Guatemala is the cradle of chocolate

First of all, bitter chocolate is an oxymoron because chocolate means bitter drink. That’s right, we can say chocolate was the bitter drink of Meso America just as coffee was the bitter drink of Africa and Europe or tea in Asia.

“Chocolate is coming back home to Central America, good chocolate at last. The cacao plant has been cultivated here for at least three millennia, the bean used as beverage and a food ingredient. Archaeologists found evidence of cacao cultivation at sites dating back to 1400 BC, with carvings of Maya enjoying the frothy, bitter drink,” explains Ken Veronda in an article for Revue magazine.

Veronda continues, “U.S. standards require only 15% chocolate liquor in chocolate candies. The European Union requires 35%. Good stuff goes up to 70% plus. And that’s the good stuff finally being produced in Central American candy kitchens…”

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