Chocolate Making Process

SoChatti is crafted and packaged to preserve the flavors lost during traditional chocolate manufacturing. Traditionally, beans are roasted, shells are removed, nibs are ground, the resulting liquor is tempered, and the chocolate is molded to become a bar, bite, ball, whatever brand standards the maker is dealing with. Our chocolate making process follows six key steps, each of which contributes to the creation and preservation of the flavor and texture of our chocolate.

What’s different about the SoChatti process? We don’t employ the last two steps of traditional chocolate making. Why? Chocolate is considered a polymorph and can take on different shapes when it solidifies. Chocolate makers are able to manipulate the crystal structure of solid chocolate, to create the desired form. However, desired form does not result in desired flavor. The cooling and reheating of raw chocolate is where much of the flavor complexity of chocolate is lost. So, we don’t do it.

How is (real) Chocolate made?

The process of making Sochatti chocolate can be broken down into six steps: sourcing ingredients, producing cacao nibs, roasting, grinding, packaging, and cleaning.

Sourcing ingredients

We’re committed to creating a more sustainable supply chain by working with suppliers around the world to provide reasonable working wages and aid growing economies in cacao rich regions. ADDITIONAL INFO WE MAY WANT TO ADD AROUND SOURCING?

Producing cacao nibs

The process of producing cacao nibs and preparing them for roasting has its own set of detailed steps: sorting, flash roasting, chopping, and winnowing.

Roasting

In order to cultivate and mature the true, complex flavors of chocolate, our roasting follows a precise process of analysis, roasting, and quenching.

Grinding

After roasting, ingredients are combined in the SoChatti grinder where they are continuously cold ground for almost 24 hours. The combination will first be made into a chocolate liquor to release the natural oils and aromas found in the beans. As these natural oils begin to coat the particles, the sugar and cocoa butter are added. After nearly 60 hours of continuous grinding, smooth, aromatic SoChatti is ready for filtering and outgassing.

Packaging

Our packaging process is what keeps our flavors rich and pure. First, the chocolate is removed from the grinder and strained through a fine-mesh sieve to filter out any unground ingredients. The outgassing process is next, where SoChatti is placed in a vacuum cleaner while the pressure is decreased nearly 100 times. This extracts all of the microscopic air bubbles that may degrade the flavor over time and adjusts the acidity of the chocolate to the artisan’s preference. SoChatti is immediately bagged after the outgassing to preserve flavors until you are ready to enjoy. SoChatti is forced under high pressure through a 5-millimeter nozzle to fill each pouch in less than 12 seconds. SOMETHING WE WANT TO ADD HERE ABOUT KEEPING IT FROM BEING EXPOSED TO AIR?

Cleaning

WHAT HAPPENS HERE?

That’s How SoChatti’s Made

We get it. That was a lot. And for the curious mind, you’ll want to understand exactly how this works. Don’t worry, we’ve broken down each of these steps in our comprehensive process guide.