Chocolate: currency, comestible, commodity

Random thoughts on the book, The True History of Chocolate by Sophie and Michael Coe.

While considering the question of, “What is this book about?”  with the obvious answer being chocolate. I cannot help but feel it is about more then that. The first thing that struck me was that this is a story about a man’s devotion to his wife. Additionally, I feel there is an important cautionary tale at work [if I may interject a topic of discussion from another class] and that is the value in properly cataloging research. When Sophie passed a way her husband, Michael, picked up her research and continued to write her book. He did this out of respect and with dedication to helping his wife achieve her goal. Now this may not happen often, but isn’t the point of research ultimately to share it with people? I suggest there is incredible value in maintaining research in a way that if one was to step in front of a bus today another researcher could pick up your research tomorrow and gain value from the work that was left behind and the Coe’s book is an example of this.

Now to chocolate, is it currency or is it a comestible? Well that depends on who you are and what your station is in life. When ten cacao seeds can purchase a rabbit for you family to have for dinner it is difficult to consider consuming them as a single beverage. Additionally, even if a person did want to consume it as a beverage, said person must hold the proper station in a given society to consume chocolate as it was reserved for the noble and or warrior classes. Now the Coe’s research shows us this changes over time and we eventually arrive at the place where chocolate is available to everyone (thank goodness).

The proliferation of the cultivation of cacao and then production chocolate was interesting, in the beginning those with land cultivated it, Criollo, though it was the high quality variety with superior flavor and aroma, but with lower yield and it is susceptible to disease. Later, hardier, higher yielding forms, Forastero, were cultivated and produced, again, not as well liked as the Criollo. Then a hybrid was developed [perhaps by accident] aiding in production, but the Coe’s suggest there is a question of how much industry is willing to sacrifice superior flavor for an edge in commercial production. Now in Hawaii a producer is moving back to the original temperamental but superior in quality Criollo variety.

Chocolate consumption in the Old World, like sugar, starts out as medicinal, as evidenced by Philip II sending his royal physician to investigate, and then a beverage of nobility. Now, this is where the cultural aspect of the commodity plays out (over an extended period of time) eventually working its way to a beverage of the masses.   

Other interesting points for me are the way society arrived at the word chocolate from the word cacahuacuauhuitl and the participation of Jesuits in the proliferation of the beverage throughout the Christian empire.

In closing, though it may have taken hundreds of years to get here, I am happy to sample the finished products of great artisanal producers like Vosges Haut-Chocolates that strive to maintain sustainable practices in the entire value chain.