A Very Brief History Lesson

Since before its discovery in the New World in 1502 by Christopher Columbus, and then its introduction to the Spanish courts in 1528 by Hernan Cortes, chocolate has been one of the world's greatest epicurean delicacies.
Prized by the ancient Mayans and Aztecs for its aphrodisiac and energizing qualities, chocolate, in the form of crushed cocoa beans derived from the seeds of the cacao tree , was originally consumed as a beverage. The Spanish promptly added sugar to make the chocolate more palatable, planted cacao trees throughout their colonies, and kept their find a secret from the rest of Europe for the next one hundred years.
By the mid-1600s, drinkable chocolate was widely available throughout Europe, though it was still considered a luxury and consumed mostly by the upper classes. Recognizing chocolate's financial potential, other countries soon followed Spain's agricultural lead and cacao plantations quickly sprang up in Sri Lanka, the West Indies, Venezuela, Sumatra, and Java. Chocolate made its way back across the ocean with the settlers relocating to colonies, and in 1765 the first chocolate factory in colonial America opened its doors.

The 1800s was a great century for chocolate innovation: Cocoa powder was developed, the preferred form of chocolate consumption went from liquid to solid, the Swiss added dried milk to the recipe to create milk chocolate, the Industrial Revolution brought chocolate to the masses, and Milton Hershey founded the Hershey Chocolate Company. But chocolate as we think of it today really evolved in the twentieth century. Most of the candy bars we, our parents, and or grandparents grew up with were invented within the last one hundred years. Filled chocolates, first produced in Switzerland in the early part of the century, owe their present popularity to a handful of higher-end chocolate companies and their marketing message of chocolate as the affordable luxury.


During the past decade, a new sector has been created within the chocolate industry: handmade artisan chocolates. As pastry chefs have become chocolatiers, bringing their artistic abilities to the art of making chocolate, the entire look and feel of luxury chocolates has changed. Classic flavor combinations have given way to unusual and daring ones, and spices and herbs, once relegated to savory cooking, are now found in chocolate. Pastry chefs have also influenced the look of chocolate. Their design capabilities, combined with the computer technology that allows chocolatiers to create colourful, intricate designs, patterns, and logos on individual pieces of chocolate, have resulted in chocolate that looks as extraordinary as it tastes.