Why Drinking Chocolate Belongs on Your Christmas Day Morning Menu

Picture this: it’s Christmas morning, and while everyone else is reaching for their usual coffee or tea, you’re cradling a cup of properly prepared drinking chocolate – velvety, aromatic, and rich enough to make the opening of presents feel like a secondary event. Why should champagne breakfasts and Buck’s Fizz get all the glory when drinking chocolate offers something far more soulful?

The Case for a New Christmas Morning Ritual

Christmas breakfast deserves better than hastily assembled toast before diving into the wrapping paper chaos. Drinking chocolate – real drinking chocolate, made from carefully conched cacao – transforms the morning into something approaching a ceremony. Unlike basic instant alternatives, authentic drinking chocolate delivers depth and complexity that mirrors the occasion itself: layered, warm, and utterly memorable.

The British have long understood that certain beverages mark certain moments. Yet somehow, Christmas morning has been surrendered to orange juice and instant granules. It’s time to reclaim the morning with something that matches the anticipation hanging in the air.

The Profound Comfort of Proper Drinking Chocolate

There’s something almost alchemical about watching couverture chocolate melt into heated milk, transforming from solid to silk. The aroma alone – notes of roasted cacao beans mingling with whatever spices you’ve chosen – creates an olfactory backdrop that signals this day is unlike any other.

Can you drink hot chocolate in the morning? Not only can you, but you absolutely should, particularly on Christmas Day. The gentle stimulation from quality cacao awakens without jarring, offering theobromine’s smooth lift rather than caffeine’s sometimes aggressive jolt. It’s contemplative energy, perfect for savouring those precious moments before the day’s delightful chaos begins.

The tempering process that quality chocolate undergoes creates a smooth mouthfeel that cheaper alternatives simply cannot replicate. Each sip coats your palate with precision – bold without being overwhelming, indulgent without veering into cloying territory.

Christmas Morning Hot Chocolate: Elevated Interpretations

The Classic Reimagined

Start with 70% Dark Chocolate melted into whole milk. Add a whisper of vanilla bean paste and a pinch of sea salt. The salt amplifies the chocolate’s inherent complexity, drawing out nuances that might otherwise remain hidden.

Spiced Elegance

Infuse your milk with cinnamon quills, star anise, and crushed cardamom pods before introducing your 100% Cacao chocolate. The result? A cup that tastes like Christmas smells – warming spices dancing alongside chocolate’s earthy boldness.

The Hazelnut Embrace

For those seeking a dairy alternative, Nutmilk Chocolate creates an exceptionally smooth drinking chocolate when melted into oat or hazelnut milk. The finely milled hazelnuts already present in the chocolate harmonise beautifully with plant-based milks, creating layers of nutty depth.*

*We believe our dark and Nutmilk chocolate is suitable for vegans. However, as it is made in the same environment as our milk chocolate we cannot guarantee it is free from milk.

Peppermint Sophistication

Steep fresh peppermint leaves in your warming milk before straining and adding Dark Chocolate. The botanical freshness cuts through the richness, creating balance that feels both festive and refined.

The Art of Preparation: Christmas Eve Groundwork

The secret to a stress-free Christmas morning drinking chocolate station lies in strategic preparation the evening before. Here’s your timeline:

Christmas Eve Evening:

• Portion your chosen chocolate into individual servings (approximately 40g per cup)
• Prepare any spice infusions in sealed containers
• Measure out toppings into small bowls with lids
• Set out your finest cups – this isn’t a morning for mugs
• Create a small instruction card for family members who might be first to rise

Christmas Morning:

• Gently heat your milk (or dairy alternative) to approximately 70°C
• Add chocolate portions and whisk until glossy
• Pour, garnish, and present

The beauty of this approach is its simplicity disguised as sophistication. You’ve done the thinking; Christmas morning simply requires heating and whisking.

Curating Your Christmas Chocolate Station

Transform a corner of your kitchen into a self-service chocolate bar that would make any chocolatier proud. The key is organisation meeting abundance.

