玛雅人和阿兹特克人都认为可可豆具有神秘的甚至是神圣的特性，适合在诸如出生、结婚和死亡这些最神圣的仪式上使用。根据克洛艾·杜特-鲁塞尔的《巧克力鉴赏家》一书所述，阿兹特克的被献祭者因极度抑郁而无法参加祭祀之舞时，人们就在他们被献祭之前给他们喝下一瓢巧克力(含有少许已故祭祀品的血)，使他们振奋起来。
Sweetened chocolate didn't appear until Europeans discovered the Americas and sampled the native cuisine. Legend has it that the Aztec king Montezuma22) welcomed the Spanish explorer Hernando Cortés with a banquet that included drinking chocolate, having tragically mistaken him for a reincarnated23) deity instead of a conquering invader. Chocolate didn't suit the foreigners' taste buds24) at first—one described it in his writings as "a bitter drink for pigs"—but once mixed with honey or cane sugar, it quickly became popular throughout Spain.
后来，欧洲人发现了美洲大陆，并品尝了当地的菜肴，至此加糖的巧克力才出现。据传说，阿兹特克国王蒙提祖马准备了一桌以巧克力为饮料的盛宴，为西班牙探险者埃尔南多·科尔特斯接风洗尘——国王不但没有把他当做前来征战的入侵者，反而可悲地误以为他是转世神灵。起初，外国人并不能接受巧克力的味道——有人在著作中把巧克力描述为“一种给猪喝的苦涩饮品”——不过，在添加了蜂蜜或蔗糖以后，巧克力饮料立刻红遍西班牙各地。
By the 17th century, chocolate was a fashionable drink throughout Europe, believed to have nutritious, medicinal and even aphrodisiac25) properties.But it remained largely a privilege of the rich until the invention of the steam engine made mass production possible in the late 1700s.
到17世纪时，巧克力成了风靡整个欧洲的时髦饮品。人们认为它有营养，能入药，甚至还能催情。但它仍旧是有钱人才能享用的奢侈品，直到18世纪末蒸汽机的发明使得大规模生产成为可能以后，这种情况才得以改善。
The Birth of Solid Chocolate
固态巧克力的诞生
In 1828, a Dutch chemist found a way to make powdered chocolate by removing about half the natural fat (cacao butter) from chocolate liquor, pulverizing26) what remained and treating the mixture with alkaline27) salts to cut the bitter taste. His product became known as "Dutch cocoa", and it soon led to the creation of solid chocolate.
1828年，一位荷兰化学家找到了制作巧克力粉的方法：他从巧克力饮料中去除了近一半的天然脂肪(即可可脂)，然后把剩下的成分研磨成粉，并在其中添加碱盐以减轻苦涩味道。他的产品被称为“荷兰可可粉”，由此很快诞生了固态巧克力。
The creation of the first modern chocolate bar is credited to Joseph Fry, who in 1847 discovered that he could make a moldable chocolate paste by adding melted cacao butter back into Dutch cocoa.
第一条现代巧克力棒的产生应归功于约瑟夫·弗赖伊。1847年，弗赖伊发现，通过往荷兰可可粉中重新添加融化的可可脂，能够做出可塑形的糊状巧克力。
By 1868, a little company called Cadbury was marketing boxes of chocolate candies in England. Milk chocolate hit the market a few years later, pioneered28) by another name that may ring a bell29)—Nestle.
到了1868年，一家名为“吉百利”的小公司开始在英国出售盒装巧克力糖果。几年以后，另一个令人耳熟的公司——雀巢——开发出的牛奶巧克力面市了。
Prosperous Chocolate Industry
繁荣的巧克力产业
In America, chocolate was so valued during the Revolutionary War30) that it was included in soldiers' rations31) and used in lieu of32) wages. While most of us probably wouldn't settle for33) a chocolate paycheck these days, statistics show that the humble cacao bean is still a powerful economic force. Chocolate manufacturing is a more than 4-billion-dollar industry in the United States, and the average American eats at least half a pound of the stuff per month.
