A Sturdy Foundation

The downfall of society begins with the death of the mahogany table. In its place, like ivy sacrilegiously veiling the face of a fresh gravestone, plastic tables emerge, the spirits of which may be enduring and immortal, though their manifestations lead only to disappointment and fragility. The subversion of quality in exchange for mass production inevitably leads to social calamity. Such trends will be the death of the hot chocolate world if this House does not intervene.

It is a fact most forlorn that woebegone cocoas emerge. They reject the traditional base of high quality chocolate and rich cream and embrace the new powdery nothingness. The reader need only turn their mind’s eye to their local grocery store coffee aisle to know which companies and products I allude to. In so dark a time as this, I search desperately for a cafe with a reliable, exquisite “base hot chocolate”, or a simple hot chocolate recipe that may be modified into the most creative concoctions imaginable. The optimist thinks this an easy task, though he is seldom right about anything; still, there is a famous saying about the rightness of broken clocks, a saying proved right when I easily stumbled on a wonderful base hot chocolate from the famed Koko Monk: the Authentic Hot Chocolate.

This splendid drink is “made with 72% Venezuelan Trinitario, top of the world pure cacaos, herbs and spices with a dash of orange zest, aged all together”, according to Koko Monk herself. It is a beauty to look at. The sides of the glass mug are painted with streams of melted chocolate, and a gleaming crown of whipped cream adorns the drink. For the amount served, the price is extremely reasonable, particularly when the context of the commendable quality is considered. A first sip is like the most pleasant reverie. There is a subtle spiciness, a comforting warmth, and a deep flavour of chocolate. Closing one’s eyes allows the drinker to better detect a thousand subtle notes of orange and varying spices. The subtle undertone of bitterness reminded me of orange pekoe tea. The drink had a full body, although I did not consider it very thick, which, admittedly, says something about the viscosity of my homemade hot chocolates. There was so much chocolate in this drink that it pooled at the bottom.

Sadly, I believe Koko Monk falls victim to the crushing thumb of fast production, as most businesses do. To my knowledge, Koko Monk hot chocolates are not filtered with sieve and cheesecloth. This leads to the unfortunate result that the drink was somewhat granular, and there were unwelcome flecks of orange zest that made for an undesirable texture. This misstep in technique is my only critique, and it is far from fatal. The impeccable and intriguing flavours earn this hot chocolate a sure spot in Heaven.

I find myself pessimistic about the hot chocolates that many cafes serve, and I wonder if the art of hot chocolate making will become like ancient stained glass manufacturing, where the mastery of past centuries is eroded by time. However, if there is one cafe that will contribute to the redemption of hot chocolate society, it is certainly Koko Monk, and it begins with their core Authentic Hot Chocolate.