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| The
earliest record
of chocolate
consumption
dates from the
Classic period
of the Ancient
Maya of Mexico
and Central
America. The
Maya and their
ancestors made
chocolate into
a spicy drink
(cacao paste
mixed with chili
peppers, vanilla
and other ingredients)
that they used
in ceremonies. |
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| The
Aztec, between
the 13th and
16th centuries,
were among those
who had to trade
for cacao and
often required
that citizens
and conquered
peoples pay
their tribute
in cacao seeds—a
form of Aztec
money. Like
the earlier
Maya, the Aztecs
also consumed
their bitter
chocolate drink
seasoned with
spices, and
sometimes with
honey (sugar
was unavailable
to them). |
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| Columbus encountered
a great Mayan
trading boat
carrying cocoa
beans. |
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| Europe’s
first contact
with chocolate
came during
the conquest
of Mexico in
1521. The Spaniards
recognized the
value attached
to cacao and
observed the
Aztec custom
of drinking
chocolate. Soon
after, the Spanish
began to ship
cacao seeds
back home.
An expensive
import, chocolate
remained an
elite beverage
and a status
symbol for
Europe’s
upper classes
for the next
300 years. |
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 When
the Spanish
brought cacao
home, they doctored
up the bitter
brew with cinnamon
and other spices
and began sweetening
it with sugar.
They managed
to keep their
delicious
drink a Spanish
secret for
almost 100
years before
the rest of
Europe discovered
what they
were missing.
Sweetened
chocolate
soon became
the latest
and greatest
fad to hit
the continent. |
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| The
first chocolate
house was opened
in London. |
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Because cacao
and sugar
were expensive
imports, only
those with
money could
afford to
drink chocolate
and it was
considered
a beverage
for the elite
class. In
fact, in France,
chocolate
was a state
monopoly that
could be consumed
only by members
of the royal
court.
Like the
Maya and the
Aztecs, Europeans
developed
their own
special protocol
for the drinking
of chocolate.
They even
designed elaborate
porcelain
and silver
serving pieces
and cups for
chocolate
that acted
as symbols
of wealth
and power. |
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| Cacao
and sugar were
labor-intensive
agricultural
products. To
keep up with
the demand for
chocolate, Spain
and many other
European nations
established
colonial plantations
for growing
these plants.
A combination
of wage laborers
and enslaved
peoples were
used to create
a plantation
workforce. |
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The
French artisan
Debuisson invented
a table to grind
cocoa. It still
needed manpower
but it  made
the processing
more efficient
and the hard
work a little
more comfortable. |
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| The
cocoa
tree got
an official
Latin
botanical
name from
Linnaeus:
Theobroma
cacao.
The name
refers
to the
mythical
background
of the
tree and
means
literally:
“cocoa,
food of
the gods”. |
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Chocolate
was introduced
to the
United States
when Irish chocolate
maker John Hanan
and Dr. James
Baker built
the first chocolate
mill in America
in Dorchester,
Massachusetts. |
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| For
centuries, chocolate
had remained
a handmade luxury
sipped only
by society’s
upper crust.
But by the 1800s,
mass production
made solid chocolate
candy affordable
to a much broader
public.
The Industrial
Revolution
witnessed
the development
of an enormous
number of
new mechanical
inventions
and ushered
in the era
of the factory.
The steam
engine made
it possible
to grind cacao
and produce
large amounts
of chocolate
cheaply and
quickly. Later
inventions
like the cocoa
press and
the conching
machine made
it possible
to create
smooth, creamy,
solid chocolate
for eating—not
just liquid
chocolate
for drinking. |
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| In France,
Doret built
the first machine
that automatically
ground cocoa
beans. |
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| Dr
Joseph Fry of
Bristol, England,
employed a steam
engine for grinding
cocoa beans,
which led to
the manufacture
of chocolate
on a large factory
scale. |
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| Francois-Louis
Cailler
opens
up the
first
Swiss
chocolate
factory. |
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| Dutchman
Conrad
Van Houten
patented
a method
for separating
cocoa
solids
from cocoa
butter.
This |
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| invention
helped cut prices
and improve
the quality
of chocolate.
His alkalizing
process became
known as “Dutching”. |
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Joseph
Fry & Son
discovered a
way to mix some
of the cocoa
butter back
into the “Dutched”
chocolate, added
other ingredients
to make a paste
that could be
molded –
the result was
the first chocolate
bar for eating. |
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Introduction
of the first mass
marketed boxes of
chocolates by the
Cadbury brothers. |
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| After
eight
years
of experimenting,
Daniel
Peter
of Switzerland
developed
the world’s
first
milk chocolate
bar. |
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| Rodolphe
Lindt of Switzerland
produced a more
smooth and creamy
chocolate that
melted on the
tongue. He invented
a machine that
churns the paste
squeezed from
cacao seeds into
a smooth blend
(conching), giving
chocolate a new
texture. |
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| Candy
maker Milton S.
Hershey built
a chocolate factory
and started to
produce milk chocolate
using modern,
mass-production
techniques that
made the product
more affordable
to all. |
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Jean
Neuhaus invented
a chocolate
shell that he
could fill with
cream or nut
pastes.
The praline
is now almost
synonymous with
Belgian chocolate.
He also designed
an appropriate
package to hold
his treasured
chocolate praline
gifts called
a ballotin box.
Throughout the
world, chocolate
made in Belgium
is easily recognized
for its rich
taste and textures
and delicate,
yet complicated
flavors. |
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| Jules
Sechaud of Montreux
introduced a
machine process
for manufacturing
filled chocolates. |
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Astor
Chocolate opens
its first chocolate
factory in the
United States
producing unique,
delightful chocolate
confections
and setting
trends well
into the next
millennium. |
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