Where do cacao beans get their flavour?

Beautiful aromatic cacao beans from Nicaragua. People always assume “terroir” such as soil and climate of where the cacao grows is what makes the flavour so wonderful. Truth is, terroir is a marketing term that has very little to no basis in any science, especially in regards to cacao.

What we do have is tons of research on these factors which we know definitely impact the flavour of our cacao in a big way:

  • Genetics of the cacao bean itself and the building blocks of carbohydrates and proteins present

  • The flavour of the fruit. Very underestimated, but the flavour of the fruit will impact the flavour of the fermenting seed. If the fruit is bland and sour, the seed will not absorb any wonderful aromas

  • Fermentation of the cacao (the species of yeasts/bacteria, how the yeasts and bacteria are controlled through time and temperature)

  • Roasting of the cacao. The temperature, time, and humidity of roasting cocoa beans is very crucial to flavour development. Various roasts will impact which aroma molecules are formed, not formed, or formed and then baked off.

  • Refining. Even without a conche (which isn’t necessary to produce incredible flavour), refining has a profound impact on the overall flavour of the chocolate. This is where the factors of genetics, fermentation, and roasting all come together for one final competition of what the overall flavour of the chocolate will be. Next to the fruit flavour of the cacao, the refining is also very underestimated in regards to flavour production. The flavour of the chocolate from 12 or 24 hours can sometimes by extremely different from the flavour of the chocolate refined for 48 or 72 hours. If you are a new chocolate maker, you need to play around with refining time just as much or more than the roasting of the cacao. You may be surprised.

  • Soil and climate - we have little to no research to support the idea, or understand what the mechanisms are that support this theory. This is a theory (in regards to chocolate and cacao) that has been around for over 100 years, and only now are researchers trying to tackle it. Truth is, the studies on this essentially just state that cacao from this area tastes different than the cacao from that area. They don’t control for genetics (of the variety or the individual trees which can very greatly in the same plantation), they don’t control for species of yeasts/bacteria, nor do they make any attempt to transplant trees or seedlings from one “terroir” to another. Although I don’t doubt that climate and soil definitely impact a growing plant or tree, the importance of it in regards to flavour of the cacao and chocolate is grossly overestimated. Do the research yourself, and you will see.

Geoseph