What would Valentine’s Day be without the most classic, mouth-watering, decadent form of sugar ever – chocolate? Valentine’s Day has a blurry history, but there are some basic facts everyone should know if they’re celebrating.
A brief history
The initial mention of any type of celebration on Valentine’s Day can date back to 1382. By the 1840s, Valentine’s Day was known as a holiday that celebrates romance, and people would exchange cards and presents.
The timing of the holiday’s emergence was perfect for Richard Cadbury, the founder of Cadbury UK Limited, a chocolate company. The chocolate was packaged in delightful boxes that Cadbury had designed. Heart-shaped boxes began to gain popularity around 1861, which were so valued that people would hold onto these boxes long after eating the chocolate.
Around the 1890s, the United States began to follow the UK’s footsteps and commercialized Valentine’s Day as Milton Hershey began to cover his caramels with chocolate. It wasn’t until 1907 that Hershey introduced the famous Hershey Kisses, which were named after the noise that was produced when manufacturing them.
Expensive Chocolate Around The World
Entrepreneurs have taken advantage of this chocolate custom by inventing top-notch sweets. How much you should spend on chocolate for that special someone (or yourself) is entirely up to you, but if you are feeling extremely lavish, here are four of the most expensive chocolate brands from.
- Pierre Marcolini: A collection of chocolate that balances taste and texture, Pierre Marcolini chocolates are perfect for those who really value dynamic flavor. These chocolates sell for around $102 a pound.
- The Godiva “G” Collection: This chocolate collection is composed of top-tier treats made from different fancy ingredients, such as Tasmanian Honey. The collection is priced at $120 per pound.
- Delafee: Priced at $508 a pound, Delafee chocolate contains a mixture of edible 24-karat gold flake sprinkles and high-grade cocoa beans, along with vanilla, milk powder and coconut oil. The gold is added for its “esthetic qualities, its symbolic power and sometimes for its alleged magical properties,” according to the Delafee website.
- La Madeline au Truffe by Knipschildt Chocolatier: Known as the most expensive chocolate in the world, the Madeline Truffle is sold for up to $2,600 per pound. This dark chocolate truffle with French black truffle in the center is made by blending Valrhona cocoa in truffle oil, then sprinkling it with cocoa powder as a finishing touch.
