‘Easter’ and ‘chocolate’ evoke contrasting associations. On the one hand are Easter eggs, chocolate bunnies, chicks and other chocolate concoctions. On the other hand is the idea of giving up, fasting, and abstaining from indulgences.

One of the wonderful benefits of working in craft chocolate is the serendipitous insights it offers into geography, history, food science and much more. And this week as part of introducing a new French craft chocolate maker, La Reine Astrid, I’ve started to scratch the surface of the complicated, painful and difficult history of Cameroon and chocolate.

Although the method and ingredients may be slightly different, this could only be a recipe for hot chocolate. But where did it all start? Humans have been consuming chocolate for centuries. We Brits eat around 7,500 bars over our lifetime. But chocolate bars have only been around for 150 years or so. What did humans do before the bar?

Craft Chocolate provides an amazing insight into flavour and is truly one of the most “affordable” luxuries to savour. At the same time there is a darker history to chocolate’s affordability that shouldn’t be ignored, least of all in today’s troubling times.