Ganache Production — The Cacao Estate at NOVUS

1. Purpose of This Document

Volume II established the Tier 1 production model: pre-made Callebaut and Valrhona callets, tempered, molded into custom CC-monogrammed shells, finished with toppings. The active menu already lists three filled pieces (milk caramel, milk hazelnut praline, white lavender + honey), which means the chocolatier will be running shell-fill-cap workflow from day one — and ganache is the standard fill for any serious bonbon program.

This document covers (a) the ganache production process step-by-step, (b) where ganache fits inside the existing prep-room workflow, and (c) the incremental equipment beyond what’s already specified in the BOH equipment list. The headline: the equipment delta is small. The process discipline is what matters.

2. What Ganache Is, and Why It Earns Its Place

Ganache is an emulsion of chocolate and a liquid (cream, fruit purée, or alcohol-based infusion) at a controlled fat-to-water ratio. When piped into a tempered chocolate shell and capped, it produces a soft-centered bonbon — the format that defines a modern chocolate bar’s high-margin offerings. A 12-gram ganache bonbon retails at $4–6 with food cost in the $0.45–0.75 range; that is materially better than a solid molded piece and considerably better than caramel or praline fills.

For Cacao Cellars specifically, ganache also expands the pairing program. The wine-by-the-glass list anchors on Tawny Port, PX Sherry, Banyuls, Sauternes, and Vin Santo. Each of those is a textbook ganache pairing — a soft, flavored center responds to a sweet fortified the way a solid chocolate cannot. Adding a single seasonal ganache flavor to the lineup gives the staff a new pairing story every six to eight weeks without any change to the bar program.

3. The Ganache Production Process, End to End

The full cycle from cream-on-the-stove to bonbons-in-the-display-case takes 36–48 hours, almost all of which is unattended rest time. Active labor for one batch (~80–120 finished bonbons) is roughly 90 minutes spread across two days.

Day 1 — Shell production (~45 min active)

Temper the shell chocolate in the Selmi Plus EX.
Pour into the polycarbonate mold, vibrate to release air, invert over a parchment-lined sheet pan to drop excess chocolate (this leaves a thin, even shell). Scrape the mold face clean.
Set inverted on the marble for 5–10 minutes until the shell crystallizes, then flip upright. The mold is now ready to receive ganache once the ganache has set up overnight.
Hold the empty-shell molds at 60–65°F overnight (room ambient is fine; no refrigeration).

Day 1, parallel — Make the ganache (~30 min active, then rest)

Standard dark-chocolate ganache for filling, 80-piece batch:

250 g 70% Callebaut callets (chopped finely or used as-is)
200 g heavy cream (35% butterfat)
30 g glucose syrup or invert sugar (extends shelf life, prevents sugar bloom)
40 g unsalted butter, room temperature, cubed
Optional flavoring: 15–25 g spirit, 30–50 g fruit purée, or infused cream (steep aromatics in the cream during heating, strain before mixing)

Steps:

Heat cream + glucose to 185°F (just below boil). The induction burner already specified for hot chocolate prep handles this — no new heat source required.
Pour hot cream over chocolate in a tall narrow vessel. Wait 30 seconds. Begin emulsifying with an immersion blender, keeping the head submerged to avoid pulling air into the emulsion.
When the mixture reaches ~95°F, add the cubed butter and continue blending until glossy and homogeneous. The ganache should pull off the blender in a single thick ribbon.
Transfer to a clean container, press plastic film directly onto the surface, and rest at 60–65°F for 12–18 hours.

Non-negotiable The 12–18 hour crystallization rest is essential. Piping warm ganache into shells causes them to crack from thermal shock and shortens shelf life by half.

Day 2 — Pipe, cap, demold (~45 min active)

Transfer the rested ganache to a piping bag with a small round tip (or a chocolate funnel for higher precision).
Pipe each shell to ~85% full, leaving ~2 mm headroom for the cap. Tap the mold to settle and release any air bubbles.
Allow the ganache to skin over for 4–8 hours. The chocolatier typically pipes in the morning and caps after lunch.
Re-temper the same chocolate, pour a thin layer over the open mold, scrape clean with a long offset spatula. This is the cap that seals the bonbon.
Crystallize at 60–65°F for 30–45 minutes, then refrigerate the mold at 50°F for 10–15 minutes to contract the bonbons and release them. Invert the mold over a tray and tap — the bonbons drop free.

