August 26, 2016

Did you know chocolate is celebrated on multiple days each year? Yes, Chocolate Day is observed twice, once on July 7 and once on October 28. In addition, National Milk Chocolate Day is held on July 28; International Chocolate Day is observed on September 13; and to top it all off National Bittersweet Chocolate With Almonds Day is held on November 7. In a nod to such a popular treat, we’ve compiled a few interesting facts about chocolate, as listed on mentalfloss.com.

  1. Hot Chocolate was the first way chocolate was enjoyed. Chocolate bars weren’t created until 1847.
  2. Chocolate is made from the cacao bean.
  3. While cacao is native to Central America and South America, most of the world’s cacao is now grown in Africa.
  4. Cacao was used as currency by the Aztecs.

Your mouth is probably watering now, so luckily for Orange County locals, there is a bean-to-bar chocolate factory located right in Irvine, CA. ChocXO Bean To Bar Chocolatier starts with cacao beans from Central and South America, and then they process the beans using the latest technology to create fine chocolates. Visitors are welcomed to take a free, self-guided tour of the factory, and then browse through the chocolate shop where they will find a variety of truffles, chocolate barks, chocolate bars, and other chocolate treats. Irvine locals who have yet to pay a visit to ChocXO will want to make some time in the near future to check the factory out.

If you buy extra chocolate at ChocXO which you’d like to send to friends and family who live out of town, stop by one of the PostalAnnex locations in Irvine to package and ship your gifts. The friendly professionals will even compare shipping rates between UPS and FedEx to help you find the best rate and service.

With 88% of the private companies in the U.S. employing 19 or fewer employees (Source: U.S. SBA), we at PostalAnnex believe local businesses are vital to the health of the U.S. economy. Therefore, PostalAnnex is pleased to feature ChocXO Bean To Bar Chocolatier as our Featured Local Neighborhood Business and encourages locals to buy from local businesses.

ChocXO Bean To Bar Chocolatier in Irvine, CA

Image: ChocXO Facebook

Sources: MentalFloss website; ChocXO Facebook; ChocXO website