- Xicolatada
The Xicolatada is a traditional
festival celebrated in the village ofPalau-de-Cerdagne inLanguedoc-Roussillon . It is celebrated yearly on16 August , and has been for over 300 years.In
Catalonia ,15 August was once a festival day, and the locals would drink quite a bit, to the point that they felt a bit ill the following morning. To feel better, the villagechocolatier would offer them ahot chocolate , which he claimed was an excellent remedy. Over the years, this habit grew into a custom, and eventually a municipal association was formed to remember the tradition and to organise the distribution of hot chocolate every year on16 August , at precisely 11 in the morning. Today, the chocolate is brewed in largecauldron s over a wood fire. In 2007, 800litre s were consumed by 3000 people, many of whom were visitors; the festival draws many tourists to the village every year. To preserve the tradition, festival organisers have created a sort of confraternity called the "Mestres xicolaters", or "master chocolatiers", who keep the recipes for the chocolate secret; the organisation also handles scheduling, which it does not reveal in advance.Reference
*"This article is based on a translation from the corresponding article in the French Wikipedia
* [http://histoireduroussillon.free.fr/Decouvrir/Traditions/Xicolatada.php Histoire de Roussillon] (in French)
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