If one were to walk into any convenience store or supermarket, one might expect to find an entire aisle filled with chocolate products of different flavors and constituents. However, chocolate’s introduction (chocolate being indigenous to the New World) into Baroque European life in the 16th and 17th century was drastically different. Firstly, it was solely consumed as a hot beverage, which was emulated from the customs of the Mesoamerican peoples that the Europeans had encountered. Furthermore, in Spanish and French society, chocolate was reserved only for the monarch’s court and highest-ranking nobility. (Green 1) On the other hand, the integration of chocolate into British society allowed the product to become more widely consumed as well as to begin to resemble the delicacy we associate it to be today.
The first major development that promulgated the popularity of chocolate in Britain in the 17th century was the introduction of chocolate houses. Although chocolate was initially contained to only Spain and France, it was first introduced in Britain in the 1650s. Almost immediately, the first chocolate house sprung up in 1657. (The Story of Chocolate 1) Modeled after existing London coffee houses, these establishments offered food as well as their special beverages. The all-male patrons engaged in card playing, gambling and discussed politics and business. Although reserved mainly for the upper class (due to chocolate’s expensive price), the houses were often chaotic environments. In fact, White’s, one of the premier chocolate houses in London, was described as ‘the most fashionable hell in London.” (Green 1)
The nature of the chocolate houses helped change the perception and associated use of chocolate in Baroque Europe. The Spanish considered chocolate to be useful due to its perceived medicinal and aphrodisiac qualities. It was consumed by the most elite members of society and treated as a ritualistic drink. In contrast, the chocolate houses in Britain made the drink more casual and commonplace. Drinking chocolate became a social event, and an activity done daily. Consumption became more about enjoyment and indulgence than the perceived benefits of chocolate. It is important to note that the consumption of chocolate was still only confined to the elite male population and it would be centuries before the product became available to the whole population as it now is.
Britain was also the site of the first consumption of chocolate as a cold beverage. Both the Mesoamerican cultures, that first produced chocolate, and the Spanish prepared and drank chocolate as a hot beverage. Historians recently uncovered a recipe to produce an iced chocolate beverage. The recipe states,
“Prepare the chocolatti [to make a drink]… and then putt the vessell that hath the chocolatti in it, into a jaraffa [i.e. a carafe] of snow stirred together with some salt, & shaike the snow together sometyme & it will putt the chocolatti into tender curdled ice & soe eate it with spoons.” (Doucleff 1)
This recipe, written by the Earl of Sandwich, deviated greatly from the established norm of preparing chocolate. Many people worried about the effects of consuming cold chocolate due to its “unwholesome nature.” Even the author of the recipe recommends that one should drink a hot chocolate after to counteract the negative effects. The health concerns notwithstanding, this iced chocolate recipe represents an early attempt to change the associated preparation of chocolate into forms that are widely consumed today.
The integration of chocolate into 17th-century British society changed the consumption of the drink. The chocolate houses allowed chocolate to be perceived as more of a treat than a ritualistic beverage. Additionally, developments, such as the iced chocolate recipe, introduced other ways to prepare and consume chocolate. The effects of these changes to the role of chocolate helped transform it into the premier delicacy of our current society.
Works Cited
Doucleff, Michaeleen. “Earl Of Sandwich Blended Frappes Long Before Starbucks.” NPR. NPR, 11 Sept. 2013. Web. 20 Feb. 2015.
“Europeans.” – The Story of Chocolate. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Feb. 2015.
Green, Matthew. “The Surprising History of London’s Lost Chocolate Houses.” The Telegraph. Telegraph Media Group, n.d. Web. 19 Feb. 2015.
“London’s Chocolate Houses.” Herb Museum, n.d. Web. 20 Feb. 2015.
“Scientist Finds Manuscript with First English Recipes for Iced Chocolate Desserts.” SciNews.com, 4 Sept. 2013. Web. 20 Feb. 2015.
Chocolate Class 