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Ready-to-drink (RTD) beverage has gained increasing attention for its practical use. Unfortunately, the use of Indonesia cacao derivates, particularly those originated from West Sumatra, for the development of RTD chocolate has not been studied. In this study, market research was performed by employing the Kano model to investigate consumers’ needs and expectations on an RTD chocolate beverage. The result shows that among the twelve attributes investigated, sedimentation was categorized as a reverse attribute indicating that the presence of cocoa sediment could cause dissatisfaction to the consumer or the absence of it could cause satisfaction. To avoid sedimentation, liquid extract from cacao nibs was used in the development of RTD chocolate beverages instead of dissolving and dispersing cocoa powder. Further investigation on the effect of the extraction method on the sedimentation and sensory attributes was carried out. Extraction of 10-30 mesh-sized West Sumatra cacao nibs using hot water at 95ºC for 10 minutes resulted in a significant decrease of sediment compared to the extract that was prepared from cocoa powder. Improvement of West Sumatra cacao nib extraction method is needed to enhance the sensory of RTD chocolate beverage.

ready to drink, chocolate beverage, Kano model, West Sumatra cacao, cacao nib extraction