The story of dark chocolate began over 2000 years ago.  In 1492 Columbus found the Aztec drinking a bitter dark chocolate drink called xocoalt (sho-ko-lathl) or bitter water.   Made from ground cocoa (kah-kow) beans, boiled in water with a touch of spice, the ancient Mayans and Aztecs made this bitter, dark chocolate drink an integral piece of their culture. The ancient civilizations of South America probably considered the bitter taste pale when compared to the health benefits.

 Columbus took the beans from which this chocolate drink was made back to Spain; and the rest is history.  The Spanish aristocracy kept it to themselves for over 100 years. The bitterness was a challenge to the Spanish palate, but it wasn’t anything a little sugar couldn’t handle. Prized for its health benefits and aphrodisiac properties it was the best kept secret of Spain.

 In 1643 the Spanish Princess Maria Teresa offered her husband, Louis X1V an ornately decorated chest with the Spanish secret elixir as an engagement gift.

It is a secret no more.  After the Italians got their hands on the chocolate drink, it found its way to Germany, Austria and Switzerland.  It was not until the industrial revolution that chocolate became assessable to the masses.

Led by Hershey, in America we learned to like our chocolate even sweeter and with added milk, much like our coffee.  In whatever form, the love affair with chocolate knew no bounds.

At the turn of the 20^th century, a funny thing happened; we rediscovered the health benefits of dark chocolate.  The studies are endless empirically validating what the Mayans and the Aztecs knew thousands of years ago.  Free radicals are now under fierce attack.  While it’s not quite xocoatl, the Myans and Aztecs would be proud.