Chocolate is popular almost everywhere. But tastes vary depending on the continent. While some regions like their chocolate sugary sweet, others prefer more fruity or nutty notes.

巧克力几乎在全球各地都广受欢迎，但居住在不同大洲的人们，他们的口味偏好却大相径庭。有些地区喜欢甜腻的巧克力，而另一些则更偏爱带有果香或坚果风味的巧克力。



Chocolate fans can attest to the vast range of flavors that this sweet treat has to offer, not only from brand to brand, but also from country to country. Consumer preferences are just as diverse.

巧克力爱好者可以证实，这种甜点所提供的风味范围极其广泛——不仅品牌之间差异明显，国家与国家之间的风格也截然不同。消费者的口味偏好同样多元。

US chocolate tends to be very sweet
Cocoa arrived in the North American colonies as a drink from Latin America in the 17th century.

美国巧克力通常非常甜，可可最早于17世纪作为饮品从拉丁美洲传入北美殖民地（印第安人制作的原始可可饮品是苦的，且常添加辣椒香草等调料，与现代甜巧克力差异显著）。

The dense, sweet chocolate that is popular today, however, was brought to the New World by Swiss chocolatiers in the second half of the 19th century. Despite their common origins, Swiss and US chocolate taste very different.

然而，如今在美国流行的浓稠、甜味十足的巧克力，其实是19世纪下半叶由瑞士巧克力匠人带到新大陆的。尽管美式巧克力和瑞士巧克力拥有共同的起源，但它们的味道却大不相同。

In the United States, the most successful brands prioritize a long shelf life and a flavor that many European palates take some getting used to.

在美国，最畅销的品牌往往优先考虑较长的保质期，其风味也让许多欧洲人的味蕾需要一段时间才能适应。

This is partly due to the use of butyric acid, which gives US chocolate a slightly sour note — which is often unsettling to European palates. But the high sugar content and additives such as corn syrup or vegetable fats are also typical of the flavor of American chocolate. "What is also very popular there are large, thick bars with filling," explains German chocolate sommelier Julia Moser.

部分原因在于使用了丁酸（butyric acid），它赋予美式巧克力一种微酸的味道——对欧洲消费者而言常常令人不适。此外，高糖含量以及玉米糖浆或植物脂肪等添加剂，也是美式巧克力风味的典型特征。“在美国，人们还特别喜欢那种又大又厚、内含夹心的巧克力条，”德国巧克力品鉴师尤利娅·莫泽（Julia Moser）解释道。

Julia Moser says Indian chocolate is becoming popular

尤利娅·莫泽表示，目前印式巧克力正变得越来越受欢迎。



European chocolate makers value traditional recipes 
In Western Europe — especially in Switzerland, Belgium, France, and Germany — the focus is on fine taste and high quality.

欧洲巧克力制造商重视传统配方：
在西欧——尤其是瑞士、比利时、法国和德国——重点在于精致的风味和高品质。

Chocolate recipes in the EU, for example, are more strictly regulated than in the US: Milk chocolate must contain at least 25% cocoa solids, and cocoa butter is required as the main fat. Manufacturers rely on traditional processes such as conching, which gives chocolate its fine, creamy texture. "The appreciation for good chocolate is growing here, even though milk chocolate is still the most widely consumed, because that's what most of us are used to from childhood," says Moser. "Dark chocolate only starts to become more popular in adulthood."

例如，欧盟对巧克力配方的监管比美国更为严格：牛奶巧克力必须至少含有25%的可可固形物，并且主要脂肪成分必须是可可脂。制造商依赖诸如“精炼”（conching）等传统工艺，使巧克力拥有细腻柔滑的质地。“这里对优质巧克力的欣赏正在增长，尽管牛奶巧克力仍是消费最广泛的品类，因为大多数人从小吃的就是这种口味，”莫泽说，“黑巧克力通常要到成年后才逐渐受到欢迎。”

Hershey's chocolate is particularly popular in the US

好时（Hershey’s）巧克力在美国尤其受欢迎。



Growing markets in India and Africa
In India and other parts of Asia, chocolate is a relatively new delicacy. Industrial production only began here in the mid-20th century.

印度和非洲市场的崛起：
在印度及其他亚洲地区，巧克力是一种相对新颖的美食。当地的工业化巧克力生产直到20世纪中叶才开始。

However, the market is now growing rapidly and is replacing traditional sweets, especially among younger people. "Indian chocolate is considered an insider tip at the moment," says Julia Moser, "The cocoa beans there have a very distinctive fruitiness with a nutty note."

然而，如今这一市场正迅速扩张，并逐渐取代传统糖果，尤其是在年轻人当中。“目前，印度巧克力被视为业内‘隐藏宝藏’，”尤利娅·莫泽表示，“那里的可可豆具有非常独特的果香，还带有一丝坚果风味。”

Africa, especially West Africa, is the world's largest producer of cocoa. However, chocolate consumption there accounted for only around 4% of the global market in 2018.

非洲，尤其是西非，现在已成为全球最大的可可产地。然而，截至2018年，非洲本地的巧克力消费量仅占全球市场的约4%。

This is also due to the heat, which makes it very difficult to produce chocolate bars, explains Julia Moser: "People there typically enjoy the fresh pulp of the cocoa beans or make a paste from roasted beans, which they then use to make chocolate drinks." 

莫泽解释说，这在一定程度上是因为高温气候使得巧克力棒的生产极为困难：“当地人通常食用新鲜的可可果肉，或将烘烤后的可可豆制成糊状，再用来调制巧克力饮品。”

In countries such as Ghana, however, the world's largest cocoa producer after Cote d'Ivoire, interest in locally produced chocolate is growing.

不过，在加纳等国（仅次于科特迪瓦的世界第二大可可生产国），人们对本地生产的巧克力兴趣正在增长。

Some Japanese chocolate varieties may strike European consumers as an acquired taste

一些日本巧克力品种对欧洲消费者来说可能需要“慢慢适应”。（下图为日本流行的雀巢奇巧巧克力）



In Japan, KitKat bars which come in flavors such as matcha, soy sauce and wasabi have been cult favorites for years.

KitKat（雀巢奇巧品牌巧克力）在日本推出了抹茶、酱油甚至芥末等口味，多年来已成为风靡全国的经典产品。

The dark side of chocolate production
Despite all the pleasure we derive from delicious and special types of chocolate, we should not forget the dark side of its history: Cocoa's triumphant journey from Latin America to the rest of the world is inextricably lixed to colonial exploitation. It was the European colonial powers that deliberately introduced the cocoa plant to their tropical colonies in order to meet growing demand in Europe. Cultivation and harvesting were carried out with the help of the local population — usually under inhumane conditions.

巧克力生产的阴暗面：
尽管我们从美味而独特的巧克力中获得了诸多愉悦，但也不应忘记其历史中的阴暗一面：可可从拉丁美洲走向世界的过程，与殖民剥削密不可分。正是欧洲殖民列强为了满足本国日益增长的需求，刻意将可可树引入其热带殖民地。种植与采收工作大多由当地居民承担——通常是在非人道的条件下进行。

And even today, many cocoa farmers are still at the mercy of the power mechanisms of the global market. Despite their hard work, many live in extreme poverty because they are not adequately compensated due to the low prices paid by trading companies.

即便到了今天，许多可可农仍受全球巧克力市场的权力结构所支配。尽管辛勤劳作，他们却因贸易公司支付的收购价过低而深陷极端贫困。