There are some flavours which have broken the bounds of international flavours and have made it big all over the world. One such flavour and dish is chocolate. Native to islands of Africa, the coco beans are a unique flavour which is accepted by the people all over the world. Some credit of this international fame and recognition goes to the marketing companies that started producing chocolate based sweets after the great industrial revolution. However, with time chefs and other professionals started to look at coco beans more than just a desert. There are many sweet, savoury, and amazing dishes that are prepared from coco beans. However, one lesser known variety of coco beans is chocolate liqueur.
How to Differentiate between Liqueur and Liquor?
There are many people who confuse chocolate liqueur with chocolate liquor. It is a big surprise that despite the popularity of the base ingredient the chocolate wine is not as famous as its other alternative dishes. Basically, chocolate liquor is think paste of cocoa beans and cocoa butter. Based on the original recipe this concoction does not contain any alcohol. It is used as a coating for cakes, pastries, and even used as a sweet dish on its own. On the other hand, the Chocolate liquor is made from base liquor like whiskey or vodka. It has high alcohol content and it is flavoured by cocoa beans. In many places it is served as a cocktail as well.
In many places this brew is also listed as crème de cocoa. Due to its origins and popularity in France, it has acquired this nick name. This type of liqueur can have any base alcoholic drink that is preferably not dry like sherry and port. It is usually mixed with sugar and cocoa extract and mixed well before serving. The earliest mention of Chocolate liqueur dates back to 18th century. After being passed from nation to nation; this drink arrived in USA in 19th century and gain reasonable popularity in many states.
As a rule this liqueur started off as a digestive aid medicine. However, today it is served both as an aperitif and as a good pairing with desert. Some chefs also use this concoction to flavour deserts like chocolate cakes and truffles. Depending on the ingredients and preparation there are three main types of chocolate liqueur. These three types are plain chocolate liqueur, cream liqueur, and crème de cacao. All three of these types have further sub-types and renditions. There are many people who love to make this drink at their homes. One of the most basic and widely used recipes for making chocolate liqueur is adding cocoa extract, vanilla extract, vodka, and some syrup. The people who are fond of sweet drinks and have a sweet tooth in general are known to be big fans of this drink.