A guide on how to taste the little slice of heaven – ‘chocolates’

September 23rd, 2016

This particular type of food is derived from cocoa, but from the journey to cocoa and finally becoming our most beloved chocolatesis a long and a tough one. But hey it’s worth it! I bet the best job among all who helps the cocoa to become chocolate is obviously that of the chocolate tasters. Nothing can be better as a paid job. Let us take a look at how we can make our chocolate loving taste buds to a more serious chocolate tasting connoisseur’s buds.

Here is your ultimate guide to understand the flavours, aromasand various textures of your ultimate beloved chocolate:

  • First start by tasting with all your senses.

Visual

Look at the colour of the chocolate well. It should tend toward the reddish brown shade as that is the indicator of good quality. The finish should be glossy not matte.

Aroma

Next comes the aroma, which is very important for chocolate tasting. A maximum part of chocolate tasting depends on how you can understand the smell well. Always look for a rich smell. You should be able to detect other smells from the chocolate like smells of spices, fruits, flowers, nuts, etc. depending on what ingredients or flavours are put into it. Some chocolates smell like medicine which indicates it is of a very low-grade.

So next time send some chocolates by post to your friends and family for some fun loving smelling experiment. Plus, it will be a bonus gift for them.

Sound

The chocolate should make a snap sound when you break the piece. This sound also depends on the amount of cocoa present on the chocolate.

Taste

Take bites slowly and the flavourswill reveal themselves slowly to you. Always take a deep breath while you let the chocolateslowly melt inside your mouth. This helps in proper understanding of the flavours present. There should be no grainy feeling when you bite it. As cocoa butter melts at body temperature the chocolate should melt right after tasting it and should not take much time. There should be a buttery and creamy taste after it starts melting. Try to identify the bitter sweetness as it melts. Try to recognize if there is any floral, fruity, spicy, woody or nutty taste in the chocolate. Do not rush in the beginning as chocolate tasting takes a lot of time to develop.

  • Wait for some time between tasting different samples so that the previous flavour goes away.
  • Drink some water in between samples to clear away residual chocolate form your palate. Sparkling water can help you in cleaning your mouth.
  • Clean your mouth well before beginning any tasting session.
  • You can use apple or bread for cleaning your palate of lingering flavours from your last meal.
  • Always ensure that the chocolate is not very cold and keep it for some time in the room temperature before tasting.

This was your basic guide to chocolate tasting. Now go and start tasting with your friends and family and those of who are staying away from loved ones can also share this experience with them.Just send chocolates to them via online gift companies.