How to eat chocolate

ASSESSING AND TASTING CHOCOLATE

Before tasting chocolate, take a few sips of water or lime juice to refresh the palate, and repeat between tastes.
 

Appearance

The chocolate should be smooth and have a high gloss.

Smell

The chocolate should not smell excessively sweet.  The aroma of chocolate will vary greatly.  Chocolate made from good quality cacao beans can produce floral, nutty, grassy, spicy, sweet and woody aromas.  Chocolate made from poor quality cacao beans can product aromas of rubber, ripened fruit or even staleness.

Sound

The chocolate should be crisp.  Well-tempered chocolate should make a distinct ‘snap’ when broken.  If it splinters it is too dry.  If it resists breaking it is too waxy.

Touch

Chocolate with a high cacao butter content should start to melt when held in the hand – this is a good sign. 

Taste

The basic flavours are bitterness with a hint of acidity;  sweetness with a suggestion of sourness and just a touch of saltiness which helps release the aromas of cocoa and vanilla.

Place a piece of chocolate in the mouth and wait a few seconds.  Primary flavours and aromas come out.  A good quality chocolate should feel firm and melt in the mouth without sticky or grainy texture.  Chew the chocolate slightly to release secondary flavours, and any flavours of the filling. 

ARE THERE HEALTH BENEFITS FOR CHOCOLATE?

 Centuries ago sorcerers prescribed cacao both as a stimulant and as a soothing balm.  Early warriors took it as an energy-boosting drink and cacao butter was used for dressing wounds.  During the 15th century chocolate was prescribed as a medicine to boost weakness in the body, and in the 17th and 18th centuries many treatises were written extolling the medicinal virtues of chocolate.  Chocolate was given the seal of approval by botanists and medical men who discovered it contained many beneficial substances. The French faculty of medicine officially approved its use in 1661, and it was widely used in Parisians to treat indigestion and nervous disorders.  However, by the 1800’s charlatans were beginning to cash in on chocolate’s seal of approval, and various forms of ‘medicinal’ chocolate started to appear.  But by the end of the century the genuine article was approved of by hospitals, the army, the navy and various public institutions.  Soldiers, scholars and clerics used it to keep them going during prolonged periods of physical, intellectual or spiritual endurance.

Today there is on-going debate about the true qualities of chocolate.  Chocolate contains over 300 chemicals and it is not known how all of these affect humans but a lot of research is now being done into the health benefits of chocolate. 

Like other sweet food, chocolate stimulates the release of endorphins, the natural body hormones which generate feelings of pleasure and well-being.  When released into the blood stream, endorphins lift the mood creating positive energy and happy feelings.

It is now claimed that eating chocolate is good for the heart as it contains powerful antioxidant phenols which can lower the risk of heart disease.   It can also help lower blood pressure as it contains flavonols which help prevent oxidation of the blood cells.

Chocolate is known as a stimulant as it contains certain alkaloids – organic substances found in plants – which have a potent effect on the body.  The most important is theobromine which stimulates the kidneys as a mild diuretic.  Chocolate is also known to stimulate the central nervous system with an effect similar to caffeine, which is present in chocolate.  The caffeine content of an average-size bar of chocolate is about 25 mg, roughly a quarter of the amount found in a fresh cup of coffee.  

CHOCOLATE AS AN APHRODISIAC?

Chocolate has long been associated with passion and its reputation as an aphrodisiac can be traced back to the days of the Aztecs and the Spanish conquistadors.  Emperor Montezuma allegedly always drank a full goblet of chocolate before entering his harem, throwing the gold goblet into the lake each time. 

Whilst there is no actual proof of chocolate being an aphrodisiac, it is known that chocolate contains phenylethylamine, a stimulant which boosts energy levels and increases serotonin in the brain, thus triggering sensations of pleasure.  In more recent times there has been a connection with chocolates, women and romantic love, boosted in the 1930’s by cinema depicting glamorous women draped on satin sheets working their way through lavish boxes of chocolates!    Advertising in the twentieth century links chocolates with sensuality, and many adverts show chocolate being enjoyed by beautiful women, or gifts of chocolate being offered to women by men.  In 1922 the classic ‘Baci’ box of chocolates appeared, baci being Italian for kisses, and these were exchanged as gifts between lovers. 

We should not underestimate the pure sensory pleasure derived not just from the physical pleasure of eating chocolate, but also from unwrapping it, smelling it, looking at it and feeling it. 

Chocolate is all things to all people – heavenly, sensual, dark, healthy, sinful, sumptuous, gratifying, creamy, seductive, rich, silky, luxurious, happiness, love, and also wicked and guilty!