# The Mandela Effect is real, but chocolate is the only actual example. Describe Chocolate **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [February 19, 2022, 10:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mandela-effect-is-real-but-chocolate-is-the-only-actual-example-describe-chocolate/959773 "2022-02-19T10:55:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2022, 10:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mandela-effect-is-real-but-chocolate-is-the-only-actual-example-describe-chocolate/959773/1 "2022-02-19T10:55:05Z")
You’re just about to go shopping and you say to someone ‘do you fancy a bar of chocolate? Shall I pick up your favourite?’, only to be met with a quizzical look and the reply ‘ch…oc…olate? Is that something new?’ Yes, the Mandela effect is real, but this is the only real example (that thing with the Berenstain Bears was just stupid people). You have transitioned into a universe where Chocolate simply does not exist - not only as a product, but (as you will later discover) the plant _Theobroma cacao_ and all of its close relatives are extinct - known only as fossils. Everything else seems more or less normal, Just no chocolate. How are you going to describe to the world what chocolate was, to you? ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2022, 11:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mandela-effect-is-real-but-chocolate-is-the-only-actual-example-describe-chocolate/959773/2 "2022-02-19T11:20:16Z")
It was a spice made from bitter-tasting seeds, like coffee beans but with much less caffeine. The fat was rendered from the seeds, and the fat and remaining solids were mixed in various proportions with milk and sugar to make a paste which could be hardened and shaped into pieces of candy, or mixed with hot water or hot milk and drunk. It was also made into an unsweetened powder which could be used to flavor various things, especially baked goods. It had a thick buttery mouthfeel and could be sweet or bitter depending on the proportions of milk and sugar, and an earthy flavor somewhat like truffles. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2022, 1:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mandela-effect-is-real-but-chocolate-is-the-only-actual-example-describe-chocolate/959773/3 "2022-02-19T13:43:16Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > How are you going to describe to the world what chocolate was, to you? Hate to fight the hypothetical, but I’d be wary of giving away my situation. Instead I’d study everything going on in an attempt at determining if I’m suffering from some sort of mental illness. Frightening hypothetical the more I think about it. **Smapti** does a fine job, but fails to explore the whole “white chocolate” thing. I’m also curious as to what happens with Easter in this alternate universe. A plethora of jellybeans, I’d guess. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2022, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mandela-effect-is-real-but-chocolate-is-the-only-actual-example-describe-chocolate/959773/4 "2022-02-19T14:02:57Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > I’m also curious as to what happens with Easter in this alternate universe. A plethora of jellybeans, I’d guess. People give each other egg-shaped gifts made from their saved toenail clippings. Everything else is the same as our universe though, probably. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2022, 2:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mandela-effect-is-real-but-chocolate-is-the-only-actual-example-describe-chocolate/959773/5 "2022-02-19T14:19:51Z")
OK, the first thing to know about chocolate is, it tastes absolutely nothing at all like toenail clippings. ---
**Author:** ![Slithy\_Tove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slithy_tove/32/18248_2.png) [@Slithy\_Tove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slithy_Tove)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2022, 2:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mandela-effect-is-real-but-chocolate-is-the-only-actual-example-describe-chocolate/959773/6 "2022-02-19T14:28:35Z")
“Oh, you mean like carob? No thanks. Carob just tastes like sweetened chalk.” ---
**Author:** ![gnoitall](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bb73d2/32.png) [@gnoitall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gnoitall)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2022, 3:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mandela-effect-is-real-but-chocolate-is-the-only-actual-example-describe-chocolate/959773/7 "2022-02-19T15:09:39Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > it tastes absolutely nothing at all like toenail clippings. Some would insist that this is not true of US domestic mass-market chocolate. But that’s beside the point. What if it turns out that in this altered world, toenail clippings are made out of what you would recognize as chocolate? [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/Y8DFJBwZchE/hqdefault.jpg "The Simpsons - What's a Donut?") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y8DFJBwZchE) ---
**Author:** ![Limmin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f04885/32.png) [@Limmin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Limmin)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2022, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mandela-effect-is-real-but-chocolate-is-the-only-actual-example-describe-chocolate/959773/8 "2022-02-19T19:25:37Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > **Smapti** does a fine job, but fails to explore the whole “white chocolate” thing. But comes dang close…render the fat, mix just that (without the solids) with sweetener and flavors such as vanilla, and you get a whole 'nuther way to experience chocolate. ---
**Author:** ![Grrr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grrr/32/146_2.png) [@Grrr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grrr)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2022, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mandela-effect-is-real-but-chocolate-is-the-only-actual-example-describe-chocolate/959773/9 "2022-02-19T19:33:45Z")
It tastes like chicken. ---
