We had a very zen morning with a short drive to Sibö Chocolates. This was a very relaxing experience with great history and of course chocolates to taste! I really enjoyed learning about the evolution of coffee and how they used to only drink it instead of eating chocolate.

Chocolate harvesting and sales are somewhat different than coffee. They are both made from beans that are roasted, but there are also many more differences. Coffee is grown in a lot of sunlight and are cherries, but cacao is grown in shaded places and look like a big bean. Cacao beans have fruit inside that covers the seeds. The seeds are used for the chocolate itself. Also, there are some risks with the chocolate supply chain. It can be difficult to harvest good cacao beans in bulk. It is also hard to keep the shelf-life of chocolate as well. Good chocolate is basically made with just the coco butter. Coco butter melts very quickly. Along with a tough supply chain, chocolate also competes with many different goods as well. Chocolate is an aphrodisiac and provides energy (like coffee), so chocolate producers need to find ways to make it more appealing. One way they can do this is by making many different kinds and shapes of chocolate.

When chocolate was first being produced it was only a drink, no one was eating chocolate! As time went on and famous chocolatiers began experimenting, chocolate became sweeter and then was introduced to children. This of course made chocolate more affordable and more well known. A fun fact I learned about chocolate is: in the 1940s, coco butter was used in lip sticks. Chocolate was also given to the soldiers in war to keep their energy.