Storage and shelf life

Cream-based ganache bonbons are shelf-stable at 60–68°F for 14–21 days when properly capped. The cap is what extends shelf life; an exposed ganache lasts 5–7 days at most. Refrigeration is not recommended for finished pieces — condensation on transfer to room temperature ruins the gloss and accelerates sugar bloom. Display-case holding at the chocolate prep room ambient (65–70°F) is correct, with batched production sized to a 7–10 day window so the lineup always reads fresh.

4. Where Ganache Fits in the Existing Prep-Room Workflow

The chocolate prep room layout in Vol. II §6 already accommodates ganache production without modification. Specifically:

The east-wall stainless prep table is the staging surface for cream heating, immersion blending, and ganache cooling. The induction burner moves from the back bar to this prep table for the 30-minute cooking phase, then returns. No dedicated burner is required in the prep room.
The west-wall reach-in (specified at 50–55°F for chocolate finished goods) doubles as the ganache rest container during the 12–18 hour overnight crystallization.
The marble work surface is where shells are produced, capped, and demolded — the same surface used for Tier 1 solid pieces.
The vibration table handles air-bubble release on both shell pour and cap pour. Same machine, same cycle.
The two under-counter True TUC-24-HC fridges hold ganache batches in progress, capped finished pieces destined for retail packaging, and any flavoring components (purées, infusions) that need cold storage. Cream lives in the 38°F unit Tuesday through Saturday.

5. No Stove Required — the Induction Burner Handles Ganache

A common assumption is that ganache production needs a built-in stove. It does not. The Vollrath Mirage Pro 1800W induction burner already specified in the back-bar equipment list handles all cream heating for ganache without any addition to the BOH buildout.

How it works in practice

The Vollrath lives on the back bar, where it does double duty for hot chocolate prep during service. On a ganache production morning — typically Tuesday or Wednesday before the bar opens — the chocolatier walks it the ~30 feet from back bar to the prep room and sets it on the east-wall stainless prep table. Cream heats to 185°F in 5–7 minutes. The burner returns to the back bar before service. It weighs about 14 pounds with a carry handle, and this is a normal workflow for small chocolate shops.

Why this is better than a built-in stove

Avoids the Type I grease hood requirement. A gas range in the prep room would force a $15K–$50K hood install — the single biggest cost-saving validation in the entire BOH plan. Induction sidesteps this entirely because there is no open flame and no grease load.
Doesn’t fight the chocolate-room climate. Even an electric coil stove adds ambient heat the mini-split has to fight against the 65–70°F target. Induction generates heat only in the pan; the room stays at temp.
No additional electrical or plumbing. The Vollrath is plug-and-play on a standard 120V/15A outlet.
Already in the equipment list. Zero incremental capital cost. The burner was purchased for hot chocolate service; ganache is a second use case that comes free with the existing buy.

One small adjustment The saucepan listed in the equipment delta below must be induction-compatible. The two recommended models — All-Clad d3 Stainless 2-qt and Vollrath Tribute 78404 — both are. The field test is simple: a magnet sticks to the bottom of an induction-compatible pan. Aluminum and copper-bottomed saucepans will not work on the Vollrath; stainless steel and cast iron will.

If portability becomes friction: Down the road, if the chocolatier finds the back-and-forth between back bar and prep room annoying, a second identical Vollrath Mirage Pro 1800W (~$1,000) can live permanently in the prep room. That’s a year-2 nice-to-have, not an opening necessity.

6. Equipment Delta — What to Add

Adding ganache to the program requires modest incremental investment beyond the existing Tier 1 build. Total delta is approximately $400–$700 for the essentials, $1,800–$2,500 if every nice-to-have is included from day one. Recommendation: buy the essentials at opening, defer the precision items to month 3–6 once the chocolatier has weighed in on workflow preferences.

