maker did or did not do during the chocolate making process. Some flavour notes are bit more contentious and can be argued as either not as bad as I stated, or much worse. This is where subjectivity begins to blur the lines of what is high quality chocolate and what is lower quality bean-to-bar chocolate. The point of this article and the video is not to suggest what you should or should not enjoy in fine chocolate (some may enjoy a little ferment or cheesy note), but to make you aware of what may be a flavour note that is not usually desirable, and also make you aware of the sort of flavours to be aware of when you are either making chocolate or tasting chocolate.

Off-Flavours In Bean-To-Bar Chocolate