**Author:** ![Dropo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ce7236/32.png) [@Dropo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dropo)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2022, 10:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mandela-effect-is-real-but-chocolate-is-the-only-actual-example-describe-chocolate/959773/10 "2022-02-19T22:08:11Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > …You have transitioned into a universe where Chocolate simply does not exist… I would get me the fuck out of that shit universe before ever trying to explain the blessed glory that is the food of the gods. A universe without chocolate is not one I would willingly live in. > [@kayaker](#): > > …the whole “white chocolate” thing… “Of growing prevalence in recent years are the white and pastel coatings, made either with hard butters or with cocoa butter. It is this latter type that some people erroneously (and illegally) call ‘white chocolate.’ There _is no such thing_ as white chocolate, as can readily be seen by reviewing the federal standards of identity…. Even aside from the law, there is no moral justification for employing such a deceitful name. The only product used that even comes from the cocoa bean is the cocoa butter, and the faint reminiscence of chocolate flavor left in the cocoa butter is so slight as to be negligible.” (emphasis in original) –_Chocolate Production and Use_ by L. Russell Cook, 1963. Pg. 218 I would hope this board would be above contributing to the promotion of a scam, even in a thread posing a (heinous) hypothetical like this one. Perhaps references to “the fake chocolate that is erroneously, illegally and immorally promoted as ‘white chocolate’” could be allowed. I am sure the mods will create a sticky to address this scandal any day now… ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2022, 10:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mandela-effect-is-real-but-chocolate-is-the-only-actual-example-describe-chocolate/959773/11 "2022-02-19T22:08:19Z")
If this vid is any indication, I think you really need to emphasize the sweetness. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/70jsvEhU9Wo/maxresdefault.jpg "Ivory Coast Cocoa farmers taste Chocolate for the first time.") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=70jsvEhU9Wo) ---
**Author:** ![Pardel-Lux](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pardel-lux/32/20182_2.png) [@Pardel-Lux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pardel-Lux)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2022, 10:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mandela-effect-is-real-but-chocolate-is-the-only-actual-example-describe-chocolate/959773/12 "2022-02-19T22:30:14Z")
It should be mentioned, IMO, that chocolate only becomes yummy after fermenting the beans. Beans do not taste like chocolate at all. I have never had unfermented beans, but they seem to be insipid and boring. Like vanilla: who came up with the idea? IDK, but (s)he deserves our eternal gratitude. Concerning a world without chocolate, the edifying case of the Spanish bishop of Chiapas in Mexico who [tried to forbid chocolate](https://historycollection.com/20-downright-bizarre-details-about-the-history-of-chocolate-that-we-love-to-sink-our-teeth-into/5/) as a potion of the devil comes to mind: he was killed. So should this hypotetical world. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2022, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mandela-effect-is-real-but-chocolate-is-the-only-actual-example-describe-chocolate/959773/13 "2022-02-19T22:35:59Z")
I reckon a good many fermentation methods came about as a result of just trying to keep something - in the case of cocoa, just trying, somewhat unsuccessfully, to dry them out could result in a fairly fermented batch. ---
**Author:** ![Pardel-Lux](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pardel-lux/32/20182_2.png) [@Pardel-Lux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pardel-Lux)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2022, 10:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mandela-effect-is-real-but-chocolate-is-the-only-actual-example-describe-chocolate/959773/14 "2022-02-19T22:44:01Z")
OK, fermentation is often spontaneous, but you still have to have the guts to taste the result. It would just look spoiled at first glance. And then there are a couple of additional steps to take to get something really good, which is not evident when you start from a product that is boring, tasteless (or so I read) and has no other uses except, perhaps, feed. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2022, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mandela-effect-is-real-but-chocolate-is-the-only-actual-example-describe-chocolate/959773/15 "2022-02-20T00:33:28Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > OK, the first thing to know about chocolate is, it tastes absolutely nothing at all like toenail clippings. And how do you know what toenail clippings taste like? ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2022, 4:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mandela-effect-is-real-but-chocolate-is-the-only-actual-example-describe-chocolate/959773/16 "2022-02-20T04:09:11Z")
Chocolate is the flavor of the brown milk that comes out of brown cows. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2022, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mandela-effect-is-real-but-chocolate-is-the-only-actual-example-describe-chocolate/959773/17 "2022-02-20T04:51:44Z")
> [@Pardel-Lux](#): > > have the guts to taste the result. It would just look spoiled at first glance. The Curious Gourmand /restaurant names ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2022, 4:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mandela-effect-is-real-but-chocolate-is-the-only-actual-example-describe-chocolate/959773/18 "2022-02-20T04:55:38Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > I’m also curious as to what happens with Easter in this alternate universe. A plethora of jellybeans, I’d guess. Painted hardboiled eggs. Eggs made of spun sugar. Peeps. ---
**Author:** ![DesertDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desertdog/32/11503_2.png) [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2022, 5:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mandela-effect-is-real-but-chocolate-is-the-only-actual-example-describe-chocolate/959773/19 "2022-02-20T05:21:08Z")
> [@Dropo](#): > > Perhaps references to “the fake chocolate that is erroneously, illegally and immorally promoted as ‘white chocolate’” could be allowed. But then what would we use for the opprobrium that rightfully needs to be rained down upon the head of carob which, as **Slithy\_Tove** so succinctly put it, “Tastes like sweetened chalk.” At least [white chocolate] has the proper mouth feel. ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2022, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mandela-effect-is-real-but-chocolate-is-the-only-actual-example-describe-chocolate/959773/20 "2022-02-21T00:15:35Z")
This Board has already discussed carob at great length, although with particular focus on its scent more than flavor. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mandela-effect-is-real-but-chocolate-is-the-only-actual-example-describe-chocolate/959773.md?page=2)