ABOUT ME
chasca marshall
As a lifelong lover of all things SWEET, I was thrilled to apprentice under award-winning chocolatier William Curley for two years. This experience honed my skills in professional confectionery production. It also sparked my curiosity about the bean-to-bar process and ethical chocolate production. So, I started experimenting with a mini grinder and locally sourced cocoa in my own kitchen.
My journey led me to Martinique, a place I've been fortunate to visit for the past two years. During these visits, I've had the privilege of staying for extended periods at my good friend Lily's family-owned organic cocoa plantation in Morne Capot.
Here, I've fully immersed myself in the world of cocoa, actively participating in every step of the cocoa harvesting process.
From planting baby cocoa trees to nurturing the fully-grown ones, I've experienced it all. Countless hours have been spent in the lush rainforest, with machetes in hand, hunting for cocoa pods and discovering the rich diversity of cocoa varieties. The next phase involves cracking open the pods with a hammer, carefully separating the juicy white pulp from the cocoa beans, which are then placed into fermentation boxes. Daily attention is required as the sugars from the pulp transform into a pungent vinegar, and I diligently turn the beans monitoring their temperature to ensure even fermentation.
Following fermentation, it's time for the sun to work its magic, drying the cocoa evenly—an endeavour that can be quite challenging in the humid tropics. At each stage, a labor of love and meticulous attention is essential to produce the highest quality cocoa and, ultimately, the finest chocolate. I cherish this unique experience and am immensely grateful for the opportunity to engage in every aspect of chocolate production, from tree to bar.
MA.KE.A is where I bring together the finest and most ethically sourced ingredients, infused with a lot of love, to craft unique and delicious chocolates.
THE BEAN TO BAR
PROCESS
1.Source
Chocolate can only be as good as the quality of the cocoa. It's incredibly important for me to build relationships with the people I'm sourcing my cocoa from, striving to deal 100% direct. This has started with me being able to go to the beautiful plantation Andidi in Martinique and I hope to explore many more in the future.
2.Harvest
Pod colour is only a rough guide to bean ripeness. Farmers rely on experience to assess when perfect ripeness has been reached. A task not made easier by the fact that pods on the same tree do not always ripen evenly. Once harvested the pods are split open with jungle knives and carried in bags to the fermentation boxes.
3.Fermentation
A diverse range of flavour is created through a careful fermentation process. Fresh wet beans are placed in wooden boxes, where natural yeasts combine with the fruit sugars to kick-off the ferment and begin a complex flavor development process. Balancing time and temperature, the farmer purposely moves the beans between the boxes to ensure full flavour development.
4.Drying
After the beans have completed fermentation they are slowly sun dried. The drying process further develops flavour complexity and bean quality.
5.Sort
The first step is to hand sort the beans to ensure only the finest make it through.
6.Roast
The cocoa beans are roasted slowly. Roasting further develops chocolate flavour and locks in bean personality. As a rule – I roast low and slow.
7.Crack/Winnow
You have to break the bean and separate the cocoa nibs from the husk.
8.Stone grid & Conche
Cocoa nibs are combined with organic raw sugar into a melangeur and grind for up to 72 hours reducing the particle size of the ingredients. This 3-day process also works to mellow the chocolate, eliminating the volatile acids and bitterness.
9.Age
Ageing chocolate for 2-3 weeks or longer if possible allows the flavours to develop further. Much like cheese or fine-wine, chocolate changes and enriches over time.
10.Temper
The chocolate is then tempered to give it a smooth texture, glossy shine and pleasant “snap” when bitten or broken.
