How to Read Callebaut Chocolate Packaging

Callebaut is one of the most popular and well-established chocolate brands among chocolatiers. For years, it has been the go-to option not only for professionals but also for companies ordering chocolate-based gifts. Many aspiring chocolate makers begin their journey with Callebaut—whether baking cakes at home or crafting their first chocolate bars.

This popularity often leads professionals to reverse-engineer its characteristics. Understanding how to read a Callebaut label can significantly help when formulating your own recipes.

Understanding the Three-Digit Recipe Code

Each Callebaut chocolate recipe is identified by a three-digit number. For example: 811.

• First digit: Indicates product type
  • 8 = Couverture chocolate (min. 32% cocoa butter)
  • 6 = Light-colored chocolate with caramel notes
• Second digit: Indicates chocolate type
  • Odd = Dark chocolate
  • Even = Milk chocolate
• Third digit: Historical recipe sequence

Examples:

• 805 = Sixth dark couverture recipe
• 823 = Fourth milk couverture chocolate
• 665 = Light milk chocolate with caramel notes

Decoding the Six-Digit Code

These codes reflect the proportions of key ingredients. Example: 70-30-42.

• 70 = Cocoa content (70.5%)
• 30 = Sugar content
• 42 = Cocoa butter content, indicating fluidity

Other examples:

• 60-40-38 = Dark chocolate with 70% cocoa, 40% sugar, 38% cocoa butter
• 70-30-44 = Dark chocolate with high fluidity

Special Cases

Power 80 is a dark chocolate emphasizing flavor intensity, with a likely composition of 80-20-44.

White chocolate is marked by letters, e.g., W2 means the third white recipe. Velvet is a less sweet, creamier white chocolate.

Fluidity Explained

Fluidity is marked from 1 to 5 drops. The more drops, the more fluid the chocolate:

• 1–2 drops: Low fluidity. Best for baking and thick molds.
• 3 drops: Medium. All-purpose use, with around 35% fat.
• 4–5 drops: High to very high. Ideal for shells, glazing, airbrushing, or dragee coating.

Fluidity Adjustments

Rheology describes chocolate’s flow behavior and can be adjusted by adding cocoa butter. For example:

• 2811 = Higher fluidity. Great for thin glazing or chocolate shells.
• L811 = Lower fluidity. Ideal for ganache or mousse.

How to Read Variants

• Less fluid: A letter before the number (each letter = -0.7% cocoa butter)
• More fluid: A number before the recipe code (each number = +0.7% cocoa butter)

Examples Without Fluidity Markers

• 70-30-38 = 38% cocoa butter = medium-low fluidity. Best for ganache and mousse.
• 70-30-44 = 44% cocoa butter = high fluidity. Best for glazing and shells.

Conclusion

Understanding Callebaut’s labeling system allows you to make informed decisions when selecting chocolate for specific applications—or when trying to recreate its properties in your own recipes.

Keep in mind: while you can match the technical aspects, flavor is shaped by your choice of ingredients. In dark chocolate, cocoa mass dominates. In milk, it’s the interplay of cocoa and milk powder. In white, flavor comes almost entirely from the milk base.