Published by: Gourmet Sleuth Last Updated: 03/16/2014
>Chocolate was so revered it was used by the Aztecs as both a food and currency. The Spanish explorers were so enamored with the flavor that they took chocolate back to Spain where it became the the Kings' Official Drink in the New Spain and Europe. Around the end of the XVIII century(1780 - 1800) , Europeans started preparing chocolate with milk and sugar to create what we know today as Hot Chocolate. In fact the drink became so popular many of the leading European porcelain manufactures such as Limoges in France began making specialized pots and cups just to serve chocolate.
The photograph above is a nice example of a chocolate set made by Haviland, Limoges. Sets normally included a pot, cups, and many times matching saucers, trays. These sets are still manufactured today. The antique and vintage pieces have become quite collectible and valuable.
Early chocolate pots, prior to the discovery of kaolin porcelain in France were typically made of sterling silver and sometimes copper. Earliest pieces typically included the chocolate stirrer but later pieces became simply pouring vessels.