Betty Stocking

Regarding your question, we can tell you that some of our items contain milk. You can verify this by checking the ingredients list on our packaging. As for the natural flavoring used in our chocolate, it is vanilla extract.

Chocolate keeps its freshness for many months if stored well wrapped, away from strong odors and protected from light, in a cool, dry place, at a temperature between 16-20°C (61-68°F) and 40-65% humidity.

The date shown on our packaging is not an expiration date but a “best-before date” (termine minimo di conservazione). An expiration date, in fact, applies to foods, such as milk, that could become a health risk after that date. In our case, however, “best-before date” means the date up to which the product retains its characteristics intact under suitable storage conditions. It is therefore not possible to state an exact length of time beyond the date shown on the packaging, since this depends on the conditions in which the product has been stored (the optimal storage conditions are those indicated on the packaging, “cool and dry place,” and are the same conditions we apply in our own warehouses: 16-20°C / 61-68°F).

Cocoa butter bloom is recognizable as a grey-white sheen on the surface of the chocolate and is mainly triggered by exposing the chocolates to excessively high temperatures for prolonged periods. The optimal temperature for storing chocolate is between 18-21°C (64-70°F). If chocolate is exposed to high temperatures, the cocoa butter can melt and rise to the surface, where it then re-solidifies, creating those grey streaks, which we refer to as fat bloom. Although visually undesirable, the products are still edible, but their flavor and texture may be affected.

Sugar bloom is a phenomenon that occurs when chocolate is exposed to humidity above 68% RH. While this phenomenon is often the result of overly humid storage, it can also occur when chocolate is kept at a relatively cold temperature, such as in a refrigerator, and is then suddenly moved to a much warmer environment. This creates condensation, moisture forms on the surface and dissolves part of the sugar, the water vapor then evaporates, and the sugar crystals remain on the surface, giving the chocolate a dull, opaque appearance.

Sugar bloom is a phenomenon that occurs when chocolate is exposed to humidity above 68% RH. While this phenomenon is often the result of overly humid storage, it can also occur when chocolate is kept at a relatively cold temperature, such as in a refrigerator, and is then suddenly moved to a much warmer environment. This creates condensation, moisture forms on the surface and dissolves part of the sugar, the water vapor then evaporates, and the sugar crystals remain on the surface, giving the chocolate a dull, opaque appearance.