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1 History of Chocolate
Who discovered it?
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The most detailed recorded history of chocolate starts when the Spanish conquered the Aztecs in what is now Mexico. Hernando Cortez led their subjugation in 1519 and found Cacao beans were used principally as a form of currency but also to prepare a beverage called Xocolatl which was favoured by Aztec emperor Moctezuma. It was the Mayans who first recognised the significance of the beans of the cacao pod, producing Xocolatl from as early as the 6th century AD. In 1895, Harvard Archaeologists discovered clay pots with images of cacao on their exterior in Honduras; these were thought to date to 700 BC. Another team of researchers from UC Berkeley and Cornell University working in Honduras uncovered bowls dating to 1600 BC that they believe the Aztecs used to serve liquid chocolate. (Cocoapro) |
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Cultural significance
The Aztecs called cacao beans Cacahuatl and the Spanish keenly recorded in detail how they were used.
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The Aztecs levied taxation in cacao beans and it seems there were commonly known values for many commodities within the Aztec empire. Items from slaves to turkeys to sex had known value in cacao beans.
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The Aztecs acquired the knowledge to transform Cacao beans into Xocolatl when they annexed traditional Mayan lands. These areas paid tax in the form of cacao beans amongst other items. The higher ranking individuals within Aztec society could afford to spice Xocolatl with native vanilla, pita juice, honey or chilli powder. Less wealthy individuals would prepare the drink more simply, crumbling the cacao paste into a gourd with water and shaking it until frothy. Xocolatl was often prepared by slaves who would continuously stir the mixture to ensure the various components would not settle out. It is said Moctezuma’s slaves prepared this beverage up to 50 times a day and served it in gold beakers. The Aztecs also used Xocolatl in religious ceremonies and associated it with the goddess of fertility, Xochiquetzal.
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The first Connoisseurs of Chocolate
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It was a Franciscan friar, Benhardino de Sahagun who compiled the most complete account of Aztec life, pre conquest and in the language of the Aztecs. From this account it is clear that the Aztecs held a firm grasp of the regional differences evident in the cacao beans produced from each area. It seems that the Aztec market place was knowledgeable and choosy about the appearance, quality and point of origin of the beans they were buying, with many cacao dealers arranging displays of cacao beans emphasising their point of origin. |
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Discovery of the Old World
Although Christopher Columbus did stumble across Cacao beans, it seems that he did not realize their significance other than to note they were used as a form of currency.
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It was Hernando Cortez who introduced the beverage Xocolatl to the Royal Spanish court in 1520, but with the addition of sugar, to sweeten its bitter flavour. The Spanish used boiling water instead of cold water and spiced it with aniseed, almonds, hazelnuts, cinnamon, nutmeg, pepper or ginger. The Spanish may have kept chocolate all to themselves had Italians not voyaged to the West Indies around 1600. This spawned a trade in chocolate to other European centres and resulted in the renown of the Italian “Cioccolatieri” who would go on to influence Germanic chocolate making. |
Chocolate then arrived in France in 1615 when Ann of Austria, the daughter of Phillip II from Spain, married Louis XIII of France. It seems that she simply could not go without this luxurious drink.
The first chocolate shop opened in London in 1657 shortly after the English began to make direct imports from Jamaica in 1655, an acquisition after conflict with the Spanish.
Transformation from a drink
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The first chocolate factories emerged in Europe by the 18th century. In 1728 the first factory appeared in Britain and the Germans first chocolate factory appeared in 1756. By the end of the 18th century chocolate making was an ever more popular endeavour. However, these factories did not produce the chocolate we are familiar with today, rather they provided a mechanized version of the process used by the Aztecs to make Xocolatl. Grinding the beans into a liquid mass, adding spices and flavourings and drying it into a cake for the preparation of a beverage. |
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It was a Dutchman, C.J van Houten who invented the process for separating the cocoa butter and the cocoa liquor. This allowed the liquor to be more finely ground and for the two products to be recombined into a crude (by today’s standards) eating chocolate.
Rodolphe Lindt introduced the process of conching in 1879 and with it the world experienced the joys of modern chocolate for the first time. It made possible eating chocolate with the smoothness and melting properties that modern consumers take for granted. It also meant chocolate was suddenly easier to use in cooking or baking. This is reflected in the recipe books of the time where it is unusual to find recipes containing chocolate before 1890 -1900 that were not for beverages.
Significant evolution
The invention of the Conch allowed more than just the refinement of eating smooth chocolate. It meant that chocolate could be fashioned into many interesting and appealing combinations of confections that artinsanal chocolatiers continue to provide access to today.
It also eventually led to the advent of Single Origin and Single Variety chocolates. These are chocolates that reflect the characteristics of their genetic makeup or the location of their nurture.
This advent perhaps harks back to the time of the Aztecs, when cacao harvesters would undoubtedly have prepared Xocolatl drinks using the fruit they had collected, fermented and dried, the original Single Origin Chocolate.