Bean to Barstool

A lot of my listeners come to this podcast from the craft chocolate world, and given how complicated and overwhelming beer can be, I want to make sure you all get to enjoy the beer-related parts of Bean to Barstool to the fullest. Today we’re going to look at the ingredients and processes of brewing and some frequently asked questions about beer, which will hopefully make the beer conversations we have on this show make more sense and be even more enjoyable. Grab a beer and listen in!

Today we’re going to demystify beer by talking about beer ingredients, brewing processes, and frequently asked questions. This will hopefully make beer easy to understand for the chocolate lovers who listen to this show, or anyone who wants to better understand this beverage without being talked over, or talked down to. Some of this will sound complicated at first, but we’ll go through it step by step!

If you're thinking about pursuing a Cicerone certification, you can check out The Beer Scholar at thebeerscholar.com. They're resources for the levels 1 & 2 exams have helped thousands pass their exams, and they're about to announce their new Advanced Cicerone Coaching Program. I wish this had existed when I sat for my Ac exam!

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In today's episode of Bean to Barstool Bite Sized we talk with Emily Stone of Uncommon Cacao, one of the leading companies providing ethically and traceably sourced cacao for bean to bar chocolate makers. Emily talks about the process of beginning a relationship with a new partner at origin and her desire for transparency in cacao sourcing to be a two way street between farmers and makers.

Emily Stone is the Founder and CEO of Uncommon Cacao, a group of Transparent Trade cacao operations including Maya Mountain Cacao (Belize), Cacao Verapaz (Guatemala), and Uncommon offices in the U.S. and Europe. Emily spent 2010-2017 living in Belize and Guatemala developing the specialty cacao value chain operations and working directly with producers. Now based in the U.S., Emily leads Uncommon Cacao's work supplying delicious, high quality, transparently-sourced cacao from 12+ countries for hundreds of craft and premium chocolate makers globally. Emily is an Ashoka Fellow and Unreasonable Fellow, and a recipient of the FCIA Recognition of Excellence in Outstanding Contribution at Origin in Sustainability of Fine Chocolate.

You can follow Uncommon Cacao on Instagram and Facebook.

You can listen to our full interview with Emily here.

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In today's episode of Bean to Barstool Bite Sized we talk with Emily Stone of Uncommon Cacao, one of the leading companies providing ethically and traceably sourced cacao for bean to bar chocolate makers. Emily talks about the process of beginning a relationship with a new partner at origin and her desire for transparency in cacao sourcing to be a two way street between farmers and makers.

Emily Stone is the Founder and CEO of Uncommon Cacao, a group of Transparent Trade cacao operations including Maya Mountain Cacao (Belize), Cacao Verapaz (Guatemala), and Uncommon offices in the U.S. and Europe. Emily spent 2010-2017 living in Belize and Guatemala developing the specialty cacao value chain operations and working directly with producers. Now based in the U.S., Emily leads Uncommon Cacao's work supplying delicious, high quality, transparently-sourced cacao from 12+ countries for hundreds of craft and premium chocolate makers globally. Emily is an Ashoka Fellow and Unreasonable Fellow, and a recipient of the FCIA Recognition of Excellence in Outstanding Contribution at Origin in Sustainability of Fine Chocolate.

You can follow Uncommon Cacao on Instagram and Facebook.

You can listen to our full interview with Emily here.

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In this episode David Nilsen talks with Arron Liu of Chocobien in Hong Kong. Chocobien is a bean to bar chocolate company that produces many truly unique bars that employ flavors and ingredients from other artisan food and beverage segments, including beer, whiskey, coffee, sake, tea, and more.

Arron talks about the ideas behind these bars, the partnerships and processes that went into their development, and the satisfaction this curious and creative maker finds in achieving the flavors he could only hold in his imagination at the start of each experiment.

You can find out more about Chocobien on their website.

You can preorder Issue 01 of Final Gravity here, or support the project on Patreon.

The music for this episode is by indie folk musician Anna ps. You can find out more about Anna’s music in the show notes or at her website annapsmusic.com, where you can also get in touch to book her to play at your brewery or other establishment.

Arron Liu has been an ice cream and chocolate chef for over 20 years. He founded Chocobien Chocolate on 2009, dedicated to bean to bar chocolate production in Hong Kong. He enjoys the result of tough journeys of experimentation to explore the flavors of bean to bar chocolate.

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In this episode David Nilsen talks with Arron Liu of Chocobien in Hong Kong. Chocobien is a bean to bar chocolate company that produces many truly unique bars that employ flavors and ingredients from other artisan food and beverage segments, including beer, whiskey, coffee, sake, tea, and more.

Arron talks about the ideas behind these bars, the partnerships and processes that went into their development, and the satisfaction this curious and creative maker finds in achieving the flavors he could only hold in his imagination at the start of each experiment.

