In Eugene’s bustling coffee scene, Xocolate Coffee Co. has made a name for itself — literally — from chocolate.
Take the Eugene cafe’s signature drink, the Mexican mocha. To make it, co-owner Analley Sanchez melts Ibarra chocolate bars with cinnamon sticks, water and a touch more sugar. Intensely chocolately, warm and spicy, it’s a sweet companion to coffee.
Chocolate is synonymous with Latin America. In Mesoamerica (modern-day Central America) ancient civilizations consumed and worshiped a cacao drink called “xocolatl”, meaning bitter water…