How to Tell If It's Good
Chocolate
(and the Secrets to Eating It and Storing It)
| July/August 2000
Chocolate from the super market. Chocolate from the vending machine. Chocolate served in a restaurant. Chocolate from Romolos. Is there a difference among chocolates? Just like experiencing a fine wine or excellent meal, the experience of good chocolate is heavenly. It can be described this way: To see it, the chocolate should be glossy and unblemished. To touch it, good chocolate should “snap” cleanly when you break it, not crumble or bend. To smell it, fresh chocolate should smell chocolaty. Elaine Gonzalez explains in her book The Art of Chocolate, “If it doesn’t smell chocolaty, it probably won’t taste very chocolaty either. Stale chocolate often smells bland. Chocolate that is stored near any odor will absorb it quickly, like a sponge. Never buy chocolate that is shelved near tea, coffee, fertilizer, or anything else aromatic.” To taste it, good chocolate will begin to melt immediately in your mouth. It should be smooth and velvety, not grainy. Gonzalez asks, “As the chocolate melts, does it taste sweet, bitter, burnt, rancid vanillalike, or simply delicious? If you like how it tastes, your opinion is as valid as anybody else’s.” What should you drink while eating chocolate? In The Cook’s Guide to Chocolate, authors Christine McFadden and Christine France suggest coffee, cognac, whisky or bourbon when eating chocolate after a meal. “Professional chocolate tasters swear by a glass of cold, fresh water,” they conclude, “as it not only quenches the thirst but also cleanses the palate.” McFadden and France say it is best to eat chocolate on an empty stomach when the chocolate’s temperature is between 66 and 77 degrees Fahrenheit. For plain chocolate, they recommend letting the chocolate “sit in your mouth for a few moments to release its primary flavours and aromas. Then chew it five to ten times to release the secondary aromas. Let it rest lightly against the roof of your mouth so that you experience the full range of flavours. Finally, enjoy the lingering tastes in your mouth.” (We think this is a fine and dandy way to experience chocolate, but wouldn’t blame anybody for eating it anytime, anywhere, any way they pleased.) Heat, humidity and odors can all change the appearance and taste of chocolate. Chocolate is best stored at 60 to 75 degrees Fahrenheit in an odor-free place away from heat and sunlight. The humidity of your storage place should be no more than 50 percent. Chocolate that has been exposed to fluctuating temperatures and/or humidity will “bloom,” showing a grayish surface. In hot climates without air conditioning, you can store chocolate in an airtight container in the refrigerator.According to Gonzalez, under these optimum conditions, dark chocolate will keep at least one year, milk chocolate up to 10 months and white chocolate up to 8 months. Enjoy! |
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