Attn Chocoholics: The World's Largest Chocolate Fair Is Coming to Brazil

It's just been announced that the largest international chocolate fair and exposition, the Salon do Chocolat, will be held for the first time in the Southern Hemisphere in 2012, specifically in the Brazilian city of Salvador, Bahia.

The Salon, which held its first edition in Paris in 1995 has since been hosted by cities such as New York, Shanghai, Madrid, Beijing, Lille, Bologna, Marseille and Cairo. But it's never been held in a country and region which produces cacau, the bean from which chocolate is produced. Salvador is the capital of the Brazilian state of Bahia - the largest producer of cacau in Brazil and one of the most important cacau-growing regions in the world. The Brazilian cacau-growing industry is currently growing rapidly and recovering from the effects of a devastating disease which affected large number of cacau trees in the 1980s.

Brazil is also one of the world's largest chocolate-consuming nations, and its passion for chocolate in all its forms borders at time on obsession. The most prestigious Europeans brands of chocolate, such as Valrhona and Godiva, have recently entered the Brazilian marketplace where they have had exceptional success.

Previous editions of the Salon do Chocolat have welcomed up to 20,000 visitors per day, and the government of Bahia, which is one of the event's sponsors, expects that the Salon will have a tremendous impact on Salvador's 2012 visitor numbers.

The Salon is scheduled for the first week in July, 2012. Chocoholics, mark your calendars.

Hunters of the Wild Cacau

In a recent article in São Paulo newspaper Estado de S. Paulo, Cintia Bertolino, reporting from the middle of the Amazonian rain forest, highlighted the work of a small group of "wild-chocolate hunters." The cacaueiro, or cacau tree, which bears the fruit from which chocolate is made, is native to the Amazon and in the most remote reaches of the rain forest there are still places in which the wild ancestor of the cultivated, hybridized commercial cacau tree flourishes.

As the world's appetite for chocolate, and for new chocolate experiences grows unabated, chocolate producers are constantly looking out for new and exotic sources of chocolate. Wild chocolate appears to be one of these new sources, and according to chocolate experts, offers a new chocolate experience. Harvesting the wild fruit also provides a living for a few residents of the rain forest, most of whom are native Americans.

Here is a translation of Ms. Bertolino's article:

Finding cacau trees in the Amazonian forest without trained eyes or an internal GPS - which only those who were born on the banks of the great river and in the forest possess - is like trying to find a needle in a haystack populated by nosy mosquitos and enormous ants.

None of this distracts Alisson Apurinã in his work. For the past three years, beginning in March, the young man of Indian origin sets out in his canoe at the break of dawn and paddles the Purus river in search of native cacau trees, sprinkled throughout the forests of the [Brazilian] state of Amazonas. The cacau trees, ancient and tall, are part of the local ecosystem and until recently bore fruit that no one bothered to harvest. Because they have not been planted by humans in plantations, these trees bear a different fruit, smaller and stronger in flavor than domesticated varieties.

Less bitter than hybridized cultivars, wild or native cacau has good acidity and a taste that is characteristic of chocolate. "When you think of chocolate, this is it. It's not so fruity, but it is the quintessence of chocolate," says American Frederick Schilling, developer of Amma Chocolate along with Bahian partner Diego Badaró.

Finding a cacau tree in the midst of other trees is not an easy task. In March, when the harvest that extends to May begins, Apurinã starts his daily search at 7 a.m. Arriving in the forest by boat or canoe and with three large sacks in hand, he begins his hunt.

Some cacau trees reach 25 meters [80 feet], which no pruning-hook can reach. That means that the tree must be climbed, a feat that Apurinã accomplishes with impressive agility. On a good day, when his sacks are full, he finishes climbing at 3 p.m. But the task of carrying the sacks through the jungle to his canoe still remains to be done.

The Story of Amma Chocolate

Amma Chocolate is quickly becoming the chocolate-of-the-moment here in Brazil and the story of the company makes a very interesting, very 21st century story. In a recent blind tasting sponsored by one of Brazil's largest food and wine magazines, Amma's 70% cocoa chocolate bar beat out such heavyweights of the chocolate world as Lindt, Nestlé and Valrhona. (Click here to read the results of the blind tasting). The very short history of this young company, its stated mission and the philosophies of its owners are reflections of the ways many in the contemporary world of food are looking at what we eat today and what we plan to eat in the future.

