[hn_throwaway_99]

The article brings this up, but I'd say that in general home "bean to bar" chocolate isn't worth it unless you have chocolate conche machine, which you can get for about $300-$500 online. Otherwise you're going to end up with something quite gritty with a bad mouthfeel.

[BugsJustFindMe]

> chocolate isn't worth it unless you have chocolate conche machine

This, like many other ideas about roasted bean products, is a silly universalization of some individual's arbitrary preference. It's like saying that all mushrooms _must_ be minced because someone didn't like the texture of whole mushrooms at one point. Or that coffee beans must be Arabica for...reasons...when billions of people preferentially drink Robusta.

I love unconched chocolate and strongly prefer it over conched. Taza in Somerville, MA is regionally famous for their delicious, distinct, gritty unconched chocolate.

[hn_throwaway_99]

I mean, yes, obviously a post to a public comment board is going to reflect my own personal preference. While I haven't had the particular brand you mention, I have tried many other versions of stone-ground chocolates, and they always taste like chocolate with sand to me. To each their own, though.

[BugsJustFindMe]

> I mean, yes, obviously a post to a public comment board is going to reflect my own personal preference.

Ok. There's a difference in public discourse between "I personally didn't like the feel of the unconched chocolates I tried" and a universalized claim about what is or isn't "in general worth it" for someone else ("you"/"you're") to do.

Saying that someone else shouldn't do something because you don't like it imagines yourself as the universal subject.

[SyzygistSix]

Finding the correct roast takes some time as well. The roasting temperature varies between ~6 degrees Celsius and that variation can make a lot of difference in terms of the flavors that the roast brings out, and every type of bean is different. But I would imagine the process would be rather satisfying. I would add that a gritty feel is not a dealbreaker. There is a Mexican chocolate company, Taza? I think, that makes a more "traditional" grittier chocolate. It is quite enjoyable.

[hnrj95]

not sure how familiar you are with south indian cuisine, but the machine we use to make dosa batter also serves reasonably well for this purpose

[jeffreyrogers]

I personally like the grittier chocolates, but that might be uncommon.