美国独立战争时期，巧克力极为珍贵，不仅用于士兵的军需补给，还用来代替薪水向士兵发放。现在，我们中的大多数人很可能并不会满足于拿巧克力薪水，但统计数据证明，不起眼的可可豆仍是一股强有力的经济力量。在美国，巧克力制造业的市值可达四十多亿美元，美国人平均每月至少食用0.5磅的巧克力。
In the 20th century, the word "chocolate" expanded to include a range of affordable treats with more sugar and additives34) than actual cacao in them, often made from the hardiest but least flavorful of the bean varieties.
在20世纪，“巧克力”一词的范围扩展到一系列人们买得起的巧克力糖果，这些糖果中添加的糖和添加剂比可可豆成分更多，并且选用的可可豆也是最硬而且口味最差的品种。
But more recently, there's been a "chocolate revolution," Leaf said, marked by an increasing interest in high-quality, handmade chocolates and sustainable, effective cacao farming and harvesting methods. Major corporations like Hershey's have expanded their artisanal35) chocolate lines by purchasing smaller producers known for premium36) chocolates, such as Scharffen Berger and Dagoba, while independent chocolatiers continue to flourish as well.
但是，近来掀起了一场“巧克力革命”，这场革命以不断增长的对高品质的追求、手工巧克力制作和高效且可持续的可可种植及采集方式为特点。通过收购诸如“沙尔芬贝格”和“叠哥芭”等小型优质巧克力生产企业，像“好时”巧克力这样的大型企业扩大了他们的手工生产线。而与此同时，独立的巧克力生产企业也繁荣依旧。
1. bonbon [ˈbɒnbɒn] n. 夹心巧克力糖果
2. bunny [ˈbʌni] n. 兔子，尤指小兔子。西方复活节常见的食品之一便是小兔子造型的巧克力。
3. apt [æpt] adj. 恰当的，适当的
4. process [ˈprəʊses] v. 加工
5. etymologist [ˌetɪˈmɒlədʒɪst] n. 词源学家
6. Aztec: 阿兹特克人的。阿兹特克人是印第安人的一个分支，主要分布在墨西哥中部和南部。阿兹特克文明是古代阿兹特克人所创造的印第安文明，是美洲古代三大文明之一，1521年被西班牙人征服。
7. make (out) a case (for): 证明……有理由，提出有利于……的理由
8. millennia [mɪˈleniəm] n. 一千年［millennium的复数］
9. Mesoamerica [ˌmɛsəʊəˈmɛrɪkə] n. 中美洲，其范围从墨西哥中部向南向东延伸，包括危地马拉、伯利兹、洪都拉斯及尼加拉瓜在内的地区。在哥伦布发现新大陆以前的时代，这里曾存在过各种文明，包括玛雅文明及奥尔梅克文明。
10. Olmec: 奥尔梅克人(墨西哥古印第安人)
11. residue [ˈrezɪdjuː] n. 残余，渣滓
12. Honduras [hɒnˈdjʊərəs] n. 洪都拉斯(拉丁美洲国家)
13. pulp [pʌlp] n. (水果的)果肉
14. ferment [fə(r)ˈment] vt. (使)发酵
15. pod [pɒd] n. 豆荚
16. pin down: 确定，证实
17. tamale [təˈmɑːli] n. (墨西哥的)玉米粉蒸肉卷(以玉米粉同肉末拌和，加胡椒，用玉米面包好后蒸熟)
18. property [ˈprɒpə(r)ti] n. 特性，性质
19. sacred [ˈseɪkrɪd] adj. 神圣的
20. connoisseur [ˌkɒnəˈsɜː(r)] n. (艺术品的)鉴赏家，鉴定家，内行
21. melancholy [ˈmelənkəli] adj. 忧郁的
22. Montezuma [mɒntɪˈzuːma] 蒙提祖马，这