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at Sun, 14 Nov 2004 06:56:50 GMT in <SkDld.214355$Pl.180378@pd7tw1no>,
(Gladys Cheng) wrote : >Hello, > >I was wondering if anyone knew what the recommended time to keep >chocolate for is? I bought some chocolate in Europe a couple of months >ago, and have them stored in the basement where it is cool, but was >curious what the maxium time and ideal temperature to keep chocolate? > Kept under reasonable conditions, dark chocolate lasts for a minimum of 2 years, milk chocolate for a minimum of a year (from the date of manufacture.) These are minima - much chocolate will survive just fine well past this point and if kept under optimum conditions, can last 5 years, possibly more. It's important to note the expiration date on the package, because this will give you some idea of when it was manufactured, and thus how much leeway you have. Although except under rare conditions chocolate slightly past its expiration date is fine and will last at least several months, if it's expired for many months, it may not be as good as it was originally. Chocolate doesn't really become unsafe to eat (not for a very long time indeed), but over the course of several years, the flavour dissipates and the resultant chocolate will taste cardboardy. In addition, the cocoa butter will eventually go rancid (although, again, this will take a long time) and make the whole bar taste harsh. In milk chocolate the milk products rancidify a lot faster and thus the shorter shelf life. The real danger with chocolate is poor storage. If kept badly, several things can happen. Most frequently overlooked is odour absorption. Chocolate is amazingly efficient at soaking up ambient odours, even if the smell in the storage area is only slight. A musty smell will cause the entire bar rapidly to take on this aroma, as will mossy, tobacco, pet, plastic, rubber, and wood odours, together with the usual food suspects: onions, cheeses, garlic, spices. In your case I'd check your basement. Does it smell of anything? Be critical and don't overlook even slight odours because they could well be magnified in the bar. The next problem is moisture. High relative humidity is especially bad because it will leach sugar to the surface, causing sugar bloom, characterised by a light, grey coating (as opposed to a whiter, more powdery coating, more on that in a minute). Sugar bloom ruins both the taste and texture of chocolate and you generally will end up throwing it away. More insidiously, low relative humidity is also a problem because it accelerates flavour loss and dries out the bar at the same time. The result is a bar that seems to have had the life sucked out of it - edible, but bland. Humidity cycling, to either pole, accelerates the processes and quickly breaks down chocolate. So it should definitely not be in somewhere where the humidity isn't controlled and there's potential for it to shift significantly. There again, in your basement situation, is it a climate- controlled basement? If not, moisture cycling problems may bedevil the chocolate. Next is the one that occurs to most people: temperature. Obviously, at too high a temperature the chocolate will melt, an obvious problem. But it doesn't have to get nearly that hot in order for it to have cocoa butter bloom. A bar with cocoa butter bloom is easy to recognise because it will have a whitish film on top like a layer of frost. Some places, in what I think is a disingenuous attempt to save money by minimising returns, claim that chocolate with cocoa butter bloom is unaffected, but this is NOT true. Cocoa butter bloom will make the chocolate taste, once again, harsh, and kills subtle fruity flavour characteristics, leaving only the earthier or woodier components. In addition it makes the bar very brittle and dry in texture, chalky on the tongue. Sometimes because of indifferent storage at the retail source, you'll get a bar straight from the store with cocoa butter bloom - if this happens, return it immediately and demand either a replacement with a different lot number, or a refund. The second is often wiser because if this bar was affected, most likely the entire store's supply will be too. Cocoa butter bloom can happen any time the temperature cycles above 80F. Low temperatures are also not ideal for chocolate. Usually the problems here are related to humidity. Routinely cold conditions are usually dry, bad for chocolate as I mentioned above. And if the temperature cycles, the chocolate will sweat, condensing on the surface and causing severe sugar bloom. It's OK to store in low temperatures with decent humidity provided the ramp-up to room temperature is slow, but beware any sudden shifts. What are ideal conditions, then? Slightly below normal room temperature (about 60F), moderate humidity (about 50%RH is good), and absolutely odour free (in a metal box far away from other odour sources is the best). Of course, I prefer the Sandra Boynton answer "The most conscientious individuals will see to it that storage is not a problem..."(cartoon of hippo sitting beside fully consumed box of chocolates) -- Alex Rast (remove d., .7, not, and .NOSPAM to reply) |
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Thanks for the info and tips!
