What Exactly Is Chocolate Liquor? (Hint: It is NOT Chocolate Liqueur.)

All dark chocolate on the market starts with chocolate liquor. It is an essential component of all milk chocolate and is actively changed to produce white chocolate, but what exactly is chocolate liquor? Is it the same as chocolate liqueur, or is it something else entirely, like cacao liquor? In this post, we’ll answer those and other frequently asked questions concerning chocolate liquor and dark chocolate, both of which have some similarities with the Filipino delight tableya.

Chocolate Liquor Definition

Chocolate liquor has several other names, including cacao liquor, cacao mass, baking chocolate, cocoa liquor, cocoa mass, and even plain chocolate. Whatever you name it, this liquid is derived from cacao beans (also known as cocoa beans or cocoa nibs) and includes nearly equal amounts of cocoa solids and cocoa butter. Chocolate liquor got its name since it was the liquid or fluid from which chocolate was made many years ago when the item was named.

This implies that all chocolate bars include some chocolate liquor, correct? Not exactly, to be sure. There are three sorts of chocolate that are officially recognized: milk, white, and dark. Although both milk and dark chocolates include some chocolate liquor, white chocolate is required by law to contain exclusively cocoa fat, commonly known as cocoa butter.

Milk chocolate is a hybrid, since whereas dark chocolate is mostly cacao and sugar, milk chocolates are mostly cocoa butter and sugar, with a little chocolate liquor and milk powder thrown in for good measure. Yet, chocolate liquor adds much more than taste to the finished product. Chocolate liquor contains the same nutritional profile as cacao beans, including high amounts of magnesium and zinc, heart-healthy antioxidants, fiber, and some protein.

Chocolate Liqueur Definition

Chocolate liqueur, on the other hand, is an alcoholic beverage that tastes like chocolate. Creme de Cacao and Godiva Dark Chocolate Liqueur are two such examples, both of which contain cacao nibs to impart their distinct tastes. Since there is no conventional definition for a chocolate liqueur, a wide range of recipes have arisen throughout the years.

Chocolate liqueur recipes from such firms seem to fall into two categories: cream-based and clear. Baileys Chocolate Cherry and Mozart Dark Chocolate Cream Liqueur are two cream-based chocolate liqueurs, whereas cremes de cacao are the most frequent clear chocolate liqueurs. Crme de cacao is a chocolate-flavored liquor (typically chemically flavored) created from clear alcohol (usually vodka). I

It’s pretty prevalent at bars, but not typically seen in a home bar setup, so if this is the first time you’ve heard of it, you’re not alone. And if you’ve ever mistaken chocolate liquor with chocolate liqueur, you’re not alone. The two are so often confused that even Wikipedia refers to chocolate liquor as the culinary component formed from fermented cocoa beans that is frequently confused with chocolate liqueur.

Is it better to drink chocolate liquor or cocoa liquor?

Now, not to derail the excellent definitions above, but there is a third cacao product to consider here: cacao liquor. Cacao liquor is technically a fruit wine, while chocolate liquor is pure chocolate in liquid form and chocolate liqueur is an alcoholic chocolate beverage. The chocolate tree, Theobroma cacao, only produces cacao fruits, the seeds of which are picked, fermented, and dried to produce the cacao beans that are used to make chocolate (it doesnt actually bear finished chocolate bars).

Yet, the fruits themselves are highly juicy, and some varietals yield much more juice than others, far more liquid than could conceivably be required to fully ferment the cacao seeds. Farmers have turned to extracting the cacao juice from the seeds and fermenting it separately into an alcohol known as cacao liquor over time. Cacao liquor is therefore best defined as the fermented juice of the cacao tree, with a highly sweet lychee-like taste that is crisp like apple cider.

This is a fantastic product that is difficult to get off the farm, but if you do come across it, know that it will not taste like chocolate. Hence, whereas cocoa liquor (also known as cacao liquor) is an alcoholic liquor similar to a fruit wine, chocolate liquor is unsweetened liquid chocolate.

What Is the Purpose of Chocolate Liquor?

Chocolate liquor is used in a wide range of products, from ice cream and confectionery to coffee-based drinks, since it offers a rich, well-known taste even in little amounts. It also serves as the foundation for both milk and dark chocolate; when the cocoa solids are removed, the cocoa fat is utilized to produce white chocolate. Yet most people know chocolate liquor by its more appealing name: baking chocolate.

It should not be confused with cocoa powder, which is essentially a defatted form of chocolate liquor with less than 10% fat in commercial settings. Food firms frequently get their chocolate liquor from a huge cacao processor, whose identity is difficult to locate since they exclusively cooperate with other food manufacturers. These major cocoa processors often supply various cacao-derived goods to their industrial customers, such as cacao nibs, entire beans, cocoa powder, and cocoa butter.

On a lesser scale, chocolate liquor is used in the production of bean-to-bar chocolate to evaluate the quality of a sample of cacao beans. The seeds are processed and prepared without the addition of sugar or milk, and then evaluated carefully to determine their potential without any flavor disturbances. Such test batches are typically tiny, weighing just a few kilograms or less, and most producers run multiple tests concurrently to experiment with various roasts and conche periods.

Recipe for Homemade Chocolate Liqueur

Here is the formula for those of you trying to replicate something like the Godiva chocolate liqueur line, which seems to have done rather well for them over the years. Consider this an alcoholic hot chocolate that you can store in the pantry for special occasions. At the end, you’ll have a bottle of cream liqueur with a rich chocolate taste, ideal for that chocolate martini you’re planning for dessert tonight (no? Is it just me?).

To begin, you’ll need an alcoholic foundation, such as bourbon (whiskey), tequila, vodka, or basically any grain alcohol you choose. I appreciate the neutral taste of vodka in any cocktail, although everyone has their own preferences. To provide the vanilla + dairy undertone we anticipate from anything chocolate flavored, most people use vanilla extract + whole milk + sugar (or sweetened condensed milk). I love combining the two procedures since it lasts longer than simply milk and more closely resembles the Godiva version.

Ingredients for Chocolate Liqueur:

• 2 cups/500ml clear liquor (I prefer vodka, but rum is also good)
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 3.5oz/100g of baking chocolate (1 large bar)
• 1 cup whole milk
• 1 can/14oz. sweetened condensed milk, room temperature (NOT evaporated milk)

To prepare this chocolate liqueur, just boil your milk in a nonstick saucepan over low heat until it just starts to simmer. While the milk is heated, slice the chocolate into thin slivers or little bits, depending on your preference. Turn off the heat when the milk is heated but not boiling and quickly add the chocolate. Let it to settle for two minutes before whisking the melty liquid together. After the hot chocolate has melted, gently pour in the room temperature condensed milk, mixing constantly. Lastly, carefully drizzle in the vanilla extract and finally the selected alcohol, forcefully mixing everything together. Refrigerate the combination for several hours or overnight before serving, ideally over ice.

Chocolate Liquor Frequently Asked Questions

If you have any queries about chocolate liquor, please leave a comment below!