About the process
and all stages of the production flow
Origins Selection
The Quintessence of Bean to Bar
The path to authentic, craft chocolate full of benefits begins with a careful selection of the origins of the cocoa beans. Their quality is influenced by three key factors: genetics, unique terroir (soil and climate conditions), the fermentation and drying process carried out right on the farm.
After multiple tests and meticulous tastings, we chose 7 extraordinary origins for Livstory chocolate: Nicaragua, Uganda, Ecuador, Tanzania, Congo, Madagascar and the Dominican Republic. Each origin carries a story, a unique imprint of the place where the beans grew, capturing the energy of the land, people and nature.
The cocoa beans are harvested, fermented and dried at their origin, then transported to our artisanal shop, where they are turned into delicious tablets. This process preserves all the nutritional values and natural antioxidants intact, transforming chocolate into a superfood that supports health and vitality.
Sorting
The First Step Towards a Premium Product
The journey of the cocoa beans continues with rigorous sorting, which ensures the quality and purity of the chocolate. For us, this process involves three stages:
Mechanical sorting – A vibrating sieve separates the beans based on their size.
Manual sorting – We carefully remove impurities, small, broken or flat beans, keeping only the highest quality beans.
Vacuum sorting – We remove any foreign objects, such as stones or metal particles, to guarantee a pure and healthy chocolate.
Roasting
Unveiling Unique Flavours
Roasting is one of the most important phases of the Bean to Bar process, after selecting the beans. It is the moment when the magic begins to take shape, the stage in which the beans develop their aromatic profile specific to each origin. Each batch requires a unique, artisanal treatment to highlight the distinct notes – from fruity and floral to intense and earthy. This is when the producer truly adds his personal touch and energy on the product.
Roasting temperatures are carefully controlled: between 110 and 130 °C for premium cocoa, preserving all the nutritional properties (compared to 160 and 170 °C for industrial uses). Here, we do not only develop the aromas, but also eliminate harmful bacteria and mycotoxins, ensuring a safe and healthy product.
Crushing & shelling
Cocoa nibs
Grinding & Refining the Beans
Turning it into Chocolate
This is when cocoa becomes chocolate. We grind the beans in two stages:
- Coarse grinding (Grinder) – The beans are turned into cocoa paste, with particles of approximately 200 microns.
- Steel ball mill refining (Ball Mill) – In addition to the (newly formed) cocoa mass, all the desired ingredients are now added, mixed and homogenized to a fine size of 22-25 microns, resulting in a liquid, smooth and rich in flavours chocolate.
This stage keeps all the natural benefits of cocoa intact, giving you a creamy, but also nutritious chocolate.
After this action, the chocolate is sieved with a vibrating sieve, calibrated at 22 microns, to obtain a texture as fine and velvety as possible.
Conching & Maturing
Perfecting the taste
In this stage, the flavours are perfected through heating, mixing and oxygenation.
Using the Conching equipment, we remove unwanted volatile flavours (the acidity of the cocoa) and homogenize the mixture, ensuring a silky texture. Once the desired flavour and consistency are achieved, this stage is complete. It can take from hours to a few minutes, depending on the desired flavour profile.
For special single origins, we leave the chocolate to mature so that each flavour can fully develop, preserving the energy of the place where the cocoa comes from.
Tempering & Crystallization
The art of finishing touches
Tempering is one of the final stages of the Bean to Bar process, a very delicate but essential step in which we stabilize the cocoa butter crystals (by heating and cooling). This process gives the chocolate the perfect texture, attractive shine and an ideal melting point for a premium tasting experience.
After tempering, the chocolate is poured into molds and kept cold in the refrigerator.
Packaging
Attention to Detail
In the last stage, each chocolate bar is wrapped in foil and cardboard, ready to reach the end consumers.
With plenty of respect for nature which gave us these incredible gifts, and a lot of dedication to the Bean to Bar process, Livstory Craft Chocolate is not just a dessert, but also a source of inspiration, health, joy and positive energy.