You can find out more about Chocobien on their website.

You can preorder Issue 01 of Final Gravity here, or support the project on Patreon.

The music for this episode is by indie folk musician Anna ps. You can find out more about Anna’s music in the show notes or at her website annapsmusic.com, where you can also get in touch to book her to play at your brewery or other establishment.

Arron Liu has been an ice cream and chocolate chef for over 20 years. He founded Chocobien Chocolate on 2009, dedicated to bean to bar chocolate production in Hong Kong. He enjoys the result of tough journeys of experimentation to explore the flavors of bean to bar chocolate.

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In this episode of Bean to Barstool Bite Sized, we spend about 5 minutes with Hazel Lee, the creator of Taste with Colour: The Chocolate Tasting Flavor Map. The map allows people to use color to identify flavors, and Hazel talks about how this process can be beneficial to folks of all levels of tasting experience, and why no one should feel intimidated when sharing their own tasting impressions.

You can follow Hazel on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.

You can listen to my full conversation with Hazel here.

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In this episode of Bean to Barstool Bite Sized, we spend about 5 minutes with Hazel Lee, the creator of Taste with Colour: The Chocolate Tasting Flavor Map. The map allows people to use color to identify flavors, and Hazel talks about how this process can be beneficial to folks of all levels of tasting experience, and why no one should feel intimidated when sharing their own tasting impressions.

You can follow Hazel on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.

You can listen to my full conversation with Hazel here.

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Many people don’t realize chocolate is a fermented food. Before we can make chocolate from cacao, that cacao has to undergo a fermentation process. This process is usually spontaneous, meaning the microbiotic cultures that carry out the fermentation are not manually added to the fermentation substrate but instead occur naturally. That doesn’t mean it’s a hands off process. A great deal of knowledge and expertise both traditional and technical is required to yield the best results.

In this episode we take a deep dive into cacao fermentation with Sarah Bharath. Sarah works with cacao farmers in Trinidad & Tobago on behalf of Meridian Cacao, assisting them in improving their farming and post-harvest processes. Sarah is both a passionate advocate for cacao farmers and an inquisitive researcher whose curiosity drives her enthusiasm for always learning more about this fascinating crop. Today we talk all about the cacao fermentation process, how the variables of that process impact the flavors of chocolate, and how climate change is forcing farmers and scientists to constantly adapt to new realities.

It’s interesting to note is that some of the same microorganisms we see in the beer world are also involved in fermenting cacao, such as Saccharomyces Cerevisiae (ale yeast), Lactobacillus (often used when brewing sour beer styles), and Acetobacter (which subtly influences the fermentation of Flanders sour ales). Additionally, the fermentation itself is spontaneous, similar to the fermentation of Lambic and other wild ale styles.

You can sign up for the Slow Pour email newsletter here.

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Many people don’t realize chocolate is a fermented food. Before we can make chocolate from cacao, that cacao has to undergo a fermentation process. This process is usually spontaneous, meaning the microbiotic cultures that carry out the fermentation are not manually added to the fermentation substrate but instead occur naturally. That doesn’t mean it’s a hands off process. A great deal of knowledge and expertise both traditional and technical is required to yield the best results.

In this episode we take a deep dive into cacao fermentation with Sarah Bharath. Sarah works with cacao farmers in Trinidad & Tobago on behalf of Meridian Cacao, assisting them in improving their farming and post-harvest processes. Sarah is both a passionate advocate for cacao farmers and an inquisitive researcher whose curiosity drives her enthusiasm for always learning more about this fascinating crop. Today we talk all about the cacao fermentation process, how the variables of that process impact the flavors of chocolate, and how climate change is forcing farmers and scientists to constantly adapt to new realities.

It’s interesting to note is that some of the same microorganisms we see in the beer world are also involved in fermenting cacao, such as Saccharomyces Cerevisiae (ale yeast), Lactobacillus (often used when brewing sour beer styles), and Acetobacter (which subtly influences the fermentation of Flanders sour ales). Additionally, the fermentation itself is spontaneous, similar to the fermentation of Lambic and other wild ale styles.

You can sign up for the Slow Pour email newsletter here.

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In this episode of Bean to Barstool Bite Sized, we spend about 5 minutes with Natalie Suwanprakorn of Xoconat in Bangkok, Thailand. Nat makes her Up in Smoke bar by smoking cacao nibs over a Thai aromatic candle often used for Thai desserts. It’s a wonderfully evocative bar, and your reaction to it will largely depend on whether or not you have a cultural familiarity with the smoke of this candle. I didn’t, and it brought to mind bibliosmia, the smell of old books - quite a comforting and intriguing quality for this book lover. Listen in as Nat shares the story of this bar, how it was made, and its significance for her as a Thai chocolate maker.

The music for this episode is by Anna p.s.

You can learn more about Xoconat here. You can listen to my full interview with Natalie here.

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