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Le Manon revisited...
One day, at a press conference in Japan, Pierre Marcolini was asked which Belgian specialty he thought best incarnated chocolate. He immediately answered, as many Belgians would probably have done: The manon?
of 78% cocoa, to give it a delicious crackle. And then filled it with praline made from Piedmontese hazelnuts, chopped fresh walnuts from Grenoble, real crme frache flavoured with Ethiopian coffee and a drop of coffee fondant. And that is not all! Vanilla and caramel versions are also available. The box marked The Classic proudly bears the colours of our national flag. As Pierre neatly puts it: Our Belgian identity in a little box
See how the manon is made.

ut when he explained how it was made, he realised that the manon was not coated in chocolate, but iced like an clair. His version of the classic sweet started by shedding surplus weight: the piece went from 22 to

7 grams, giving a lighter, more refined balance of flavours and textures. He added a shell of dark chocolate from Ecuador and Ghana, with the bitter aromas

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Did you know?

From the outset, Pierre Marcolini has aimed for perfection in every product he makes. Even if he knows perfection is unattainable, he gets as close as he can, to share a little wisp of a dream, a new experience and emotion through his creations.

Roasting is the
hortly after he set up his workshop in 2001, he began to make his own chocolate. He discovered that there used to be over eighty chocolatiers in Brussels who imported cocoa beans directly from cocoa plantations, and roasted the beans themselves to make their chocolate. He realised that this process would enable him to capture new flavours and develop the taste potential of chocolate. That is why he decided to reorganise his workshop to revive the production techniques of the past. In Belgium, this art had completely disappeared. Chocolatiers bought their supplies from couverture chocolate manufacturers, who roasted the beans in bulk to make chocolate blocks. The quantities were such that the chocolate was delivered in tankers. Flavour and aromas were standardised and it was more a matter of mass marketing than tasting chocolate from a particular estate. Pierre Marcolini is now the only chocolatier in Belgium to do the entire process himself. In Europe there are about fifteen chocolate workshops which still practise this art to some degree. Note that Pierre even makes the shells for his chocolates. Yet another exploit in a world which prizes quantity and profitability over quality. We shall see that making chocolate requires a long apprenticeship, which enables the chocolatier to bring out

soul of the Maison Marcolini

the flavours he wants in his chocolate. But before that, it is important to select crus and find farms which manage to create ideal conditions, so that the beans will be crammed with flavour.

Selecting the plantations

In the same way as wine or coffee, exceptional chocolate is made from high-quality raw ingredients, in this case, cocoa beans. They generally come from small estates which combine highly specific conditions needed for the proper development of the cocoa bean and its organoleptic profile. The quality of the soil and plantations must be of the highest level. They have a real impact on the final quality because the bean stores its characteristic aromas.

Selecting the beans

Selecting crus from exceptional estates is the essential preliminary stage. The best cocoa beans usually come from trees which are neither too old nor too young, but descend directly from the original plantations exploited by the Spanish in South America and other colonists in countries which did not initially grow

cocoa trees. These are called pure strain or old beans. That is the case for Madagascan beans imported by the Dutch for example. Nico Regout Marcolini, cocoa expert at Pierre Marcolini tells: Shade is very important. The plantation must be protected and some producers even plant banana trees which take the strain off the cocoa tree in a storm. Some plantations have outstanding conditions; in Chuao, in Venezuela, the mountains which surround the village and hem it in on the coast prevent insects, which could da-

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nib can then be quite easily removed. This is when the aromas stored in the bean are captured. It is particularly well described in a manual for confectioners and chocolate makers published in 1896*. The manual gives instructions for training professionals and helping them improve their skills and the quality of their creations No matter how good the roaster is, the operation must be supervised by a skilled hand, and an experienced eye and ear,

mage the trees, from reaching the plantation. Drying and fermentation must be done perfectly because that is when the aromas are caught in the bean. It is all made possible by real local knowledge which has gradually been built up over the years. In most cases, the producers we select are real purists who do their utmost to produce a grand cru which is really out of the ordinary.

