100 The Fermentation of Cacao 
to the different districts in which the cacao is 
grown, the variety of beans treated, and the 
method of gathering. It will, however, be 
necessary for planters to test the different lots 
as to taste, &c., in the same way as the tea- 
planter does. 
The time required for oxidation depends on 
the temperature employed and the variety of 
the bean to be cured. The most suitable 
temperature to produce a good quality is from 
40° to 45°C. (104° to 113° F.). I do not men- 
tion any definite time, as I do not wish to 
encourage planters to work by rule of thumb ; 
the best degree of oxidation and the test by 
tasting can alone determine this point. At 
Boa Entrada | used to ferment the beans from 
two to three days. 
The essential principle underlying the 
method I introduced at Boa Entrada is not 
based on the oxidation chambers, but on the 
fact that what is known as cacao fermentation 
consists of two essentially different processes. 
The first leads to the acidification of the beans, 
which object is best attained by exposing the 
freshly gathered beans to conditions under 
which the sugar contained in the fruit pulp 
adhering to the beans becomes converted 
into alcohol, and the latter is then converted 
into acetic acid. We must, therefore, provide 
conditions favourable to alcoholic and acetic 
fermentation. I shall later on show that 
this can be done in a more practical manner 