Gladys "Alex Rast" > wrote in message ... > at Sun, 14 Nov 2004 06:56:50 GMT in <SkDld.214355$Pl.180378@pd7tw1no>, > (Gladys Cheng) wrote : > >>Hello, >> >>I was wondering if anyone knew what the recommended time to keep >>chocolate for is? I bought some chocolate in Europe a couple of months >>ago, and have them stored in the basement where it is cool, but was >>curious what the maxium time and ideal temperature to keep chocolate? >> > > Kept under reasonable conditions, dark chocolate lasts for a minimum of 2 > years, milk chocolate for a minimum of a year (from the date of > manufacture.) These are minima - much chocolate will survive just fine > well > past this point and if kept under optimum conditions, can last 5 years, > possibly more. It's important to note the expiration date on the package, > because this will give you some idea of when it was manufactured, and thus > how much leeway you have. Although except under rare conditions chocolate > slightly past its expiration date is fine and will last at least several > months, if it's expired for many months, it may not be as good as it was > originally. > > Chocolate doesn't really become unsafe to eat (not for a very long time > indeed), but over the course of several years, the flavour dissipates and > the resultant chocolate will taste cardboardy. In addition, the cocoa > butter will eventually go rancid (although, again, this will take a long > time) and make the whole bar taste harsh. In milk chocolate the milk > products rancidify a lot faster and thus the shorter shelf life. > > The real danger with chocolate is poor storage. If kept badly, several > things can happen. Most frequently overlooked is odour absorption. > Chocolate is amazingly efficient at soaking up ambient odours, even if the > smell in the storage area is only slight. A musty smell will cause the > entire bar rapidly to take on this aroma, as will mossy, tobacco, pet, > plastic, rubber, and wood odours, together with the usual food suspects: > onions, cheeses, garlic, spices. In your case I'd check your basement. > Does > it smell of anything? Be critical and don't overlook even slight odours > because they could well be magnified in the bar. > > The next problem is moisture. High relative humidity is especially bad > because it will leach sugar to the surface, causing sugar bloom, > characterised by a light, grey coating (as opposed to a whiter, more > powdery coating, more on that in a minute). Sugar bloom ruins both the > taste and texture of chocolate and you generally will end up throwing it > away. More insidiously, low relative humidity is also a problem because it > accelerates flavour loss and dries out the bar at the same time. The > result > is a bar that seems to have had the life sucked out of it - edible, but > bland. Humidity cycling, to either pole, accelerates the processes and > quickly breaks down chocolate. So it should definitely not be in somewhere > where the humidity isn't controlled and there's potential for it to shift > significantly. There again, in your basement situation, is it a climate- > controlled basement? If not, moisture cycling problems may bedevil the > chocolate. > > Next is the one that occurs to most people: temperature. Obviously, at too > high a temperature the chocolate will melt, an obvious problem. But it > doesn't have to get nearly that hot in order for it to have cocoa butter > bloom. A bar with cocoa butter bloom is easy to recognise because it will > have a whitish film on top like a layer of frost. Some places, in what I > think is a disingenuous attempt to save money by minimising returns, claim > that chocolate with cocoa butter bloom is unaffected, but this is NOT > true. > Cocoa butter bloom will make the chocolate taste, once again, harsh, and > kills subtle fruity flavour characteristics, leaving only the earthier or > woodier components. In addition it makes the bar very brittle and dry in > texture, chalky on the tongue. Sometimes because of indifferent storage at > the retail source, you'll get a bar straight from the store with cocoa > butter bloom - if this happens, return it immediately and demand either a > replacement with a different lot number, or a refund. The second is often > wiser because if this bar was affected, most likely the entire store's > supply will be too. Cocoa butter bloom can happen any time the temperature > cycles above 80F. Low temperatures are also not ideal for chocolate. > Usually the problems here are related to humidity. Routinely cold > conditions are usually dry, bad for chocolate as I mentioned above. And if > the temperature cycles, the chocolate will sweat, condensing on the > surface > and causing severe sugar bloom. It's OK to store in low temperatures with > decent humidity provided the ramp-up to room temperature is slow, but > beware any sudden shifts. > > What are ideal conditions, then? Slightly below normal room temperature > (about 60F), moderate humidity (about 50%RH is good), and absolutely odour > free (in a metal box far away from other odour sources is the best). Of > course, I prefer the Sandra Boynton answer "The most conscientious > individuals will see to it that storage is not a problem..."(cartoon of > hippo sitting beside fully consumed box of chocolates) > > -- > Alex Rast > > (remove d., .7, not, and .NOSPAM to reply) |
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Thanks for the info and tips!
