Aztec Hot Chocolate With Spices (Paul A Young) By @Cinabar

I am such a fan of hot chocolate, I think I may have tried the majority of different varieties available. I drink the stuff all year, why would a hot summer’s day put me off a hot chocolate in the evening. Do you want to know what I’ve learnt from my extensive hot chocolate consumption, firstly that the best hot chocolates are made with milk and secondly the price you pay for the hot chocolate is not directly proportional to the quality. It is counterintuitive but as an example good old fashion Cadbury’s Hot Chocolate is one of the best.

A little while back chocolatier Paul A Young was making hot chocolate on morning television. He stated that the best hot chocolate was made with hot water, and this confused me. So much so I couldn’t resist making an order off his website for his hot chocolate (and accidentally brownies and some bars of his chocolate too) to find out what his hot chocolate was like.I went for a bag of Aztec Hot Chocolate With Spices, as this sounded like a warming drink.

I added four teaspoons of the grated hot chocolate into a mug, and boiled the kettle.

I added a small amount of water and made a paste as suggested, this was quite glossy looking. I then gradually topped it up with more water to fill the mug. I then added whipped cream and marshmallows because it is Christmas time.

The drink is very different to anything I’ve tried before. The cocoa flavour is very strong, it isn’t too sweet but the flavour is very rich and soothing. The hot chocolate is made from 70% cocoa so has that lovely edge of super dark chocolate. The spices are spot on, the mix of cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger all warm the drink and give it that festive feel, all this while a layer of chilli which adds a tickling of heat. Oh my this is good stuff. I may still argue that hot chocolate is better made with milk than water but add an exception for when you buy it from a proper chocolatier like Paul A Young.