236 The Fermentation of Cacao 



Oleum theobromae is, however, the only 

 constituent which is entirely absent from the 

 sweatings of the second and third days of 

 fermentation ; it must therefore, for purposes of 

 analysis, be considered a fixed quantity, and 

 the proportions of the sugars, theobromine, 

 cacao red, &c., to the fats be gauged in the 

 fermented and unfermentecl beans of the same 

 sample, for this is the only way of deciding the 

 approximate amount lost from the kernel of the 

 bean during fermentation. 



Glucose. The percentage of this in the 

 uncured beans may be said to vary inversely 

 with the percentage of sucrose (cane sugar) 

 present. The two together form i to \\ per 

 cent, of the cacao. In the well-fermented 

 dried beans there is only a trace of glucose 

 present. In other samples it may be found 

 that there has been only a slight loss, or per- 

 haps even a gain ; the reason of this is that 

 the sucroses and starches have been con- 

 verted into this sugar, which in its turn has 

 not undergone further fermentation, or else 

 some of the sugar in the saccharine pulp which 

 has a high percentage has diffused in. 



Sucrose. This is always absent from the 

 cured, cacao, having been inverted to glucose 

 and thus to alcohol and acetic acid. 



Starch. This is from jo per cent, to 1 2 

 per cent, of the cured cacao. There has been 

 a slight loss ; this is dependent on the degree 

 of fermentation. 