Gladys "Alex Rast" > wrote in message ... > at Sun, 14 Nov 2004 06:56:50 GMT in <SkDld.214355$Pl.180378@pd7tw1no>, > (Gladys Cheng) wrote : > >>Hello, >> >>I was wondering if anyone knew what the recommended time to keep >>chocolate for is? I bought some chocolate in Europe a couple of months >>ago, and have them stored in the basement where it is cool, but was >>curious what the maxium time and ideal temperature to keep chocolate? >> > > Kept under reasonable conditions, dark chocolate lasts for a minimum of 2 > years, milk chocolate for a minimum of a year (from the date of > manufacture.) These are minima - much chocolate will survive just fine > well > past this point and if kept under optimum conditions, can last 5 years, > possibly more. It's important to note the expiration date on the package, > because this will give you some idea of when it was manufactured, and thus > how much leeway you have. Although except under rare conditions chocolate > slightly past its expiration date is fine and will last at least several > months, if it's expired for many months, it may not be as good as it was > originally. > > Chocolate doesn't really become unsafe to eat (not for a very long time > indeed), but over the course of several years, the flavour dissipates and > the resultant chocolate will taste cardboardy. In addition, the cocoa > butter will eventually go rancid (although, again, this will take a long > time) and make the whole bar taste harsh. In milk chocolate the milk > products rancidify a lot faster and thus the shorter shelf life. > > The real danger with chocolate is poor storage. If kept badly, several > things can happen. Most frequently overlooked is odour absorption. > Chocolate is amazingly efficient at soaking up ambient odours, even if the > smell in the storage area is only slight. A musty smell will cause the > entire bar rapidly to take on this aroma, as will mossy, tobacco, pet, > plastic, rubber, and wood odours, together with the usual food suspects: > onions, cheeses, garlic, spices. In your case I'd check your basement. > Does > it smell of anything? Be critical and don't overlook even slight odours > because they could well be magnified in the bar. > > The next problem is moisture. High relative humidity is especially bad > because it will leach sugar to the surface, causing sugar bloom, > characterised by a light, grey coating (as opposed to a whiter, more > powdery coating, more on that in a minute). Sugar bloom ruins both the > taste and texture of chocolate and you generally will end up throwing it > away. More insidiously, low relative humidity is also a problem because it > accelerates flavour loss and dries out the bar at the same time. The > result > is a bar that seems to have had the life sucked out of it - edible, but > bland. Humidity cycling, to either pole, accelerates the processes and > quickly breaks down chocolate. So it should definitely not be in somewhere > where the humidity isn't controlled and there's potential for it to shift > significantly. There again, in your basement situation, is it a climate- > controlled basement? If not, moisture cycling problems may bedevil the > chocolate. > > Next is the one that occurs to most people: temperature. Obviously, at too > high a temperature the chocolate will melt, an obvious problem. But it > doesn't have to get nearly that hot in order for it to have cocoa butter > bloom. A bar with cocoa butter bloom is easy to recognise because it will > have a whitish film on top like a layer of frost. Some places, in what I > think is a disingenuous attempt to save money by minimising returns, claim > that chocolate with cocoa butter bloom is unaffected, but this is NOT > true. > Cocoa butter bloom will make the chocolate taste, once again, harsh, and > kills subtle fruity flavour characteristics, leaving only the earthier or > woodier components. In addition it makes the bar very brittle and dry in > texture, chalky on the tongue. Sometimes because of indifferent storage at > the retail source, you'll get a bar straight from the store with cocoa > butter bloom - if this happens, return it immediately and demand either a > replacement with a different lot number, or a refund. The second is often > wiser because if this bar was affected, most likely the entire store's > supply will be too. Cocoa butter bloom can happen any time the temperature > cycles above 80F. Low temperatures are also not ideal for chocolate. > Usually the problems here are related to humidity. Routinely cold > conditions are usually dry, bad for chocolate as I mentioned above. And if > the temperature cycles, the chocolate will sweat, condensing on the > surface > and causing severe sugar bloom. It's OK to store in low temperatures with > decent humidity provided the ramp-up to room temperature is slow, but > beware any sudden shifts. > > What are ideal conditions, then? Slightly below normal room temperature > (about 60F), moderate humidity (about 50%RH is good), and absolutely odour > free (in a metal box far away from other odour sources is the best). Of > course, I prefer the Sandra Boynton answer "The most conscientious > individuals will see to it that storage is not a problem..."(cartoon of > hippo sitting beside fully consumed box of chocolates) > > -- > Alex Rast > > (remove d., .7, not, and .NOSPAM to reply) |
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