Read About The Rich History of Chocolate

You might be unsurprised to find that chocolate was an early Mesoamerican drink, though the fact that it was bitter at first might surprise you. This bitter beverage was a continuing important part of Mesoamerica’s religious and social belief system from 250-900 AD, also known as the Classic Period. The beans had to be harvested from rainforests around the Mayan built gorgeous cities. The terms for the cocoa tree and chocolate were “Cacahuaquchtl” and “xocoatl”, the latter of which means “bitter water” in English. They used to ferment and roast the beans then from this they create a paste. The drink was completed through adding chili peppers, cornmeal, and other various substances.

For currency, Aztecs adopted the bean once they began to rule over large portions of Mesoamerica. Due to this integration, chocolate became an integrated part of the Aztec culture. With the Aztecs, the drink was reserved for only royalty, but with the Aztecs, that privilege was extended to priests, honored merchants, and decorated soldiers along with rulers.

Aztecs firmly believed in the power and wisdom giving power of fruits and beans. They also originally believed that cocoa beans would serve as an aphrodisiac. Amazingly, when Christopher Columbus returned to Europe and brought cocoa beans with him, it did not demand immediate attention. Westerners recognized that the beans could be used as currency when more frequent quests went to America.

By this stage, the Aztecs had changed the old Maya name “xocoatl”, into their name “chocolatl”, translated “warm liquid”. In 1519, Hernando Cortex Begin created the first plantation of cocoa trees. The plantation, which was created in the name of Spain, gave the Spanish King Charles the Fifth his first experience of spicy chocolate. The new food gained a delicacy status that was further encouraged once Hernando began adding sugar to the beans through experimentation. Further additives, such as nutmeg, vanilla, cinnamon, and cloves were added to the bean as well.

However, only Spanish nobility were allowed to indulge in the drink and did not share their knowledge with people from other countries. It was the Spanish monks, who were cultivating the beans that informed the rest of the world. Chocolate then became popular all over Europe, mostly as a delicacy, though in some spots the beans continued to have use as a currency.

Undoubtedly, the great love for chocolate continued to spread over the world through the centuries, making it a quite popular dessert today. Although the original sacred brew does not hold the same status as it once did as a religious drink or for royalty only, it has over time, improved in taste. The best news is that dark chocolate has been found to have several healthy benefits, which is great, whether or not it is ever proved to be an aphrodisiac.