In a tastefully designed cafe in Hyderabad, a flutist performs a tune dealing with an viewers wearing all inexperienced. The music is supposed to enliven that tall spectator. It might not sway or clap, however it’s standing tall, and that’s what issues to the musician.
At Manam Karkhana, a newly opened craft chocolate retailer at Banjara Hills in Hyderabad, chocolate is taken critically. The viewers includes a lone cacao tree, planted aesthetically contained in the indoor seating house, and music remedy is utilized to make sure the tree survives the unfavourable terrain.
In Andhra Pradesh’s West Godavari district, identified for hanging the best cacao manufacturing within the nation, farmers and staff adhere to strict protocols. Manam sources cacao from a choose group of progressive farmers who agreed to work in response to their preferences. Women and men sing songs to foster a way of unity whereas fastidiously breaking the cacao pods with picket golf equipment as a substitute of sickles, because it might injury the beans inside. As soon as once more, Manam takes each step of its chocolate-making course of very critically.
The Hyderabad-based model, based by entrepreneur Chaitanya Muppala doubles up as an R&D manufacturing facility of sweets the place excessive care is taken, proper from scientifically nurturing cacao timber to unconventionally creating sweets, all geared toward enriching the flavour and style of their numerous vary of end-products.
In contrast to Charlie, who needed to win a golden ticket to enter Willy Wonka’s fantasy chocolate manufacturing facility in ‘Charlie and Chocolate Manufacturing facility’ film, Manam (which interprets to ‘We’ in Telugu) Kharkana (manufacturing facility) is extra life like, but equally fascinating and accessible to everybody.
The doorway to the outlet is within the type of a large chocolate pill, and clients are warmly welcomed by the sight of a thick chocolate fountain. As soon as inside, you’ll discover the hand-casted terrazzo flooring impressed by cacao plantations. Adorning the partitions is a transparent message in regards to the philosophy of the staff behind Manam—they’re farmers, fermenters, chocolatiers and storytellers, all rolled into one.
On the colorful cabinets are Manam’s pill collections, which incorporates 43 totally different varieties. Most notable amongst them is the ‘Single farm sequence’. Merely flip the bar round, open your digital camera and scan the code and voila! You might be transported to the farm from which the chocolate’s cacao beans had been sourced. It contains the farmer’s identify and pictures of the farm in addition to the method concerned in it. That is a method Manam desires to recognise and respect its farmers.
In West Godavari district, Manam, by means of its sister concern District Origins, has partnered with 100 farmers cultivating over 1,500 acres of cacao farms. The vast majority of different farmers within the area are concerned in industrial-scale manufacturing catering to multinationals. Chaitanya, the founding father of Manam and District Origins, invested near three-four years to check the market and has initiated a motion to deal with bettering the genetics of the cacao farms on this a part of the nation.
Farms related to Manam broadly bear 5 distinct steps, which represent an elaborate train in comparison with the normal approach of mass cultivation and processing adopted by different farmers.
Step one is harvesting the place every tree-ripened pod is reduce solely on the peak of its flavour. Every cacao tree is able to producing 20-30 pods. The subsequent step entails breaking the pod to separate the outer shell from the wholesome beans. From right here, the seeds go into the unique fermentery of the Manam group. The beans and its surrounding white pulp extracted from a pod are positioned in picket packing containers lined with banana leaves and jute luggage. Over a 6-8 day interval, the beans bear a sequence of biochemical reactions to develop aroma and flavour. Put up that, the beans are dried, alternating between publicity to solar and shade, to take away extra moisture for a interval of 1 to 2 weeks. The ultimate stage entails sorting and bagging, the place faulty seeds are separated, and solely the high-quality beans are bagged and dispatched to the Manam retailer in Banjara Hills.
The remainder of the journey unfolds right here. Batches of dried beans are roasted, cracked, milled, couched and tempered by means of varied machines which might be on show in clear enclosures on the retailer. The shoppers can observe these processes to get a greater understanding of what goes into making sweets. As soon as the tremendous chocolate is prepared it winds up on the desk of head chef, Ruby Islam and her staff, who remodel the principle ingredient into craft sweets and confections.
On the menu are bonbons, truffles, fudge, brownies and cubes made with varied combos together with native banana varieties like Chekkar Keli. Moreover, there are chocolate snacking choices like crispy clusters and barks, that are hand-broken chocolate slabs. Considered one of their merchandise not too long ago received an award on the Worldwide chocolate awards as nicely.
Nonetheless craving data about chocolate? Then head to Manam classroom, the place workshops are held for tasting classes and data alternate on the subject. There’s additionally a nook the place one can order a customized chocolate pill, just like ordering a Subway, share your identify, choose your elements and in a couple of minutes you’ve got your individual chocolate bar printed along with your identify. Manam has certainly set the chocolate ‘bar’ actually excessive for its rivals.
