While chocolate consumption is highest in developed countries, food historians report that our love affair with chocolate isn't anything new. The Aztecs regarded chocolate as a gift from the god of wisdom and knowledge. It was considered an aphrodisiac and was reserved for special occasions or for people with wealth and power. Cocoa beans were even used as currency. According to the diaries of an English Jesuit, the women of Chiapa Real, Mexico, arranged for the murder of a certain bishop who forbade them to drink chocolate during mass.
Theories abound, but no one knows for sure.
No doubt both sensory and chemical factors contribute to its appeal. In the sensory area, chocolate's lure comes from its unique and complex mix of sweet and bitter flavors and aroma. The fat in chocolate, cocoa butter, melts at body temperature and gives chocolate its mouth-watering, seductive appeal. However, white chocolate, with the same texture, sweetness and cocoa butter as dark chocolate, doesn't generally satisfy chocolate craving. Thus, something else must drive our desire.