Chocolate wine or liquor?

just out of puerto plata, in altamira. the place is called chocal and they do sell "wines".
https://chocalaltamira.wordpress.com/catalogo/

Directions ?

chico bill said:

Directions ?

Click to expand...

http://dr1.com/forums/showthread.php/131313-dv8-trippin-chocolate-factory!

you are most welcome.

When you turn off the main road before the tunnel coming from PP, there is another group right near the entrance. They also have cacao wine. There is also a group up the road from Gaspar Hernandez near Joba Arriba. If near Higuey, another group works near there. Outside of Castillo there is another group in Los Naranjos. Then another in Loma de Jaya up the mountain from SFM. There are two others I know of in Yamasa and in El Siebo, but not sure if they make wine. About 3 plus years ago I sat down with some friends and the cacao wines from the different groups to taste the differences. They varied quite a bit and to us, the women near Higuey had the best stuff. Chocal also makes other fruit and spice wines. I like the mango.


Also, ground up cacao nibs are called chocolate liquor, paste or mass within the industry. It is 100% chocolate not fully ground.

do you happen to know whether this chocolate mass (sold here as "bola de chocolate", i believe) is vegan? that is, just pure cocoa?
if i grate it or chop it finely, would that replace chocolate in some baking recipes?

Yes, the bolas are liquor, paste or mass and are used for drinking. Vegan and pure cacao with one exception. The women at Chocal, the first group mentioned in the original post add somewhere around 10% ground corn. I have never seen this done by anyone else and probably more of a Mayan tradition. Yes I use it for baking with a fine grind or you can heat it up on a double boiler. Cocoa Powder is the liquor being put in a big press and the butter content being brought done from 50-55% in liquor to 12-30% butter in the powder depending on the press. So you have to slightly adjust the recipe with the additional butter in liquor compared to powder.

Also, the bolas de cacao usually found around the country are not made from select, quality fermented cacao. The tend to roast very very high which is actually better for what the use. They still taste good to me.

thanks! daughter of our friends is visiting soon, she's vegan and i was looking at things to bake for her. hard to find vegan goodies in DR.

Lots of rice & beans, viveres, vegetables and fruits. Vegan means plant based I think, no honey. Cacao is a fruit and the part we make chocolate from are the seeds.