"It is dark as the AlChemist walks along the corridor, rough stone under his feet, air warmed from well smoldering hearth fires stirring his cowl. He opens a hewn timber door, worn smooth at the threshold over years of use. He breaths deeply the comforting smells of this laboratory. Hints of wood and smoke linger in the air from the last time he roasted raw materials for his elixirs. Another smell, heady and almost intoxicating, brings a smile to his face as he remembers the smell wafting up as he was last grinding his pastes and powders. He looks about. Everything is in place. The roasting drum is cool in the hearth. The mortars and pestles are laid out neat and tidy, only a small amount of deep brown paste marring their finish. The cracking mill is sitting ready, waiting for the next batch to be crushed fresh out of the roaster. It is time to begin his magic, his devotion, his passion, his Alchemy, yet again. He prepares himself for the work ahead. The roasting, the cracking, the winnowing, the grinding, the mixing. The transformation of base materials into something more than they were. The transformation of cocoa beans to chocolate, the work of Chocolate Alchemy."

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Chocolate Making 101

March 20th, 2008

My dear partner Penelope put this together, noting that so far there is not one single page outlining the entire chocolate making procedure start to finish.  Well, now there is.
Chocolate Making at Home 101
It won’t give you everything you need in detail (hence the ‘101′) but gives a great overview.  For all the detailed […]

Filed under: Products, Cocoa Beans, Roasting, Refining & Conching, Grinding, Cracking & Winnowing, Alchemist's Musings, Tempering | 6 Comments »

12th Night, tortes and the aztecs

January 7th, 2008

How’s that for a title?
I celebrated 12th night last night (secular form actually) and for dessert I prepared a fresh Tabasco (bean of course) based flourless torte - just to die for.   I thought I would share both parts.
69% Dark Tabasco chocolate - 6.25 lbs
5 lbs of Tabasco cocoa
5 oz  Natural cocoa butter
30 oz […]

Filed under: Products, Cocoa Beans, Roasting, Refining & Conching, What's new & Updates, Grinding, Cracking & Winnowing, Alchemist's Musings | 3 Comments »

Behmor 1600 now in stock

November 15th, 2007

Our stock of Behmor 1600’s are now in stock and all pre-orders have been shipped out.  I opened up and tested a couple units and there were as expected.  They now have a new clasp on the drum that I like quite a bit.  Much more secure.  I will get a photo up this weekend.
You […]

Filed under: Products, Roasting, What's new & Updates | No Comments »

Behmor 1600 almost here

November 12th, 2007

We have word that the newest (and ONLY) cocoa roaster has landed. We should have our stock tomorrow and all pre-orders will go out a day after that. I want to open a couple up, try them out, kick the tires and make sure everything is just like the pre-production models I tested. […]

Filed under: Products, Roasting, What's new & Updates, Alchemist's Musings | 3 Comments »

Behmor 1600 Gourmet Coffee AND COCOA Roaster

October 20th, 2007

We have finally received word that the first production run Behmor 1600 has been completed and the first container is on the way. As a Distributor, we have been given permission to begin accepting pre-orders. If you wish to place the order, please do so only for only the Behmor or only for items […]

Filed under: Roasting, What's new & Updates | 9 Comments »

Behmor 1600 for roasting cocoa

July 10th, 2007

I have now been testing out the Behmor 1600 coffee roaster for about 3 weeks now. I tried out both coffee & cocoa and it is doing a good job. When it becomes available (end of August?) we should have units for sale. But before we get too far into how it […]

Filed under: Roasting | 1 Comment »

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