What to Know About Ruby, Gold and Other Alternative Chocolates

When it comes to buying chocolate, the typical consumer usually chooses between three types – dark chocolate, milk chocolate or white chocolate.  

For years, different companies have created new colors, flavors and concepts in a battle to become the fourth major type of chocolate. From ruby chocolate to gold chocolate, we examine alternative varieties of traditional chocolate that can heighten the consumer experience.

How is chocolate made?

Chocolate making is a tedious process from start to finish. Chocolate originates from the fruit of the tropical tree Theobroma cacao, which grows pods that contain pulp and cacao beans.  

The pods are harvested and fermented together for several days to reduce the bitterness, tartness and acidity. Once dried, they’re roasted and the shells are removed to leave the center of the bean (called cocoa nibs) that includes cocoa solids and cocoa butter. The nibs are ground into a paste called cocoa mass. 

This grainy mass then undergoes a process called conching, which heats and grinds it into a finer consistency. The frictional heat melts the mixture into cocoa liquor and the cocoa butter is then extracted from the liquid using high pressure, leaving cocoa solids behind. Cocoa butter makes up about 55 percent of a cocoa bean. 

The cocoa solids form the base of chocolate bars or candy, with cocoa butter added back in along with sugar and other ingredients. 

Types of chocolate

There are three main types of chocolate – dark chocolate, milk chocolate and white chocolate.  

Dark chocolate

Dark chocolate contains cocoa solids, cocoa butter, vanilla and usually an emulsifier. The amount of cocoa solids ranges from at least 35 percent to 70 or 80 percent.  

There are two types of dark chocolate – semisweet and bittersweet. Semisweet chocolate has more sugar and a lower cocoa content (at least 35 percent), while bittersweet has more cocoa (usually 50 percent or more) and less sugar. Dark chocolate is firmer than milk chocolate because it has less sugar and no milk. 

Milk chocolate

Milk chocolate is a mix of cocoa solids, cocoa butter, vanilla and milk (either milk powder or condensed milk). The addition of milk powder makes the chocolate softer and easier to melt. Milk contains sugar (lactose), so milk chocolate is sweeter than dark chocolate.  

Most commercial candy is made from milk chocolate. In the U.S., milk chocolate must contain at least 10 percent cocoa liquor, 12 percent milk solids and 3.39 percent milk fat.  

White chocolate

White chocolate is a blend of cocoa butter, milk powder and sugar. Many people think white chocolate isn’t chocolate, but the base mixture still contains cocoa butter which comes from the cocoa bean.  

The flavor profile of white chocolate is mostly sweet with notes of milk and cream, but it lacks the fruity or bitter taste of dark or milk chocolate. In the U.S., white chocolate must contain at least 20 percent cocoa butter, a maximum of 55 percent sugar and sweeteners, at least 14 percent milk solids and 3.5 percent milk fat. 

Alternative chocolates

Aside from dark, milk and white chocolate, there are several other sweet trends that have developed in the past decade or two. This list includes ruby chocolate, gold chocolate, vegan chocolate and functional chocolate. 

What is ruby chocolate?

Of all the newer chocolate trends, ruby chocolate has gained the most traction since it debuted in China in 2017. Contrary to some belief, ruby chocolate isn’t made from a secret red cacao bean. Instead, it uses the same cacao beans as regular chocolate – the only difference is how it’s processed. 

The specific processing steps are a trade secret developed by the company Barry Callebaut, but the general idea involves using fruitier, less fermented cacao beans treated with acid to maintain a pink hue.  

When raw, cacao beans have a purplish-redish color. The longer the beans ferment, the more they change color. By reducing the fermenting time and adding citric acid, the cacao beans maintain a bright color. Additionally, fatty acids are added to preserve the color.  

From there, the beans are mixed with sugar, milk powder and other flavorings to complete the process. The final product contains 47 percent cocoa (a mix of cocoa butter and cocoa mass) and 26 percent milk. 

Ruby chocolate tastes like a fruity version of white chocolate, highlighted by notes of raspberry and lemon. The combination of under-fermented cacao beans and citric acid provide the fruity flavor, while the sugar and milk balance it out with sweetness. 

What is gold chocolate?

At a glance, gold chocolate looks like white chocolate that has been dyed gold. Yes, in its simplest form, gold chocolate is essentially white chocolate combined with caramel. But this new concoction doesn’t rely on colors or flavorings. 

Instead, during processing, caramelized sugar and caramelized milk are added to create a unique mix of flavors – the taste profile is caramel-forward with notes of toffee, butter cream and a hint of biscuit. Alternatively, some products simply cook white chocolate down until it caramelizes. 

To create these flavors, the mixture is heated at a lower temperature for a longer period of time. The result is what is known as the Maillard reaction, which occurs when amino acids and sugars in the milk react to create the compounds (called melanoidins) that give browned food its color and a toasty flavor. 

Gold chocolate (also called blonde chocolate) isn’t quite as sweet as white chocolate, as it contains about 30 percent cocoa butter and 28 percent milk. Some cheaper, commercialized products don’t even use cocoa butter, instead relying on vegetable oil as a source of fat. 

What is vegan chocolate?

Vegan chocolate describes any chocolate that doesn’t contain animal products. To make vegan chocolate, manufacturers use dairy-free milk alternatives such as oat milk, coconut milk or almond milk. 

But vegan chocolate doesn’t always need to have a dairy-free alternative to be vegan. Dark chocolate is typically naturally vegan because milk isn’t used during processing. By comparison, milk chocolate, the most common type of chocolate, contains dairy in the form of cow’s milk and therefore isn’t vegan. 

Finding vegan chocolate can be tricky because some brands won’t use milk or milk powder, but they still aren’t vegan if they contain dairy derivatives such as whey, casein or milk solids. 

Be wary of chocolate bars marketed as “plant-based chocolate” – chocolate is already plant-based since cacao beans come from the cacao tree. 

What is functional chocolate?

By definition, a functional food is any food with an active compound that provides health benefits beyond basic nutrition. As an example, whole grains contain fiber that can help with bowel health while also lowering cholesterol. 

Chocolate, mainly dark chocolate, can be considered a functional food because it’s rich in flavanols such as epicatechin, catechin and procyanidins. Flavanols are a type of flavonoids, a group of plant compounds with antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. 

During the past decade, food manufacturers have sought to make chocolate bars more desirable to health connoisseurs. That said, so-called functional chocolate is chocolate produced with better-for-you ingredients than the typical bars made with cocoa liquor, sugar and stabilizers. 

The ingredients used in functional chocolate vary, but they share one common theme of carrying added purported health benefits. 

One company, Joya, produces chocolate bars with ingredients such as Lion’s mane and reishi (two types of mushrooms), astragalus (an Asian plant supplement with antioxidant properties), rhodiola (a European plant known to provide energy) and ashwagandha (an evergreen shrub from Asia and Africa that may help with insomnia or stress). 

There is even a brand called Functional Chocolate Company that markets chocolate bars for specific needs – for better sleep, to help focus or to relieve aches and pains. For example, one chocolate bar contains Boswellia serrata, a tree native to India that has anti-inflammatory properties, arnica, an herb used to reduce swelling and white willow bark. White willow bark contains salicin, which has similar properties to aspirin. Another option, a chocolate bar meant to be eaten at nighttime, contains melatonin and magnesium, two supplements that can help regulate neurotransmitters associated with helping you fall asleep. 

For more information on trending health and wellness topics, visit the INTEGRIS Health For You blog.