Fermentation and Its Newfound Influence on Flavour

When asked, most people describe the taste of chocolate as rich, sweet, creamy, or if dark – bitter, aromatic, intense. That the flavour is deep, satisfying, warming. That chocolate makes them feel good, better, happy.

Flavour Facts

The fact is that the taste of chocolate is nuanced and complex and often influenced by the particular variety of the cocoa bean and the region in which the cocoa tree was grown. Environmental factors such as soil composition, altitude, humidity, rainfall patterns, etc… all have an impact. But new research has found that where beans are fermented can have an even greater influence on the flavour of a finished chocolate bar than the cocoa trees or the region and climate in which they were grown. 

Research Shows

In a project conducted by the University of Queensland in collaboration with local Australian growers, researchers found clear differences in the flavour of cocoa fermented at three different locations in Far North Queensland and that almost half of the flavour produced in a chocolate bar was influenced by the place the cocoa was fermented. 

The research found that fermentation affected flavour through the activity of micro-organisms naturally present in the environment and that these small microorganisms, during fermentation, produced a lot of metabolites (a substance produced when microorganisms break down nutrients during fermentation). Its these metabolites that produce all the precursor compounds that can later be transformed into cocoa flavour itself.

Although cocoa has been farmed for more than 5000 years, the fact that modern research is still uncovering new information about what impacts the flavour of cocoa is truly amazing.