The history of chocolate - Deanna Pucciarelli

譯者: Yueh-Lun Huang 審譯者: LaiNi Chu

If you can't imagine life without chocolate,

如果你無法想像 你的人生中沒有巧克力

you're lucky you weren't born before the 16th century.

你會很慶幸你沒有 出生在 16 世紀以前

Until then, chocolate only existed in Mesoamerica

在那之前，巧克力只存在於中美洲

in a form quite different from what we know.

而且形式與我們所知的大相徑庭

As far back as 1900 BCE,

回溯到公元前 1900 年

the people of that region had learned to prepare the beans

中美洲的人民已經學會培植可可豆

of the native cacao tree.

The earliest records tell us the beans were ground

最早的記載說明他們將可可豆磨碎

and mixed with cornmeal and chili peppers

並混合玉米粉和辣椒來製成飲品

to create a drink -

not a relaxing cup of hot cocoa,

並不是一杯讓人放鬆的熱可可

but a bitter, invigorating concoction frothing with foam.

而是提神的苦味泡沫飲料

And if you thought we make a big deal about chocolate today,

如果你認為今天的我們

非常重視巧克力

the Mesoamericans had us beat.

其實中美洲人民早已擊敗我們

They believed that cacao was a heavenly food

他們相信可可 是羽蛇神賦予人間的食物

gifted to humans by a feathered serpent god,

known to the Maya as Kukulkan

其在瑪雅被稱作 「庫庫爾坎」

and to the Aztecs as Quetzalcoatl.

阿茲特克則稱作 「魁札爾科亞特爾」

Aztecs used cacao beans as currency

阿茲特克人使用可可豆作為貨幣

and drank chocolate at royal feasts,

在貴族盛宴上喝巧克力

gave it to soldiers as a reward for success in battle,

更將其作為勇士的勝仗獎勵

and used it in rituals.

並在儀式中使用

The first transatlantic chocolate encounter occurred in 1519

第一次橫跨大西洋

發現巧克力是在 1519 年時

when Hernán Cortés visited the court of Moctezuma

埃爾南·科爾特斯登陸

特諾奇提特蘭上蒙特祖瑪的宮廷

at Tenochtitlan.

As recorded by Cortés's lieutenant,

根據科爾特斯的上尉的記錄

the king had 50 jugs of the drink brought out and poured into golden cups.

國王曾用金杯喝下 50 罐這種飲料

When the colonists returned with shipments of the strange new bean,

當殖民者帶著這些 奇怪的新豆子回國時

missionaries' salacious accounts of native customs

傳教士基於當地的色情風俗

gave it a reputation as an aphrodisiac.

賦予它壯陽藥的聲譽

At first, its bitter taste made it suitable as a medicine for ailments,

最初，它的苦味使其 作為治療疾病的藥物

like upset stomachs,

例如腸胃不適

but sweetening it with honey, sugar, or vanilla

但是加入蜂蜜、糖或香草等甜味劑後

quickly made chocolate a popular delicacy in the Spanish court.

使巧克力快速地在西班牙宮廷間流行

And soon, no aristocratic home was complete without dedicated chocolate ware.

很快地，貴族的家中 都有專用的巧克力器皿

The fashionable drink was difficult and time consuming to produce

這種時尚的飲品 很難且耗時大規模生產

on a large scale.

That involved using plantations and imported slave labor

這需要加勒比及非洲海岸島嶼的 莊園和進口的奴隸

in the Caribbean and on islands off the coast of Africa.

The world of chocolate would change forever in 1828

巧克力的世界在 1828 年永遠改變

with the introduction of the cocoa press by Coenraad van Houten of Amsterdam.

阿姆斯特丹的康尼拉范豪敦 引進了巧克力擠壓機

Van Houten's invention could separate the cocoa's natural fat, or cocoa butter.

范豪敦的發明可以分離 可可的天然脂肪或可可脂

This left a powder that could be mixed into a drinkable solution

並留下可以被混合成飲用溶液的粉末

or recombined with the cocoa butter

或與可可脂重組

to create the solid chocolate we know today.

製成我們今天知道的固體巧克力

Not long after, a Swiss chocolatier named Daniel Peter

不久後，瑞士巧克力師傅 丹尼爾·彼得

added powdered milk to the mix,

將奶粉混合巧克力

thus inventing milk chocolate.

因此發明牛奶巧克力

By the 20th century, chocolate was no longer an elite luxury

到了 20 世紀 巧克力不再是奢侈品

but had become a treat for the public.

而是公眾的一種享受

Meeting the massive demand required more cultivation of cocoa,

為了滿足大量的需求

就需要種植更多的可可樹

which can only grow near the equator.

它們只能生長在赤道附近

Now, instead of African slaves being shipped

至今，不再將非洲奴隸送往

to South American cocoa plantations,

南美洲的可可種植園

cocoa production itself would shift to West Africa

而是將可可的生產轉至西非

with Cote d'Ivoire providing two-fifths of the world's cocoa as of 2015.

截至 2015 年，象牙海岸 提供的可可佔全世界的 40%

Yet along with the growth of the industry,

隨著產業的增長

there have been horrific abuses of human rights.

可怕的人權侵犯問題也層出不窮

Many of the plantations throughout West Africa,

西非有許多的莊園都供應往西方公司

which supply Western companies,

use slave and child labor,

他們僱用奴隸與童工

with an estimation of more than 2 million children affected.

估計有 200 多萬的兒童牽涉其中

This is a complex problem that persists

這是個複雜且持續存在的問題

despite efforts from major chocolate companies to partner with African nations

儘管大公司與非洲國家 努力地建立合作

to reduce child and indentured labor practices.

來減少兒童和契約勞工的奴役

Today, chocolate has established itself in the rituals of our modern culture.

今天，巧克力已在現代文化中 確立自己的地位

Due to its colonial association with native cultures,

因為其本地文化與殖民地的關聯

combined with the power of advertising,

並結合廣告的力量

chocolate retains an aura of something sensual,

巧克力保留了一些感性的、頹廢的

decadent,

and forbidden.

和禁忌的味道

Yet knowing more about its fascinating and often cruel history,

然而，瞭解它迷人且殘酷的歷史

as well as its production today,

以及今日的生產

tells us where these associations originate

告訴我們這些關聯的起源

and what they hide.

和它們隱藏的事情

So as you unwrap your next bar of chocolate,

下次你拆開巧克力的包裝時

take a moment to consider that not everything about chocolate is sweet.

花一點時間來思考

並不是關於巧克力的一切

都是甜蜜的