Pistolles de

Pistolles de Marie-Antoinette © Debauve & Sulpice which disguised the taste of bitter medicine that the Queen took for her headaches. Known as “Pistoles de Marie-Antoinette” they were the first chewable chocolates. They were such a success that, in 1823, at his Parisian chocolate shop, he created ‘dietary’ chocolates for good health - flavoured with orange blossom and vanilla. To this day “Pistoles de Marie- Antoinette” are still made by Debauve & Gallais – though without the headache medicine. By then, in the post-revolution climate, chocolate was finally available to the masses, yet was still considered to be a medicine, so it was marketed by pharmaceutical company, Menier. The company opened their first factory in 1814 and sold chocolate as a soothing yet mildly stimulating recreational drug. By the end of the 19th century, it was La famille du Duc de Penthièvre AKA the cup of chocolate, 1768 Jean-Baptiste Charpentier le Vieux believed to be the world’s largest chocolate factory with plantations and railroads, and sold wrapped chocolate bars, recognisable as the chocolate we know and love today. France’s hold over chocolate may have waned over the last century, especially with Menier being absorbed by global conglomerate Nestle, but there is still an illicit charm to French chocolate. The devilish chocolate truffle is uniquely French, allegedly created by the Dufour family in 1895. La Maison du Chocolat and Valrhona are two high-quality French brands loved around the world, and we must not forget the one and only pain au chocolat – France’s disguised excuse to eat chocolate for breakfast – and of course, the very French chocolat chaud, a taste of an abandoned opulence. 66 | The Good Life France The Good Life France | 67