The secrets of the process

For a chocolate maker, roasting the beans is probably the trickiest operation. About 30 kg of beans are poured into a roaster and heated. The roaster is a cylindrical or spherical vat heated over a low fire and lined with a metal mesh which prevents the beans from touching the burning hot sides of the vat. This operation dries out the cocoa nibs; the husk becomes brittle and the

which can nonetheless still sometimes be deceived by the colour, flavour and sound of the bean. Roasting must be done lightly and gradually and must not go beyond the limits of complete desiccation. When exposed to heat, the kernel of the cocoa tree can easily be separated from its butter, but the process is still delicate. The manual goes on: If roasting is done at too high a temperature, the roaster devours a large part of the food value of cocoa with the cocoa butter; the result is a blackish-brown chocolate which is not very nourishing, and dries and irri-

tates the stomach, like a strong stimulant. If, on the contrary, roasting has not been done at a sufficient temperature, the nib will lose none of its principles, but the butter will not develop, its aromas remain locked in the mass. The chocolate will be heavy, very nourishing, and the stomach, being under stimulated, will have trouble digesting it. The chocolatiers skill lies in his mastery of this stage because the cocoa acquires different qualities depending on the degree of roasting. The greater the quality of the bean, the more carefully its flavours must be preserved, warns the manual. Pierre Marcolini confides: Travelling the world to meet these producers who are so passionate about their work is both a duty and a pleasure. They enable me to discover beans that are ever rarer and more precious. Once they are respectfully processed in our workshop they will yield couverture chocolate that is more delicate, more harmonious, more intense and so more alive! Today, all Marcolini chocolate is made in the traditional way. Pierre Marcolini roasts beans for all his production and even makes the shells of his chocolates. For a chocolatier, selecting and roasting the beans is a way of giving each creation a particular style and taste identity. It all depends what he wants to highlight. The organoleptic characteristics of the beans and the harvests are different each time. To make a judicious choice, he needs flair and must know the characters and qualities of each variety. He must be able to compare them with one another to imagine what they will give when they are combined.

* Le manuel du confiseur et du chocolatier, encyclopdie Roret L.Mulo, librairie-diteur 12, rue Hautefeuille 1896, Paris.

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Pastel,
the sweet side of summer!
f you went past our shop, you have probably already seen our splendid summer collection. Delicious and refreshing, a delight for those who were impatiently waiting for summer. Pierre presents chocolates that break the established codes with mouth-watering results. Subtle fruit sauce teamed up with white and dark chocolate. As usual, the Yuzu and the lime are meticulously hand-grated in our workshop. When the Pastels are being prepared, the scent of fresh mango and passion fruit fills the whole workshop. It is truly mouth-watering. These chocolates should be eaten at 6C, just out of the fridge. Chilling attenuates the flavour. It was a challenge to combine coolness and an optimal flavour balance.

The entire recipe was carefully studied so that the Pastels are at their best at that temperature. They contain very little sugar and even a pinch of salt, with a fine shell of white or dark chocolate for sweetness and structure.

Click here to see how they are made.

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Novelties at E-Boutique
Exciting new products from Pierre Marcolini E-Boutique to delight those who do not live near one of our stores.
the chocolates against impact and temperature variations. We continue to extend our shipping zones to new countries with the priority of delivering our creations to you in the best conditions.

TABLETS

Let us take you into the heart of chocolate making: the work from the cocoa beans, our search for exceptional grand crus and new taste experiences. Why not try our complete range of 17 tablets? You will find the classics revisited as well as our grands crus de proprit and, of course, the limited editions. TREATS

Give in to the enchantment of a square of chocolate delicately sprinkled with dried fruit and nuts. Pierre has invented 15 exclusive creations for you to taste or share. He has worked on the complementarity of flavours and textures between each ingredient and one of his chocolates. A real delight.

Suggestions for trying something new

Click on suggestions to order an assortment which we recommend if you are trying our products for the first time.

New products Shipping under optimal conditions throughout Europe!

You can now have our products sent to all the countries in the European Union. Specially designed controlled temperature packaging protects A NEW FORMAT FOR THE COLLECTIONS You can still fill your boxes with your favourite chocolates. A new single-collection box is now available in addition to the two- and four-collection boxes previously proposed. Novelties are proposed each season which can easily be combined with Marcolinis great classics.

Personalised gifts
Personalisation has been extended to all the products available online. You can now personalise each package and send a message to the person of your choice for each product you send.
www.marcolini-eboutique.com For more information e-boutique@marcolini.be