Diego Badaró is a fifth-generation cacau planter from the southern part of Bahia state in northeastern Brazil. This area is the historic center of cacau cultivation in Brazil and is home to a large percentage of what's left of the Mata Atlantica, Brazil's largely deforested coastal rain forest. Badaró is passionate about growing the best possible cacau beans for chocolate production and about preserving and fostering the rain forest which is the cacau trees natural habitat. Sometime in 2007 he sent a box of samples of his cacau beans, unsolicited, to Frederick Schilling, the founder and CEO of Dagoba Organic Chocolate, the largest producer and vendor of high-quality organic chocolate in the USA. Schilling was so impressed by the product that within less than a month he was in Brazil to meet Badaró . Realizing that their goals were remarkable similar, the two men decided to start a joint venture in Brazil to produce and market high-quality organic chocolate, sustainable grown.

Badaró (left) and Schilling (right)

This joint venture became Amma Chocolate, and today the company has established a small but very creditable niche in Brazil's booming chocolate market. Their distribution is still very limited and their products can only be found in the best chocolate shops in Brazil's larger metropolitan areas. Unfortunately, Fortaleza, my Brazilian hometown doesn't have a local distributor yet, so I will have to wait for my next visit to Rio de Janeiro, Brasília or Salvador to sample an Amma chocolate bar. It's an experience I'll be looking forward to.

Amma has an excellent website detailing their products and the philosophy behind the company. It is in Portuguese only, but has some great photos and links to some English-language articles on the company. It can be found by clicking here.

Brazilian Chocolate Goes Architectural

Palácio da Alvorada, Brasília

Most certainly the most famous architect that Brazil has ever produced, and also one of the best-known 20th-century-modern architects in the world, Oscar Niemeyer is still going strong at the remarkable age of 102. His genius in creating the architectural design of Brazil's capital city, Brasília, built between 1956 and 1960, was recognized by UNESCO when it designated Brasília the newest place in the world worthy to be a World Heritage Site. The outlines and shapes of his monumental public buildings for Brasília are stamped on the Brazilian consciousness, and are as instantly recognizable for Brazilians as the shape of the Eiffel Tower is for the French, or the Sydney Opera House is for Australians. He has also worked extensively outside Brazil, where perhaps his most well-known work was as part of the team that created the UN Headquarters in New York City.

Although he no longer designs buildings, Sr. Niemeyer isn't vegetating during his "retirement." His eye for design is still wickedly strong, and he has recently designed such things as T-shirts for Rio de Janeiro's Carnaval band, Banda de Ipanema and pieces of furniture created from molded wood.

Recently, his latest project was announced in newspapers throughout the country. It's being reported here at Flavors of Brazil because Niemeyer has now extended his designs beyond furniture and clothes into the world of gastronomy. For the gastronomic boutique Aquim in Rio de Janeiro's tony Ipanema district he has designed a chocolate bar which echoes the distinct curves of his architectural work.

The chocolate is called, simply, Q. It is a purely Brazilian product made with chocolate from the city of Ilhéus, in the state of Bahia, with the addition of selected almonds. The chocolate is sold in a specially designed tasting-box which contains three bars of chocolate plus 42 individual chocolates in six strengths ranging from 30% to 70% cacau. Only those who have bought the box will be able to have it refilled at the store, according to Aquim .

I've no idea how Q tastes, but I imagine it must be heavenly. I do know for certain though, that it's the most beautiful chocolate bar I've ever seen. Let's hope that Sr. Niemeyer continues designing new products well into "old age." At 102, he should be an inspiration to all of us.

The Roots of Chocolate - The Cacaueiro Trees of Bahia (REPOST)

(Please click here to read about this series of reposts of original posts from May 24, 2010 to June 12, 2010)

Chocolate, in whatever its form - a Brigadeiro, a hot chocolate drink, a Mars bar, Callebaut Belgian cooking chocolate - begins its journey to the palate of the consumer in the seed of the cocoa tree (scientific name: Theobroma cacao), which in Portuguese is called the cacaueiro tree. The origins of this tree, which was cultivated from Mexico to Brazil long before the arrival of Europeans on the heels of Christopher Columbus, are obscure, but it is thought that it originated among the foothills of the Andes mountains in the western Amazon River basin. Wild cocoa trees can still be found in that area.

One of the best places on earth to grow the cocoa tree is in the southern sections of the Brazilian state of Bahia. The climate, topography, soil and biodiversity of the local forest (called Mata Atlântica) combine to create perfect growing conditions. Most of Brazil's commercial production of chocolate (95%) comes from this area, and historically it was one of the most important worldwide sources of cocoa. Today, Ghana and The Ivory Coast in West Africa are the largest cocoa producers in the world, but the cultivation of cacao trees is still economically significant in Bahia.

