When Christopher Columbus first visited the New World, he encountered many new foods; potatoes, tomatoes, corn. Amidst these wondrous vegetables, he missed the fact that cocoa beans were even a food. Columbus noted that 'cacao' beans served as coins amongst the Guanache Indians, but not that they were consumed in any fashion.

It took another explorer from Spain, Hernando Cortez, to make the key realization. He and his men were fascinated by Montezuma's custom of drinking 'xocalatl', made from crushed cocoa beans and cold water, whisked together. This bitter, unsweetened chocolate was consumed several times a day, from special gold beakers. In order to add some relief from the bitter flavor, the wealthy added vanilla or chili powder, sometimes sweetening it with honey. The Spanish mixed it with hazelnuts, almonds, or cinnamon.

Quickly recognized as a stimulant, it won favor in Spain as an accompaniment to breakfast. Changes began to made; boiling water instead of cold, ginger or nutmeg for seasoning. Occasionally, sugar was used, but generally the drink was consumed unsweetened. The Spanish were fond enough of this concoction to not even try to export it to other areas of Europe--for a century, they kept it to themselves. However, we can thank Italian exploreres for exposing the secret.

When the Italians went to the West Indies in 1600, they also encountered the cocoa bean, and brought it back to their home country, who generously shared it with the rest of the Old World. (Although Spain was relaxing a bit, or rather, one of her daughters was. When the eldest daughter of Philip of Spain married Louis XIII of France, she brought chocolate along with her, wisely anticipating that France would not have any for her.) When England took over the island of Jamaica from Spain in 1655, they began to import cocoa directly.

Vienna can boast the first chocolate house, but London soon followed. By 1657, numerous chocolate houses existed--very popular with those that over-indulged in alcohol the night before as a hangover cure, perhaps due to the bitterness.

By the end of the 1600s, hot cocoa in its modern form--mixed with hot milk and sugar was known, although the 'odd' mixes of pepper and mustard were still in existence. Soon, however, chocolate would gain favor as a confection, and cease to be thought of as a spice.

In 1728 the first chocolate factory, for the purpose of making chocolate candy, was built in London. Other countries followed suit, all taking advantage of increased industrialization available in order to create a product that was inexpensive enough for at least the middle class to purchase on a regular (i.e. daily) basis.

Famous names in chocolate begin to spring up around the beginning of the 1800s--van Houten, Cadbury, Cailler, Nestle. Milton Hershey, the most famous name in American chocolate, opened a candy store in 1876 in Philiadelphia, which ended in failure after six years. A factory in New York also failed. Moving to Lancaster, Pennsylvania, Hershey created a recipe for milk caramals that became popular, allowing him to stay in business. Busy making caramals, he also started tinkering with chocolate, trying to create a recipe for a chocolate candy bar. He eventually sold the caramal business, and opened a chocolate factory in 1903 in the little town soon to be known as Hershey.

By this point, chocolate's position as a favorite dessert, drink, and snack was well-assured, and popularity simply grew. However, the future of chocolate may well be in jeopardy. Cocoa beans are a delicate crop, requiring high temperatures and plenty of rainfall. Pretty much all of the cocoa grown is done so between 15 and 20 degrees of the equator. However, wars in these regions, clear-cutting of rain forests, and huge consumption puts the crops increasingly at risk. Many experts advise purchasing organic chocolate, where not only is the soil and plants being taken care of, the native populations are not being taken advantage of, for this reason.