The ‘Chocolate Man’

Published 11:54 am Monday, March 3, 2008

It’s one of those instances when you think you know a guy. And then you learn that outside the workplace he’s called the “Chocolate Man” — a name he’s trademarked.

“A lot of people know me as the ‘Chocolate Man,’” said Bill Fredericks, a resident of Lake Forest Park for 16 years. “My chef jackets have the monogram.”

With a full-time job as a physical oceanographer at the University of Washington, Fredericks has a rather unusual hobby that involves chocolate and much of his spare time. He sells slabs of chocolate out of the basement of his home, which are perfect for baking, and teaches chocolate courses in the evening and on weekends.

“When I’m teaching (chocolate classes), people are surprised that I’m an oceanographer,” said Fredericks, 55, “and then the oceanographers are surprised until I bring in truffles … and then they’re aware.”

Fredericks’ oceanography career is what he refers to as job “number one,” meaning that he usually devotes evenings and weekends to pursuing his hobby.

About 17 years ago, Fredericks founded the “Chocolate Man” business. He typically stores about 2,000 pounds of chocolate — and many more times that amount during Christmas time — on racks in his basement where the temperature is “cool enough.”

Chocolate is delivered directly to Fredericks’ home either from factories in the U.S. that send “pallet loads” or from European importers.

“It’s not much to look at; what is more fun is actually melting, dipping and working with it,” said Fredericks, who sells about 50 varieties of what he calls “quality couvertures” made with 100 percent cocoa butter products.

A dozen online orders come in per day during the holidays, but during the off-season he receives about three orders a day. Because he has a full-time job, Fredericks enlists the help of one of his sons and his daughter-in-law.

Customers are mostly small business owners or people wanting to buy small amounts of chocolate. The success of his business, said Fredericks, is his willingness to sell small quantities of chocolate with a one-pound minimum. When buying from a factory, there’s a 500-700 pound minimum, he said.

About five years ago it was difficult for “normal people” to find quality chocolate, said Fredericks, who stresses the importance of using quality chocolate when baking.

“You can’t use chocolate chips or Hershey’s,” said Fredericks. “You have to use the high-end chocolate, called couvertures.”

An interest in chocolate didn’t surface until Fredericks was helping his wife, Linda, make truffles when both were in graduate school. As a short-order cook who made pastries in order to put himself through school, Fredericks said he was able to show his wife how to melt chocolate.

Although made with chocolate chips, the truffles “turned out well,” said Fredericks, realizing the potential to make even better truffles.

“I knew (chocolate chips) were not a high-quality chocolate and worked with some chef friends to get some high-quality chocolate,” said Fredericks. “I’d buy a block or two blocks at a time.”

He started buying quality chocolate for other friends and eventually was purchasing so much he decided to start his own business. Further impetus was that he was looking for a supplemental income in order to save college tuition money for his two sons, who are now both “off and married.”

“There was a market need for it,” said Fredericks, who is a member of the American Association of Candy Technologists, which has the objective of advancing the confectionery industry. “It’s been expanding ever since.”

With an established business, Fredericks didn’t start teaching chocolate courses until about 14 years ago as he “didn’t have enough knowledge or skills until that point,” he said.

He has certifications from Callebaut and Cocoa Barry chocolate schools, which are located outside the U.S. Big chocolate manufacturers offer speciality chocolate schools taught by renown chefs throughout the world, he said.

And although he specializes in truffles and what he calls “chocolate fancy work,” Fredericks also teaches classes on line cooking and main courses.

At a Chocolate Truffle Workshop on Jan. 27 at Sandpoint Education Center, Fredericks and another chocolate worker taught a six-hour course to 11 students, who learn the history of chocolate, how to make ganaches (the truffle filling) and how to temper chocolate.

With chocolate spread thin on a marble slab in front of him, Fredericks also showed the students how to make chocolate fans and curls. He suggested they make chocolate garnishes at home, then store them in Tupperware to top off various desserts.

“Put a couple of these on top of a Duncan Hines cake with canned frosting and people will say ‘Oh my gosh, where did you get a cake like that?’” he joked.

Although he frequently teaches independently, Fredericks often doubles up to teach courses with Elizabeth Peckham, a former student of his with whom he’s been teaching for 12 years.

After taking a few of Fredericks’ classes, Peckham, who now owns her own hand-rolled truffle business, Heavenly Chocolates, became interested in the chocolate field. Before pursuing her interest in chocolate, she had a different career.

“We complement each other well in teaching.” said Peckham. “Bill is quite the scientist and my background is in architecture and art.”

Fredericks is able to answer questions on a scientific level while she’s more of an expert on the art and design aspect of chocolate, she said.

People who take chocolate courses are not necessarily professional cooks, but just people who are interested in chocolate, she said.

“I do think people leave with a much better appreciation of chocolate,” Peckham said. “Hershey’s doesn’t do it for them anymore once they’re introduced to the forbidden fruits.”

Attending the chocolate truffle course after his daughter signed him up for the class as a present for his 64th birthday, Bob Poland said he’s always been fascinated with making chocolates. As a boy, he started making caramels for his mother.

“It was fun and was so much better than what I could get at a store out of a bag,” said the University Place resident.

Poland later came up with a few good chocolate recipes and made them for people as Christmas presents. Retired now, he said he may as well “take the time to really learn how to do it,” so he can teach his grandchildren.

“Maybe with a little luck one of the grand kids will turn out to be like the guy in Seattle who started Dilettante Chocolates,” he said.