science
Cacao of Excellence Program Creates Global Standard for Evaluating Cocoa Beans
A laboratory in Perugia, Italy, processes and tastes cacao from around the world using identical methods to highlight genetic differences in flavor. The program, started in 2009, now reaches several thousand producers daily and has helped farms in Thailand and Peru increase visibility and sales.
May 10, 10:07 AM·3m read1 source
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At a laboratory inside the Chocolate Experience Museum in Perugia, Italy, cacao beans from distant farms undergo identical processing to reveal their distinct flavors. Julien Simonis, Programme Manager for Cacao of Excellence, tasted chocolate made from beans that originated in Hawaii and described a boost of acidity, fruitiness, and hints of cardamom and nutmeg.
When he sampled chocolate from cacao harvested on a Peruvian farm, he noted a flavor of raisins that gives way to nuttiness.
"It's extremely creamy," Simonis says. The two chocolates tasted by Julien Simonis were processed and prepared identically in Perugia. Cacao has an incredible amount of genetic variety, Simonis stated.
Fresh cacao pods can be vibrant shades of red, orange, yellow and green and come in all shapes and sizes. Once dried, cacao pods are brown. The Cacao of Excellence program was started in 2009 by the Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT.
The program developed a standardized way of preparing and evaluating cacao. NPR reported that the standardized processing of cacao for the Cacao of Excellence program takes place at a lab inside the Chocolate Experience Museum in Perugia, Italy. The Cacao of Excellence laboratory is housed within the Chocolate Experience Museum in Perugia, Italy, which allows visitors to observe the work firsthand.
Lab assistant Julia Butac is from the Philippines. Julia Butac slices 50 cacao beans in half nearly simultaneously using a guillotine-like tool and records impressions on a spreadsheet. The laboratory evaluation includes smelling, inspecting halved cocoa beans, and recording fermentation levels, aromatic potential, or internal defects.
