Chocolate has been a revered and respected food for at least four thousand years. The Mayans invented the original way of enjoying chocolate by adding ground cacao beans to hot water. It was a bitter, frothy affair. Brought back to Europe in the 14th century by Spanish explorers, chocolate had high value and was even used as currency.

Hot chocolate was finally brought to North America by the Dutch in the 17th century, and started becoming popular among the colonists by the mid-18th century. In fact, Thomas Jefferson thought that hot chocolate would become America’s favorite beverage, surpassing coffee and tea. It certainly is our favorite beverage.

Mocha’s name comes from a famous coffee trading port city on the Red Sea. The local coffee beans grown around Mocha, Yemen were known for their deep chocolate flavor notes. Roasted coffee beans and chocolate have always had a natural affinity for one another, and this drinking chocolate celebrates the complementary flavors. Mocha as we make it here at m cacao is a romance between coffee and chocolate that’s deeper and bolder than it’s ever been. We bumped the coffee flavor even more by balancing a concentrated espresso with our 72% dark chocolate. And if you want to take it even further, mix this drinking chocolate into hot fresh coffee or espresso and marvel at the way it stirs your senses awake.

This blend brings chiles to the drinking chocolate party, warming the flavors and stirring the palate to attention with their signature prickle of heat. We chose pasilla and ancho chiles for their subtle and playful heat profiles. Each sip warms your mouth with a building spice flavor, paying homage to xocolatl— a ground cacao, chile, and water beverage that was invented by the ancient Olmec, Mayan, and Aztec cultures.

Horchata has historically deep roots, tracing all the way back to Ancient Rome. It found a strong cultural foothold in Latin America, and it’s that iteration of this varied drink that inspired our chocolatiers. We use a white chocolate base for a sweet-creamy canvas, and layer in the flavors of coconut sugar, rum, cinnamon, and vanilla. If you want to enjoy an even more authentic taste, brew this blend with steamed rice milk and garnish with a sprinkle of cinnamon.

Enjoy a taste of freedom! The Cuba Libre cocktail dates back to the Cuban fight for independence in the late 19th century. The drink is rumored to have received its name in Havana when a US Army Corps captain ordered his usual rum and cola with a twist of lime and then loudly toasted, “Por Cuba Libre!” Here, we celebrate the flavors of the classic cocktail by blending cane sugar and rum together with a heady mixture of orange, lime, and lemon zests to capture the notes of cola, spirits, and citrus.

This drinking chocolate blend sits very close to the heart of our own Chef Delphin Gomes, who hails from Villeneuve sur Yonne in northwest Burgundy. Chef Delphin’s childhood is laced with memories of a local beekeeper who added honey to his homemade pain d’epices (French spice bread). The beekeeper went on to open a bakery, and his pain d’epices au miel was celebrated as the best in France. Our chef went on to earn acclaim of his own both at home and abroad, and he celebrates his roots by capturing the essence of that French spice bread with 35% chocolate combined with honey, cinnamon, clove, ginger, and nutmeg in this luxurious drinking chocolate.