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Transportation of the cacao
The cacao beans are transported from their country of origin to Switzerland under strict hygiene and quality requirements. The valuable raw material is transported by ship directly from our partner in the country of origin to our warehouse in Basel.
Gentle and traditional processing
The cacao beans receive special care at the production site in Ibach-Schwyz. The processing steps are customised to get the best out of every product. Thanks to the wealth of experience of our employees and their passion for maximum quality, we are able to produce consistently high-quality couvertures.
Cleaning and Roasting
The first step in the manufacturing process is to clean the cacao beans. They are debacterised by treating them with steam at a temperature of 127°C . This is followed by the traditional roasting of the cacao, which is carried out slowly and carefully in small batches. The temperature and roasting time depend on the characteristics of the bean and the desired roast aromas.
Crushing, Grinding
The beans, once cooled, enter the crusher, where they are broken up and the shell parts are separated out. In the triple mill, the crushed beans are then ground to a fineness of 25 to 30 micrometres over three pairs of grinding stones. Small ceramic balls weighing 150 kg then process the mass in the ball mill and reduce its fineness once again to around 15 to 20 micrometres.
Kneading, Rolling
The preparation for the dark couverture is mixed in the kneading machine: liquid cacao pulp, liquid cacao butter, granulated sugar and, if required by the recipe, natural vanilla from Madagascar. The same raw materials are supplemented with milk and cream powder for the milk chocolate. The mixture is kneaded for several minutes. The kneaded material is transferred to the fine roller mill via the pre-roller and is reduced to a fineness of around 16 micrometres.
Conching
Using the traditional process in the longitudinal conche, the flavours in the cacao can be best brought out through hours of agitation and aeration. Conching can take up to 72 hours and will depend on the properties of the bean and the recipe. Slowly warming the couverture brings the delicate flavours to the fore.
