History and Culture of Chocolate

Cocoa tree

SMART NEWS

A Special Facility in England Keeps the World’s Chocolate Safe

A chocolate pot from Yokohama, Japan, ca. 1904. Porcelain with clear glaze and overglaze enamels

AT THE SMITHSONIAN

A Brief History of the Chocolate Pot

An example of a pot used by the ancient Maya

HISTORY

What We Know About the Earliest History of Chocolate

A chart of chocolate future prices since Valentine's Day, 2014

ARTS & CULTURE

The Economics of Chocolate

The mouthwatering nature of chocolate is one constant no matter where you go.

ARTS & CULTURE

Chocolate Destinations Around the World to Drool Over

SMART NEWS

A Lost Chapter From Roald Dahl’s "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" Was Just Released

Science of Chocolate

The flavor of chocolate depends on numerous factors, from the soil the cacao plant was grown in, to the length of time the cocoa beans are fermented.

SCIENCE

The Science of Good Chocolate

Scientists looked for the black-and-white colubus monkey in protected areas across the Ivory Coast but only found one population of the animals still living in a sacred grove.

SCIENCE

Illegal Cocoa Farms Are Driving Out Primates In Ivory Coast

SCIENCE

What Physics Tells Us About Making the Perfect Chocolate

Is fine chocolate slipping through our fingers?

SCIENCE

How to Save the Chocolate Tree Without Sacrificing Flavor

Don't try this at home.

SCIENCE

Healers Once Prescribed Chocolate Like Aspirin

You can thank these Theobroma cacao flowers for your brownie sundae.

SCIENCE

You Wouldn't Have Chocolate Without Invisible Flies and Extreme Yeast

Eating Chocolate

ARTS & CULTURE

D.C.'s Artisan Chocolate Makers Show Off Their Sweet Labor of Love

A close-up of the 2012 cake.

AT THE SMITHSONIAN

How an Archaeologist Revived King Tut's Tomb With A Chocolate Cake

Chocolate beer spans a wide spectrum of flavors and varieties.

ARTS & CULTURE

A Taste Test to Find the Best Chocolate Beers

ARTS & CULTURE

Is Drinking Chocolate America's New Cupcake?

SMART NEWS

A New Way to Find Out If Your Chocolate Is Legit

A Baltimore staple.

ARTS & CULTURE

The Berger Cookie is Baltimore’s Gift to the Chocolate World