No wonder that a museum dedicated exclusively to melting sin ranks among the ten most visited museums in Germany and is able to sustain itself. Founded in 1993 by entrepreneur Dr. Hans Imhoff, who took over the traditional Cologne company Stollwerck in the 1970s and turned it into one of the largest chocolate manufacturers.
In the exhibition, visitors embark on a journey through the three-thousand-year history of chocolate. Starting with the Maya and Aztecs, who used cocoa for both healing and currency, to insights into production today. The building by the Rhine includes, among other things, a glass showcase factory and a walk-through tropical house complete with a cocoa tree. It is about the cultural history of chocolate as well as advertising for the luxury good.
This way, one learns that the high caloric content, which is subtly downplayed today, was publicly praised in the 1920s. In the "Cult Chocolates" section, there is no shortage of products from the modern consumer and goods world that the children will surely remember in the next supermarket. The most important question from most (not just small) visitors, however, is: Can you try it as well...? Yes, you can – the three-meter-high chocolate fountain is constantly in operation and is one of the attractions of the exhibition.
