THE HISTORY OF CHOCOLATE: BETWEEN ORIGIN, EVOLUTION AND MODERN SYMBOL.
“Chocolate is, of course, the stuff dreams are made of. Rich, dark, silky, sweet dreams that trouble the senses and awaken the passions.” - Judith Olney.
It’s no secret that chocolate has been an integral part of our lives for generations. The history of chocolate and its origins go back thousands of years. Its shapes and tastes sublimate our senses, and for many of us, it’s impossible to part with it after a long day.
In Greek mythology, cocoa beans purified the soul and guided the deceased to the afterlife. Nowadays, we love chocolate, savoring it alone after a meal or with loved ones during an event such as Easter or Valentine's Day... But do we really know its history? Where does it come from? How did it end up in our hands? A look back at the birth of an essential human pleasure.
Where does the word “chocolate” come from?
To return to the origin of chocolate, it seems important to return to the meaning of the word . “Xocolatl”, or “chocolatl” comes from the Nahuatl, an ancient Aztec language, and means “bitter water, acid water” . Chocolate was once used in religious rituals, and the Aztecs consumed it mainly as a drink , by grinding the cocoa beans and mixing them with water, herbs or spices.
The first traces of cocoa were found in pottery , as early as 1500 BC. Over time, the product became a currency and in 600 BC, three civilizations used the virtues of the cocoa tree: the Aztecs, the Mayans and the Olmecs.
It was not until 1502 that Europe heard about cocoa for the first time, through a voyage by Christopher Columbus to the island of Guanaja. At that time, the navigator was offered the drink “xocolalt”, which he did not like at all. 26 years later, in 1528, it was another Spanish navigator, Hernan Cortes, who this time decided to bring cocoa beans to the King of Spain so that he could discover the Aztec drink. For Charles V, King of Spain at the time, there was no doubt: Spain must produce and market cocoa. Gradually, the drink became very popular with the Spanish aristocracy and clergy: this was the beginning of the European boom for chocolate .
THE ADVENT OF CHOCOLATE
It is the 17th century, more precisely in 1615, when chocolate arrives in France , in the royal court. Anne of Austria, daughter of the King of Spain Philip III, wishes to marry Louis XIII… On one condition: that her chocolate as well as those who prepare it be present at her wedding .
After the marriage of Louis XIII and Anne of Austria, it was King Louis XIV and Marie-Anne of Austria who revealed their love for chocolate, using it for its energetic and aphrodisiac virtues . It was in 1659 that a chocolate-based drink was sold for the first time in France, in Paris, and that manufacturing workshops developed in the city. From then on, chocolate became a symbol of wealth and power : the chocolate drink was produced to serve the royal family, aristocrats, doctors and religious leaders. The position of “chocolatier du roi” became very popular, and the chocolatières, tall cups with a hole used to insert a frother and whip the chocolate, became essential for the aristocratic and bourgeois classes. It was 1660, and chocolate was the emblem of French royalty.
As for other countries in the world, in England, it was in 1657, after the discovery of chocolate in Jamaica, that the first chocolate shop “Chocolate house” opened. On the other side of the Atlantic, it would take a century for America to discover the benefits of cocoa and produce the flagship drink.
THE INDUSTRIALIZATION OF CHOCOLATE
More than a century later, in 1778, the first industrial machines were created: the hydraulic machine, the cocoa paste mixer and the grinding machine made it possible to significantly increase the quantity of chocolate produced and to make the product accessible to all social classes.
Chocolate factories proliferated throughout Europe in the 19th century, and the first artisan chocolatiers emerged in Switzerland, Holland, France and England. In 1828, Coenraad Johannes Van Houten filed a patent for powdered chocolate, and became the first person to separate lean cocoa from cocoa butter . In 1879, Rodolph Lindt, a Swiss chocolatier, developed a technique called conching , which allowed cocoa paste to be kneaded in vats in order to refine and homogenize it .
This method is still used today by all chocolatiers. It was during this period that the first chocolate brands that we know were born: Côte d'Or in Belgium, Nestlé, Lindt and Milka in Switzerland, and Poulain in France. The first chocolate giant was born in 1929 after the merger of the Nestlé and Cailler companies , and since then, chocolate has never left us!
CHOCOLATE, SYMBOL OF MODERN ROMANCE
In addition to its benefits for the brain and heart (in reasonable quantities!), chocolate has also become over time a proof of love and tenderness . It was at the end of the 14th century that an English chocolatier had the idea of selling his chocolate in heart-shaped boxes. Tradition had it that these boxes would later be used to exchange sweet words with one's lover. Nowadays, chocolate opens the door to a multitude of emotions: love, comfort, support, or even seduction. However, even if offering chocolate can have several meanings today, it is important to remember that chocolate lovers always meet at the borders of gluttony .
Now you know all the secrets of chocolate.
FAUCHON CHOCOLATE
FAUCHON has been offering its customers exceptional chocolates for 137 years, combining know-how and finesse. The goal remains the same: to awaken the senses and provide pleasure to FAUCHON chocolate consumers. Pascal Caffet , Meilleur Ouvrier de France and World Pastry Champion, and his entire team work throughout the year with quality ingredients, in order to aim for excellence .