Essentials (buy at opening)

Item	Why it’s needed	Cost	Recommended model
Immersion blender, commercial 10″ wand	Ganache emulsification — standard whisks aerate the mixture and break the emulsion. Non-negotiable.	$180–280	Waring WSB40 or Robot Coupe MP350. NSF, variable speed.
Digital probe thermometer (instant-read)	Cream temperature target is 185°F ± 3°F. Visual judgment is too imprecise.	$60–120	Thermapen ONE — the industry standard. ±0.5°F accuracy, 1-second read.
Saucepan, heavy 2-qt with pour spout	Cream heating vessel. Heavy bottom prevents scorching; pour spout for clean transfer.	$60–120	All-Clad d3 Stainless 2-qt or Vollrath Tribute 78404. Induction-compatible.
Tall narrow emulsion vessel (1.5–2L)	Immersion blenders work best in tall narrow containers — keeps the blade submerged.	$30–60	Cambro 6-qt round translucent food container.
Disposable piping bags + couplers + small round tips	Ganache delivery into shells. Disposable bags are correct for food safety.	$80–140	Ateco 18″ disposable bags (case of 100), plus #2/#3/#4 round tips and coupler set.
Offset spatula, 9–12″ stainless	Capping the molds — the long offset scrapes the cap chocolate flush across the mold face.	$20–40	Ateco 1308 (8″ offset) for shell work; Ateco 1314 (14″ offset) for capping.
Digital scale, 0.1g resolution, 5kg capacity	Ganache is a ratio recipe — gram-precise weighing is what makes the emulsion stable.	$80–150	My Weigh KD-8000 (workhorse) or Escali Primo for budget.
Essentials subtotal (low–high)			$510–910

Nice-to-have (add in month 3–6 once the chocolatier weighs in)

Item	Upgrade rationale	Cost	Recommended model
Chocolate funnel (manual depositing funnel)	Replaces piping bags for high-volume runs. Gram-perfect deposits, less waste.	$120–280	Matfer Bourgeat chocolate funnel with stand, or Ateco confectionery funnel.
Mini bain-marie / chocolate warmer	Holds tempered chocolate for capping while the Selmi runs the day’s main batch.	$200–450	Mol d’Art 6 kg chocolate melter or ChocoVision Choco Chef.
Refractometer (Brix / sugar concentration)	Optional precision tool for fruit-ganache and caramel work.	$40–90	Atago PAL-1 or any 0–32 Brix digital refractometer.
Acetate sheets + chocolate transfer sheets	For sandwich-style ganaches and decorative finishes — enables a third bonbon format.	$60–150	Pastry Chef Central or Chef Rubber starter kits.
Stand mixer with paddle (for whipped ganache)	Enables a second ganache style — lighter, mousse-like centers.	$400–700	KitchenAid Pro 600 (residential, sufficient) or Hobart N50 (commercial).
Silicone bonbon molds (alternative format)	For frame-set ganache slabs cut into squares — the hand-cut, dipped style.	$40–120 each	Silikomart Professional series, food-grade silicone.
Nice-to-have subtotal (full kit)			$860–1,790

7. What You Specifically Do NOT Need

Worth being explicit about, because pastry-supply catalogs will try to sell every one of these:

Dedicated ganache machine (e.g., Selmi Top automatic ganache mixer): $8,000–18,000. Vastly overscaled for 80–120 piece batches.
Enrobing machine: $15,000–40,000. Required only for dipped (non-molded) bonbons at production volume.
Cooling tunnel: $20,000+. The marble surface and the 50°F reach-in already cover crystallization at your batch size.
Second tempering machine for cap chocolate: ~$5,800–7,400. Unnecessary. The Selmi Plus EX holds 12 kg and the cap pour uses the same chocolate — you simply re-temper between phases.
Industrial cream pasteurizer: $4,000+. Buy pasteurized heavy cream from a commercial dairy supplier. Done.

8. Recipe Library — Six Ganaches to Launch

These six cover the menu architecture: each pairs cleanly with one of the existing chocolate molds (square, dome, round) and with one of the fortified wines on the BTG list. Run the first three at opening; rotate the second three in for seasonal release.

