Not long ago, I reviewed a piece of American Heritage chocolate made by a subsidiary of Mars. American Heritage specializes in manufacturing chocolate akin to colonial recipes.
But there is more to them and Mars than just making chocolate… much more. You see, since 1998, Mars has funded an academic team at the University of California, Davis whose objective was to study – you guessed it – chocolate.
You might be asking yourself if there really is that much to write about chocolate. Well, Sallie Boorman, one of the nicest people on Earth, mentioned this upcoming book when she sent me the original chocolate sample to review. As a fan of all things candy and trivia-related, I was immensely interested in the work and requested a copy, which she so awesomely sent.
Now, I have read my fair share of candy-related books. How many pages could this thing be? 100? 200? 300 tops, right? Try almost 1,000! I was awed when I discovered my behemoth copy of Chocolate: History, Culture, and Heritage in my mailbox, which was heavy enough for me to perform bicep curls with.
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Chocolate’s association with America is nuanced in its origin and evolution. The confection originally developed in Central and South America where the indigenous peoples consumed it as a beverage. It wasn’t until 1847 that the solid chocolate we recognize today was created by Fry and Sons of Bristol, England.
Within America itself, the beverage form of chocolate retained a fascinating role in colonial development. For instance, American pioneers George and Martha Washington, Ben Franklin, and Thomas Jefferson were all fond of drinking chocolate. But it wasn’t limited to a few of our country’s greatest citizens. After the Boston Tea Party, colonists replaced their breakfast beverage of tea with chocolate.
These facts and more relating to the American Civil War, the Lewis and Clark expedition, and even the transpacific flight of Amelia Earhart incorporate chocolate in the telling of their histories. How do I know this? Because American Heritage Chocolate, a subsidiary of Mars, has conducted a vast deal of research into the topic, culminating in the upcoming publication of Chocolate: History, Culture, and Heritage and a corresponding presentation at the Smithsonian.
If you haven’t ever heard of American Heritage Chocolate, they manufacture handmade chocolate that is inspired by a colonial recipe (meaning solid chocolate with flavors akin to the flavors contained in the beverage form from the era).
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