Taza Chocolate

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Taza Chocolate
Private
Industry Food and Confectionery Manufacturers
Founded 2005
Founders Alex Whitmore, Kathleen Fulton, and Larry Slotnick[1]
Headquarters Somerville, Massachusetts, USA
Products Stone Ground Origin Bars, Amaze Bars, Chocolate Mexicano Discs, Chocolate Covered Treats, Tazitos Minibars, Baking Products
Website www.tazachocolate.com

Taza Chocolate is a Mexican-inspired stoneground, organic chocolate manufacturer based in Somerville, MA, USA. The factory was founded by Alex Whitmore in 2005 and is home to over 40 different products that can be found in 2,800 retail stores across the country. [2]

File:Various Taza Chocolates.jpg
Samples at Taza Chocolate Factory

History

Alex Whitmore founded Taza Chocolate in 2005 after a trip to Oaxaca, Mexico where he first encountered stone ground chocolate. He learned from a molinero in Oaxaca authentic Mexican techniques, such as how to grow cacao beans and how to hand-carve granite millstones. The first batch of Taza Chocolate was created in Whitmore’s kitchen, using simple and traditional Mexican processes with stone mills.

After building out a factory space in Somerville, Massachusetts in 2006, Whitmore acquired a mix of traditional and vintage machinery, including stone mills from Oaxaca, an Italian winnover from Dominican Republic, and a Barth Sirocco roaster from Italy.[3] The cacao beans were initially bought from brokers, but Whitmore later traveled through Central and South America and the Caribbean in search of farmers who could work directly with him. Whitmore and his co-founder and wife, Kathleen Fulton, have maintained a Direct Trade relationship with every cacao grower from where they source the cacao beans.

Taza Chocolate is sold across the United States and in certain countries abroad.

Direct Trade Process

Taza Chocolate uses Certified USDA Organic, non-GMO cacao that grow directly from the trunk and branches of cacao tree. These are located in the ‘Cocoa Belt,’ a range of land 20 degrees north and south of the equator. Most of this cacao comes from the Dominican Republic, Belize, and Bolivia. During the harvest, farmers cut the pods from the tree and collect them in pules where they are cracked open and the beans and fruit removed. After being removed from the forest, cacao beans go through a fermentation process. The mass of beans and fruit is packed in large wooden boxes arranged in three levels and last over six to seven days to ferment. The beans start fermenting on the top level, and after two days, the contents are agitated and transferred to the second level. The process finishes when the cacao reaches the ground level, or when acidity and residual sugars have reached desired levels. After being fermented, the beans go through a process of drying that takes up to eight days. Within this process, the beans are spread out to dry on large wooden decks, which helps excess moisture and undesired acids evaporate. Once dry, the beans are then packed into sacks and shipped to the Taza Chocolate factory.

File:Taza Chocolate Winnow Machine.jpg
European Winnow Machine used in the Taza Chocolate Factory

Once the cacao beans reach the factory, they are taken to the roasting room, where the beans are lightly roasted at approximately 235°F. In this stage, the beans are dried, they loose their shells and they start developing flavor. The winnowing machine separates the shell, or chaff, from the cacao nib. This is achieved by breaking the roasted cacao beans while a ventilator draws the less dense shell away leaving the cacao nibs behind. The nibs are ground in Molinos, Mexican stone mills from Oaxaca, Mexico. The millstones in the Molinos turn the cacao nibs into a graniy paste called cocoa liquor. The cacao liquor is transferred from the Molinos into a mixing tank where it is combined with cane sugar and any other flavor.[4]

The last stage is tempering, which refers to the precise raising, lowering, and raising of the temperature of liquid chocolate.[5] The tempering machine heats and cools the chocolate to create a specific crystal structure, ensuring that the chocolate has a higher melting point. The tempered chocolate is pumped into depositors which doses it into moulds. These are then placed onto a vibratory table to evenly distribute the chocolate, remove air bubbles, and be conveyed to a cooling room to solidify.

Once solid, Taza Chocolates are wrapped and packed into recyclable boxes that are then shipped around the country.

Products

File:Taza Chocolate Discs.jpg
Taza Chocolate Oaxacan Sampler Discs

Taza sells a variety of chocolates in bars and discs, including:[6]

The Amaze Bars: Stone ground chocolate combined with other flavors

  • Wicked Dark
  • Cacao Nib Crunch
  • Coco Besos Coconut
  • Raspberry Nib Crunch
  • Sea Salt Almond
  • Toffee, Almond & Sea Salt

Chocolate Covered Treats: Almonds, cashews, hazelnuts, and cacao nibs covered in stone ground dark chocolate

Gifts and Collections: Packaged gifts

  • Oaxacan Sampler
  • Chocolate Mexicano Sampler
  • Chocolate Mexicano Classic Collection
  • Spiked Eggnog

Chocolate Mexicano Discs: Rustic, organic dark Mexican style chocolate discs

  • Cacao Puro
  • 85% Super Dark
  • Chipotle Chili
  • Cinnamon
  • Coffee
  • Guajillo Chili
  • Salted Almond
  • Vanilla
File:Taza Chocolate products.jpg
Taza Chocolates

Origin Bars: Minimally processed stone ground bar

  • 60% Dark Dominican Republic
  • 70% Dark Dominican Republic
  • 77% Dark Belize
  • 80% Dark Dominican Republic
  • 87% Dark Bolivia

Tazito Minibars: Crispy brown rice paired with 65% dark chocolate

  • Almond Crunch
  • Coconut Crunch
  • Crispy Crunch
  • Hazelnut Crunch

Awards and honors

See also

References

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External links

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