Ganache	Composition (per 80-piece batch)	Shell	BTG pairing
Classic dark	250g 70% Callebaut, 200g cream, 30g glucose, 40g butter	70% dark, square, sea salt finish	Tawny Port, Banyuls
Espresso dark	250g 70% Callebaut, 200g cream infused with 15g whole espresso beans, 30g glucose, 40g butter	70% dark, square, espresso bean garnish	Pedro Ximénez Sherry, Vin Santo
Milk caramel	Caramelized 80g sugar deglazed with 200g cream, 280g Callebaut 823 milk, 40g butter, fleur de sel	Milk chocolate, dome, salt finish	Tawny Port, Pedro Ximénez
White lavender honey	280g Callebaut W2 white, 180g cream infused with 4g culinary lavender, 25g local honey, 30g butter	White, round, lavender bud finish	Sauternes, Crémant d’Alsace
Raspberry dark (seasonal)	260g 70% Callebaut, 130g cream, 80g raspberry purée, 30g glucose, 30g butter	70% dark, square, freeze-dried raspberry dust	Banyuls, Lambrusco Rosato
Bourbon vanilla milk (seasonal)	280g Callebaut 823 milk, 180g cream infused with 1 vanilla bean, 20g Knob Creek bourbon (added late), 35g butter	Milk chocolate, dome, vanilla bean fleck garnish	Knob Creek neat, Pedro Ximénez

These recipes are starting points — the chocolatier will refine them in week 1–2 based on the specific cream brand, the actual ambient humidity in the prep room, and personal flavor balance. The ratios are sound at the percentages shown (40–50% chocolate by weight for dark, 55–60% for milk, 60–65% for white).

9. Operational Considerations

Food safety and labeling

Ganache containing dairy is a TCS food (Time/Temperature Control for Safety) under the NC Food Code during production. Cream must be held below 41°F before cooking and the finished ganache must drop below 70°F within 4 hours of cooking.
Once the bonbon is capped, it is no longer TCS — the chocolate cap and the low water activity (typically 0.7–0.8 aw for cream ganache with glucose) take it out of the rapid-spoilage category. This is why ganache bonbons can sit at room temperature in a display case while a piped ganache cake cannot.
NC Department of Agriculture wants production logs for batched food: date made, batch size, ingredient lot numbers, and pull date. The chocolatier should maintain this in a bound notebook in the prep room.
Allergen labeling is required at point of sale. The bonbon menu card needs dairy / nut / alcohol callouts per piece.

Throughput at the stated production volume

Vol. II §8 sets the target at 100–150 pieces per night across 4–6 active varieties — say 600–900 pieces per week against the four open evenings. If two of those varieties are ganache bonbons (e.g., the milk caramel and one rotating dark), that is approximately 200–300 ganache bonbons per week, or 2–3 ganache batches per week at the 80–120 batch size. That maps to one ganache production day per week — typically Tuesday or Wednesday morning — with capping happening Wednesday or Thursday and inventory feeding Wednesday–Saturday service plus Sunday brunch.

The 25–30 hour weekly schedule for the chocolatier comfortably absorbs ganache work. Estimated time allocation: 4 hours for two ganache batches, 8 hours for solid molded production, 4 hours for inventory and ordering, 6–8 hours for finishing and quality control. Total: 22–24 hours, with headroom for seasonal recipe development and the optional class program.

Cost of goods on a ganache bonbon

For a 12-gram milk caramel ganache bonbon at the standard $4 price point:

Shell + cap chocolate (~6g Callebaut 823 at ~$13/kg wholesale): $0.078
Ganache center (~6g, blended food cost ~$11/kg): $0.066
Sea salt, packaging, label allocation: $0.035
Total food cost: ~$0.18 per piece. Food cost percentage: 4.4%. Gross margin: 95.5%.

Note that this excludes labor allocation, which is the dominant cost — at the chocolatier’s hourly rate, fully-loaded labor adds approximately $0.40–0.55 per piece, putting the total cost in the $0.60–0.75 range. The economics are favorable but not free; volume discipline matters.

10. Recommendations & Decisions to Make

Concrete next steps once the chocolatier is hired:

Buy the essentials kit (~$510–910) as part of the opening equipment order. None of these items have lead times.
Defer the nice-to-have list until the chocolatier has worked the prep room for 60–90 days. Mini bain-marie and chocolate funnel are the most likely month-3 additions.
Validate ganache assumptions during the chocolatier’s working interview. Add one ganache emulsion to the existing 90-minute paid working session.
Coordinate with École Chocolat curriculum if the owner is taking that program in parallel with buildout.
Confirm dairy supplier early. Heavy cream quality varies meaningfully — the 35% butterfat target requires a commercial dairy line, not generic grocery. Restaurant Depot, Performance Foodservice, and Maple View Farm (Hillsborough, NC, local) are the three to evaluate. Local dairy is a marketing story; restaurant-supply dairy is consistency. The chocolatier should choose.

Back to Chocolate Production