Chocolate Alternative in the World of Upcycling: Get to Know THIC!
We've got an incredibly exciting development to share with you today, marking a true culinary upcycling milestone! Copenhagen's Amass restaurant has long been recognized among the world's best. Well, until they closed their doors to the public and shifted their focus to sustainable and innovative culinary solutions research and development. To our delight, the institution, now renamed endless food company, is concentrating on circular solutions, on upcycling.
Last April, Forbes magazine covered the cocoa-free chocolate alternative they were working on. Our eyes sparkled when we saw that our favorite ingredient, spent grain, was getting a revolutionary new use.
THIC, or This Isn't Chocolate, offers an experience like no other. The harmony of flavors, environmental consciousness, and innovation converge in a single chocolate substitute. While we'll have to take their word for the taste for now, the videos and images showcasing the product have undoubtedly piqued our visual appetite.
Isn't it wonderful how upcycling adds value and gives a new life to an ingredient? In this case, the malt has already fulfilled its well-known role in the brewing process. The remaining spent grain, as the example shows, can be used not only as animal feed but also transformed into nutrient-rich delights in various ways.
Since 2021, we've been making breakfast cereals (granolas) from this underrated product of beer brewing. Soon, our next product will be available, providing an excellent fiber- and protein-rich alternative as a beer snack or accompaniment to various dips.
THIC's sustainability goes beyond waste reduction. The cocoa and chocolate supply chain is one of the most critical aspects in terms of transparency. By choosing bean-to-bar chocolates, we can support controlled, as short as possible, and fair processes from cocoa production to processing. We can also alleviate a significant burden from the current system, which often exploits producers, by creating alternative products from ingredients like spent grain, which, while not cheaper and lower in quality, are certainly more sustainable. Note: Did you know that cocoa processing also generates a significant amount of by-products? But that's a topic for another post...
#funfact Julcsi has already met and had the opportunity to exchange upcycling ideas with Matt Orlando, one of the founders of Amass and now endless food company, at several international events. Most recently at last year's Food on the Edge symposium in Ireland, where she brought delicacies made from spent grain. Have you seen our tasting videos?
We hope this blog post has been inspiring and informative for you. We're already on the waiting list! As soon as we have the opportunity to taste it, we'll report on the experience of THIC - This Isn't Chocolate.
If you're planning a trip to Copenhagen soon, be sure to stop by Il Buco restaurant or La Banchina (a super chill spot in the Christianshavn neighborhood, perfect for swimming and snacking) and try THIC-made delicacies!. If someone brings some back for us, they can expect a generous serving of Secontaste love in the form of snacks ;)
While you wait to taste THIC, click over to our webshop, where, although our chocolate and mocha granola still contains 72% cocoa, you'll find plenty of upcycled brewer's spent grain alongside it.
As upcycling pioneers and on behalf of the Secontaste team, we wish you all a day filled with gastronomic discoveries!