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The cultivation of chocolate is as old as the Maya themselves. Indeed cacao is one of the great gifts the Maya gave the world. Given that chocolate has been used in Mesoamerica since 1900 BC, it can be challenging to find a good locally made chocolate bar here in Guatemala. But thanks to Antigua's Choco-Museo, the answer to this puzzle and the remedy for chocolate lovers are both on-site, along with complimentary cups of chocolate tea.
While it is possible to visit the free museum and purchase artisan dark, milk and white chocolates, both the museum and the store’s offerings come to life in the lively two hour chocolate making workshop led by Pablo. Pablo not only knows and loves his subject, cacao and chocolate, but he is an exquisite performer and a personable instructor managing to pack both history and plenty of hands-on experience in this five star two hour workshop.
Pablo explained that cacao trees were a customary part of Mayan household gardens. Chocolate was consumed by all members of Maya society, while the Aztecs in the north reserved it’s use solely for the elite. Spanish friars from Mesoamerica introduced chocolate to the Spanish court. At first, the bitter chocolate was rejected as unpleasant, but the friars added sugar and chocolate became a European and then a global sensation. The 1800s brought the advent of the first European chocolate bars and their mass production.
While it is possible to visit the free museum and purchase artisan dark, milk and white chocolates, both the museum and the store’s offerings come to life in the lively two hour chocolate making workshop led by Pablo. Pablo not only knows and loves his subject, cacao and chocolate, but he is an exquisite performer and a personable instructor managing to pack both history and plenty of hands-on experience in this five star two hour workshop.
Pablo explained that cacao trees were a customary part of Mayan household gardens. Chocolate was consumed by all members of Maya society, while the Aztecs in the north reserved it’s use solely for the elite. Spanish friars from Mesoamerica introduced chocolate to the Spanish court. At first, the bitter chocolate was rejected as unpleasant, but the friars added sugar and chocolate became a European and then a global sensation. The 1800s brought the advent of the first European chocolate bars and their mass production.
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