Bahia's cacaueiro trees are to this day planted in the natural forest rather than in plantations or orchards, as the tree, although it can reach a height of up to 40 feet, requires shade from the forest canopy for ideal growing conditions. Cultivation and harvesting of the fruit of the cacaueiro is to this day primarily a manual process, with little mechanical support.

It is from the fruit of the cacaueiro that chocolate ultimately derives. The fruit is large, up to 8 inches in length, with a hard rind and skin about 2 inches thick. Inside the fruit is a thick, sweet and gummy juice enclosing from 30 to 50 large, soft seeds. It is from these seeds, once they have been dried and fully fermented, that the two components of chocolate, cocoa powder and cocoa butter, are extracted. The fruits are cracked open, the seeds are extracted and washed, and then are spread out on the ground to dry and ferment in the heat of the sun. Even today, naturally drying and fermenting of the seeds is the most common means of production of chocolate, as mechanical drying can introduce other, unwanted, flavors to the final product. In the central squares of small Brazilian towns in southern Bahia one can see drying cacau seeds spread out in the sun to dry during the harvest season. Once dry and fermented, the seeds begin their journey on the road to delighting children and adults alike, all over the world, with the heavenly taste of chocolate.

The Roots of Chocolate - The Cacaueiro Trees of Bahia

Chocolate, in whatever its form - a Brigadeiro, a hot chocolate drink, a Mars bar, Callebaut Belgian cooking chocolate - begins its journey to the palate of the consumer in the seed of the cocoa tree (scientific name: Theobroma cacao), which in Portuguese is called the cacaueiro tree. The origins of this tree, which was cultivated from Mexico to Brazil long before the arrival of Europeans on the heels of Christopher Columbus, are obscure, but it is thought that it originated among the foothills of the Andes mountains in the western Amazon River basin. Wild cocoa trees can still be found in that area.

One of the best places on earth to grow the cocoa tree is in the southern sections of the Brazilian state of Bahia. The climate, topography, soil and biodiversity of the local forest (called Mata Atlântica) combine to create perfect growing conditions. Most of Brazil's commercial production of chocolate (95%) comes from this area, and historically it was one of the most important worldwide sources of cocoa. Today, Ghana and The Ivory Coast in West Africa are the largest cocoa producers in the world, but the cultivation of cacao trees is still economically significant in Bahia.

Bahia's cacaueiro trees are to this day planted in the natural forest rather than in plantations or orchards, as the tree, although it can reach a height of up to 40 feet, requires shade from the forest canopy for ideal growing conditions. Cultivation and harvesting of the fruit of the cacaueiro is to this day primarily a manual process, with little mechanical support.

It is from the fruit of the cacaueiro that chocolate ultimately derives. The fruit is large, up to 8 inches in length, with a hard rind and skin about 2 inches thick. Inside the fruit is a thick, sweet and gummy juice enclosing from 30 to 50 large, soft seeds. It is from these seeds, once they have been dried and fully fermented, that the two components of chocolate, cocoa powder and cocoa butter, are extracted. The fruits are cracked open, the seeds are extracted and washed, and then are spread out on the ground to dry and ferment in the heat of the sun. Even today, naturally drying and fermenting of the seeds is the most common means of production of chocolate, as mechanical drying can introduce other, unwanted, flavors to the final product. In the central squares of small Brazilian towns in southern Bahia one can see drying cacau seeds spread out in the sun to dry during the harvest season. Once dry and fermented, the seeds begin their journey on the road to delighting children and adults alike, all over the world, with the heavenly taste of chocolate.

INGREDIENTS - Cocoa Powder(Cacau)

The recipe for Brigadeiro in yesterday's Flavors of Brazil called for cocoa powder. This is a culinary term which often confuses amateur cooks, and consequently causes culinary disasters. Dessert and pastry recipes are the most exacting recipes in the entire body of culinary instructions, and one wrong ingredient, or one incorrectly measured ingredient can swiftly turn a potential triumph into a disaster.

Cocoa powder, which is also known as cocoa or cacao in English and is called cacau in Portuguese, is not the same thing as "hot chocolate mix" or "cocoa mix" or any similar sweetened powders. It is pure cocoa solids, in other words, the nonfat component of chocolate. (The fatty component, contrastingly is called cocoa butter). These two components of chocolate are separated in a number of different ways, by pressing or by either the Dutch or Broma process. In any case, the end result is the separation of cocoa powder from cocoa butter. It is this cocoa powder that is required to make Brigadeiros as they should be made.