Route two for Liquor

Chocolate is the combination of the roasted ground kernel of the cacao bean, the principle part of which is cocoa butter which is the fat released when the bean is ground, and sugar. Chocolate may also contain lecithin, a natural emulsifier and flavours such as vanilla, and in the case of milk chocolate, milk solids.

A really good chocolate, often referred to as plain, bitter bittersweet, or dark couverture, made with a quality bean and a modest amount of sugar, is one of the world’s greatest natural ingredients, and, like a fine wine, the better the grape and the love invested, the better the wine, so it is the same for chocolate. For its quality and character, chocolate very much depends on the variety of the cacao bean, its geographical source, the way it has been cultivated and the methods employed to make the bean into chocolate. Thus a high cocoa content alone is not the answer to a good chocolate - necessarily. The answer lies in the bean.