Chocolate Glossary

Plain-language definitions for chocolate terms used across Chof.

Cocoa Percentage (Cacao %)

Cocoa percentage (also written cacao percentage) is the share of a chocolate bar made from cacao-derived ingredients: cocoa solids and cocoa butter. The rest is mostly sugar, plus any milk.

Bean-to-Bar Chocolate

Bean-to-bar chocolate is made by a maker who works from raw cacao beans all the way to the finished bar.

Tree-to-Bar Chocolate

Tree-to-bar chocolate is made by a producer involved from the cacao tree through to the finished chocolate.

Single-Origin Chocolate

Single-origin chocolate means all the cacao comes from one named place: a single country, region, estate or farm, not an anonymous blend of many beans.

Multi-origin chocolate is a bar blended from cacao grown in two or more countries, with every contributing origin listed on the wrapper. It is the opposite of a single-origin bar, which comes from one named place.

Country of Origin (Chocolate)

On a chocolate bar, the country of origin is where the cacao beans were grown, not where the bar was made. A bar produced in Belgium from Peruvian cacao has Peru as its country of origin.

Fine-Flavour Cacao

Fine-flavour cacao (also called fine or flavour cacao) is a category recognised by the International Cocoa Organization for cacao with distinctive aromatic profiles, usually Criollo and Trinitario varieties. Most craft chocolate uses it, while industrial chocolate mostly uses bulk Forastero.

Dutch-Processed Cocoa

Dutch-processed cocoa is cocoa treated with an alkalising agent to reduce acidity and darken the colour.

Craft Chocolate

Craft chocolate is chocolate made in small batches by makers who care about cacao sourcing, traceability and flavour, rather than mass-market scale.

Chocolatier

A chocolatier is someone who makes finished chocolate products, such as bars, bonbons and truffles, from chocolate that has already been made, usually professional couverture. A chocolate maker, by contrast, makes the chocolate itself from raw cacao beans.

Dark Milk Chocolate

Dark milk chocolate is milk chocolate made with a higher cocoa content than usual, often around 50 to 70%. It keeps the creaminess of milk chocolate but adds the depth and lower sweetness of a dark bar.

Conching

Conching is a stage of chocolate making where the chocolate is slowly mixed and aerated, sometimes for hours or days, to smooth its texture and mellow harsh, acidic flavours.