The Foundation:

• Hot Chocolate selections in varying intensities
• Pre-measured portions in small bowls or vintage tins
• Warmed milk in an insulated carafe
• A quality whisk or milk frother

The Toppings:

• Whipped cream (optional, but undeniably festive)
• Grated chocolate shavings
• Crushed chocolate covered honeycomb
• Toasted hazelnuts or almonds
• Mini marshmallows for younger celebrants
• Crystallised ginger pieces
• Orange zest

The Finishing Touches:

• Small spoons for stirring
• Napkins in festive colours
• A handwritten sign explaining each chocolate option
• A small vase with winter greenery

This station serves multiple purposes beyond mere beverage service. It becomes a gathering point, a conversation starter, and a visual centrepiece that signals thoughtfulness without requiring constant attention.

For the Grown-Ups: Morning Sophistication

Once the younger family members have bounded off with their presents, the adults might appreciate slightly more complex interpretations.

The Subtle Addition

A mere 15ml of Salted Caramel Vodka Liqueur transforms drinking chocolate into something approaching indulgence. The warmth isn’t from alcohol’s heat but from the way it carries flavour across your palate, extending each sip’s finish.

The Cognac Kiss

A half-measure of quality cognac paired with Single Origin Drinking Chocolate creates unexpected harmony. The brandy’s dried fruit notes complement chocolate’s complexity, particularly when using cacao from our Saint Lucia estate.

The Amaretto Moment

Italian amaretto’s almond essence alongside hazelnut-based chocolate creates layers upon layers of nutty sophistication. Add a dusting of cocoa powder and you’ve crafted something that feels more like a dessert than a morning beverage – which, on Christmas Day, is entirely appropriate.

Remember: these additions should complement, not dominate. The chocolate remains the protagonist; alcohol merely provides supporting character development.

The Temperature Question

Drinking chocolate should be served at approximately 60-65°C – warm enough to remain liquid, cool enough to actually taste the chocolate’s intricacies. Too hot, and you’ll scald both your tongue and the delicate flavour compounds that make quality chocolate worth seeking out.

Consider providing a small thermometer at your station. It sounds unnecessarily precise until you realise that temperature affects perception as much as the ingredients themselves.

Why This Matters

Christmas morning passes in a blur of torn paper, exclamations, and batteries that need installing. A proper drinking chocolate moment – whether alone in the quiet before others wake or gathered together before the unwrapping begins – creates a pause. It’s permission to sit, to sip, to acknowledge that this day carries weight and wonder.

Unlike coffee’s functional wake-up or tea’s habitual comfort, drinking chocolate on Christmas morning is pure intention. You’ve chosen complexity over convenience, ritual over routine. In a season often characterised by rushing from one obligation to another, that choice matters.

The cacao itself connects you to something larger: the organic estate in Saint Lucia where some of our beans grow, the careful fermentation and drying process, the precise tempering that allows chocolate to melt smoothly. Every cup contains decisions made by growers, makers, and now you – the final interpreter of flavour.

Creating Your Own Tradition

The beauty of establishing a Christmas morning drinking chocolate tradition is its flexibility. Perhaps you’ll keep it simple: the same recipe every year, becoming as anticipated as any other Christmas ritual. Or maybe you’ll experiment annually, each year’s variation becoming part of your family’s evolving story.

Consider these possibilities:

• Assign each family member their own signature recipe
• Create a “chocolate of the year” selection based on the previous year’s travels or discoveries
• Pair drinking chocolate with specific Christmas gift boxes
• Develop a tradition of toasting with chocolate before present opening
• Start a recipe journal documenting each year’s interpretation

The Final Pour

As you sip your carefully crafted drinking chocolate on Christmas morning, surrounded by family or savouring solitude, you’re participating in something both ancient and immediate. Cacao has been revered for millennia; your particular cup exists only in this moment.

That’s rather the point of Christmas, isn’t it? The convergence of tradition and present joy, history and immediate experience, anticipated ritual and spontaneous delight.

So this Christmas, skip the instant granules. Bypass the usual beverages. Instead, take ten minutes to prepare something that matches the morning’s significance. Your future self, cradling that cup while watching dawn break on Christmas Day, will thank you for the thoughtfulness.

Ready to elevate your Christmas morning? Explore our complete Hot Chocolate Collection and discover which drinking chocolate will become your new tradition. Browse our full range of Christmas Hot Chocolate for festive flavours, or create the perfect Christmas gift hamper complete with drinking chocolate selections. Because some mornings deserve more than ordinary, and Christmas Day is undoubtedly one of them.