Callebaut names its recipes by number, and each number is a different tool. 811 is the all-purpose dark. 823 is the all-purpose milk. W2 is the white. 70-30-38 is the intense dark with body. Ruby RB2 is the pink one.
Pick by what you are making, not by cocoa percentage. Percentage tells you about flavour intensity; fluidity tells you how the chocolate will behave in your hands. You need both.
The short answer
| If you are making | Reach for |
|---|---|
| Moulded bonbons, enrobing, general dark work | 811 |
| Milk bars, bonbons, milk ganache | 823 |
| Ganache and fillings that must hold structure | 70-30-38 |
| Moulding, colour work, white mousse | W2 |
| Something pink and tangy, used pure | Ruby RB2 |
811 — the dark workhorse
54.5% cocoa · medium fluidity
If a kitchen keeps one dark chocolate, it is usually this one. 811 has been the professional standard for decades because it does everything competently: moulds cleanly, enrobes at a sensible thickness, sets with a good snap, and behaves predictably batch to batch.
The flavour is balanced rather than assertive — roasted cocoa, mild bitterness, no sharp edges. That makes it a good base when the filling is the star.
Best for: ganache, moulding, enrobing, baking
Callebaut 811 Dark Chocolate Callets — 54.5%
823 — the milk standard
33.6% cocoa · medium fluidity
The milk counterpart to 811, and just as ubiquitous. Caramel warmth, creamy body, enough cocoa presence that it does not read as candy.
Where milk chocolate usually fails is in ganache — the milk fat makes it slack. 823 holds up better than most, but expect to use less cream than you would with dark. The ratios are here.
Best for: bars, bonbons, ganache, baking
Callebaut 823 Milk Chocolate Callets — 33.6%
70-30-38 — intensity with structure
70.5% cocoa · low fluidity
This is where the fluidity point matters most. A 70% chocolate with low fluidity is a specific tool: deep bitter intensity combined with enough body to hold a shape.
That combination is what you want for a ganache that sets firm, a filling that keeps a defined layer instead of bleeding into sponge, or a bake where the chocolate should survive the oven rather than dissolve into the crumb.
What it will not do well is fine moulding. Forced into a detailed mould it traps air and leaves thick walls. Use 811 for that.
Best for: ganache, fillings, mousse, baking
Callebaut 70-30-38 Dark Chocolate Callets — 70.5%
W2 — the white benchmark
28% cocoa · medium fluidity
White chocolate lives or dies on sweetness balance, and W2 is the reference point most chefs measure others against. Vanilla and dairy forward, sweet but not cloying.
It is also the base for colour work. White takes cocoa-butter colouring cleanly, which is why decorated and coloured pieces almost always start here.
Note the working temperature: white needs 28–29 °C, several degrees cooler than dark. Treat it like dark and you will scorch the milk solids.
Best for: moulding, colouring, mousse, decoration
Callebaut W2 White Chocolate Callets — 28%
Ruby RB2 — the fourth type
32.8% cocoa · medium fluidity
Ruby is not white chocolate with colouring added. The pink and the berry tang both come from the ruby cocoa bean itself — no dye, no fruit flavouring, no additives. The full story is here.
RB2 is the second-generation recipe: brighter pink and a punchier flavour than the original. Blood orange, elderberry, a creamy dairy base, and a fresh sourness underneath.
The advice from Callebaut’s own chefs is worth repeating: use it pure wherever you can. The colour and the tang are the product. Bury it in a dark filling and you have wasted both.
One practical note — ruby is light-sensitive. Prolonged exposure dulls the colour, so keep finished pieces out of display sunlight.
Best for: bars, bonbons, glazes — used pure
Callebaut Ruby RB2 Chocolate Callets — 32.8%
Can you substitute one for another?
Within the same type and similar fluidity, usually yes. Across types, no — and the failures are predictable.
Swap 811 for 70-30-38 in a moulded bonbon and you get thick, air-trapped shells. Swap 70-30-38 for 811 in a ganache and it sets soft. Swap dark for milk anywhere and you will need to rebalance the cream, because milk fat behaves differently.
If you are substituting, match fluidity first and cocoa percentage second. The fluidity mismatch is what actually ruins a batch.
What about the rest of the range
These five cover most of what a kitchen needs, but Callebaut’s catalogue runs much deeper: origin chocolates, single-plantation selections, Fairtrade lines, and specialised recipes for panning and spraying.
If you are working on something these five do not quite suit, tell us what you are making and we will point you at the right recipe.
Related reading
- Which chocolate for which dessert — the same question from the dessert’s side
- Chocolate fluidity explained — why the number beside the percentage matters
- Callebaut vs Cacao Barry — which house suits your kitchen
Antalia Wholesale is an authorized Canadian distributor of the Barry Callebaut Group — Callebaut, Cacao Barry and Van Leer. We hold couverture in Concord, Ontario, and ship across Canada. Case pricing applies automatically on eight bags or more.
