Pod storage with roasting: A tool to diversifying the flavor profiles of dark chocolates produced from 'bulk' cocoa beans? (Part II: Quality and sensory profiling of chocolates).

The impact of pod storage (PS) and roasting temperature (RT) on the quality parameters and the sensory profiles of dark chocolates were evaluated. Dark chocolates (70%) from ten liquors of different PS and RT combinations as well as six liquors of different origins (Ecuador, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Madagascar, Venezuela and Vietnam) with variable genetic groups were produced under identical conditions and compared. To a greater extent, the range of chocolate quality attributes underscored the generally minimal effects of PS, RT and origin of liquor on the processing conditions. Although with a few exceptions, generally, chocolate acidity (pH and TA) decreased with increasing PS and vice versa in the case of RT. Furthermore, results from a balanced incomplete block design (BIBD) involving a 16-member expert panel also revealed the impact of the applied treatments (PS and RT) on the final flavor profiles of the chocolates irrespective of the origin or genetic groups of the cocoa beans. The same was confirmed when instrumental aroma results were correlated with the sensory data using partial least squares (PLS) regression models. Thus, this study demonstrates the possibility of creating diverse flavor profiles (even towards 'fine' flavor) from 'bulk' cocoa beans through an optimized combination of PS and RT. The findings are therefore expected to challenge the status-quo, especially in the way 'bulk' cocoa is currently processed and consequently priced, thereby, possibly fostering a win-win situation between cocoa producers and industries.

Pod storage with roasting: A tool to diversifying the flavor profiles of dark chocolates produced from 'bulk' cocoa beans? (part I: aroma profiling of chocolates).

The impact of pod storage (PS) and roasting temperature (RT) on the aroma profiles of dark chocolates were evaluated. Cocoa liquor samples comprised of ten different combinations of PS and RT, whilst keeping the roasting time fixed at 35 min. Additionally, commercial cocoa liquors from renowned origins (Ecuador, Madagascar, Venezuela, Vietnam, Ivory Coast and Ghana) were acquired for comparison. From these, 70% dark chocolates were produced under the same conditions after which they were subjected to headspace solid-phase microextraction-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (HS-SPME-GC-MS) analysis. Although both PS and RT were found to influence the aroma volatile concentrations, the impact of RT over PS seemed to be greater. An agglomerative hierarchical clustering (AHC) of all chocolates on the basis of their aroma profiles revealed a similar impact as earlier observed, where major clustering of the chocolates was in accordance with the intensity of the roasting process applied. However, within each group, the dissimilarities owing to PS among the chocolates was clearly depicted. Comparatively, chocolates with low (100-120 °C), instead of moderate to high (135-160 °C) RT's, rather showed a low dissimilarity with those from the commercial cocoa liquors of the different origins. Although from the same beans, the diversity of aroma profiles of these chocolates as well as the similitude of some treatments to some chocolates from commercial grade cocoa liquors, unequivocally underscores the possibility for steering diverse distinct flavors from 'bulk' cocoa through PS and roasting, with beneficial implications, both from an application and an economic point of view.