Holiday Greeting – Valentine’s Day: Why Chocolates?

The celebration of Valentine’s Day is attributed to Geoffrey Chaucer who wrote a poem about love and St. Valentine in the 1300s. Although this poem did not mention chocolate, the tasty treats have since become a Valentine’s Day tradition.¹

Drinking chocolate was popular across Europe in the 1600s. Its association with St. Valentine’s Day occurred in the mid-1800s when an entrepreneur found an ingenious way to use leftover cocoa butter from his company’s production of 16 varieties of drinking chocolate.^{1, 2}

The entrepreneur invented eating chocolate and packaged several pieces together in elaborate boxes that could be used to store mementos such as dried flowers, locks of hair, and love letters once the chocolates had been eaten. It was a gift with lasting value. Even today, Victorian chocolate boxes are collectors’ items.³

If you’re looking for a gift with lasting value, contact your financial professional to review your current plan or to learn more about financial planning.

We hope you have a sweet Valentine’s Day!

_{Sources:
1 http://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/how-chocolate-and-valentines-day-mated-life-180954228/#RRKMl1TklGlKvIe6.99
2 https://www.cadbury.co.uk/the-story
3 http://www.history.com/news/hungry-history/celebrating-valentines-day-with-a-box-of-chocolates
This material was prepared by Peak Advisor Alliance. Peak Advisor Alliance is not affiliated with the named broker/dealer.}