History of Modica Chocolate
Modica chocolate has very ancient origins and finds its roots in what is defined as: "the people of the fifth sun", the Aztecs, who reigned in Central and South America from the 13th to the 16th century. Among the great and wonderful cultures and traditions of this extraordinary people of ancient Mexico, cocoa played an important role: it was in fact considered nutritious food, economic support, but also a symbol of excellent social position. Also used for its benefits and healing properties, it was also attributed a mystical meaning and was considered a vehicle for communicating with deities.
The Aztecs used cocoa beans to make a drink, called xocoatl, which they flavored with local spices and herbs.
The intervention of another people was necessary for this cocoa bean processing technique to reach from distant Messino to our Modica: in fact, Spanish domination, common to the territory of present-day Mexico and Sicily, meant that this method almost found its natural location in Modica.
It was the Spaniards who added sugar for the first time during the processing of cocoa beans.
Even today, Modica chocolate is produced according to the ancient recipe.
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Ciomod, producer of our Modica PGI Almond Chocolate, was born in Modica in 2003 from a project by Innocenzo Pluchino.
As Sicilian tradition dictates, we are proud of our territory and we have chosen to have the "courage" not to leave, to choose our beloved land every day, feeling, on the contrary, that we have the great responsibility of contributing to make her known.
We are convinced that we live in a magical place and , by using the "best ingredients", such as respect for history and meticulous research of raw materials, we are committed to being able to present the territory to an audience that can appreciate its essence.
From the beginning the clear idea was to harmoniously coexist the tradition of manufacturing with the innovation of the packaging of the product to be offered on the market. Creating innovative, palatable, fashionable and designer packaging by combining it with the most traditional Sicilian produce: this was, and continues to be, Ciomod's challenge.
Once the first line of Modica chocolate was conceived and consolidated, our energies were doubled on the creation of its liquid alternative: thus our first liqueur, the chocolate one, was born.
The liquor factory, which we own, is a small, continually growing factory that pays absolute attention to quality. The finished product is the result of a careful choice of raw materials that identify our Sicily. The famous Modica Chocolate liqueur was only the first of the specialties that we now boast on the market. In fact, different types of liqueur were created in succession: from the various variations of the chocolate one, we moved on to the production of the almond, pistachio, fennel, cinnamon and carob ones . The bottle, the label, the bow that completes the packaging, everything was carefully chosen to put on the market a product that could make not only quality, but also simple and elegant aesthetics, its strong point. After our first ten years of activity, the commitment towards constructive and constant growth has certainly not weakened, on the contrary.
In recent years, Ciomod has in fact chosen to invest not only in expanding its range of products, but also and above all in expressing the Sicilian territory through new channels , that of hospitality and welcome: we believe in fact that even before selling a product we sell our way of being and knowing how to welcome.
