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AGGIE CHOCOLATE FACTORY

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Aggie Chocolate | From Bean to Bar

Cocoa Beans

Step 1: Sourcing Beans

Cacao used in Aggie Chocolate is sourced internationally. Seeds are picked, fermented, and dried in preparation for shipping directly to Logan, Utah. Learn More

Cocoa Beans

Step 2: Sorting and Roasting Beans

The beans are then hand sorted to separate out unedible items and unusable beans. Good beans are placed in the roasting machine and the rest are used for research.

Grinding Beans

Step 3: Winnowing

After the beans are roasted they are placed in the winnower machine, separating the shell from the beans, and crunched into cocoa nibs which are ready for pre-grinding. 

Mixing chocolate

Step 4: Conching

The fine cocoa nibs are then placed in the melanger machine where they are mixed into liquid and refined. Sugar is added at this point to give the chocolate sweetness.

Chocolate being poured

Step 5: Blocking and Tempering

The chocolate is then set in blocks to age which improves flavor. Tempering melts the blocks down to make it smooth, silky, and glossy. This gives the chocolate the crisp snap when broken or bitten into. 

Finished Chocolate Bar

Step 6: Molding

The chocolate is then poured into molds and placed in the fridge to set. Every chocolate bar is inspected for imperfections. If the bar is not good to sell, it is melted back into the tempering machine. 

Student workers at the chocolate factory

Step 7: Packaging

At this point, the chocolate bars are wrapped and ready to be used in Aggie Ice Cream and be sold to the public. 

Finished Chocolate Bar

Step 8: In the Hands of the Consumer

The Thistle and Rose Aggie Chocolate bars are happily consumed by the public and used in the pastries sold in the Aggie Chocolate Factory Cafe.

Community Outreach

Chocolate Mold

The Aggie Chocolate Factory provides opportunities for small business owners and community members to learn about the chocolate making process. Chocolate making and bean sorting can be viewed through glass walls during chocolate production. Short courses in chocolate making will be offered for both industry professionals and the general public. The factory uses top-of-the-line equipment that is available for confectionary companies to use for research and outreach purposes.

Learn More

 

Aggie Chocolates

Chocolate Mold

The Aggie Chocolate Factory will produce the chocolate used in Famous Aggie Ice Cream. Large bars of processed and aged chocolate will be sold to candy makers, and a new Chocolate Café will sell chocolate confections, pastries, and chocolate drinks, along with a line of high-end, high cocoa content chocolate bars. All cocoa beans used at the Aggie Chocolate Factory will be sourced from sustainably farmed operations that receive fair trade prices for their product.

Student Laboratory

Jars of chocolate and a bean

A laboratory for undergraduate as well as graduate students in the food science program. Students will conduct research and outreach for the confectionary industry.

Courses using the Laboratory:

  • Chocolate: Science, History and Society
  • Food Chemistry
  • Food Product Development
  • Food Engineering
  • Sensory Evaluation of Foods
  • Food Crystallization (for graduate students only)

Location & Hours

The Aggie Chocolate Factory is located in the restaurant area of the Aggie Blue Square complex just west of the Maverik Stadium.

Address

1111 N 800 E Suite 140
Logan, UT 84341
Get Directions

Phone & Email

(435) 797-6427
aggie.chocolate.factory.cafe
@gmail.com

Due to COVID-19, the factory and cafe will be closed to the public until further notice.

We will continue to service online orders.

Map to Blue Square