Every morning, there's no perfect one to sip but tablea. I do it almost 3 times a day. No joke, so yummy!

What is tablea tsokolate and what makes this drink distinctive from other hot chocolate?

Tablea is a Spanish word-meaning tablet, and tsokolate is a Filipino word-meaning chocolate. It is a thick hot chocolate specially made from cacao balls. The tablea can also be a thick disk or flat, and even in square form. But the balls are the most popular form made, and is considered as one of Batangas delicacies.

It is believed that the Spanish persuaded the growing of cacao trees and the developing of the beans into cacao tablets during the mid 17th century. During the Spanish era hot chocolate made from tablea is served during breakfast on special occasions. Consequently cacao chocolate drinking has long been a tradition in Batangas and other provinces in the Philippines.

The province of Batangas produces one of the best cacaos in the Philippines, due to its suitable tropic weather. The tree is normally grown in the shades of other trees, usually the taller coconut trees. It can grow as tall as 40 feet, and has fruits that are more than a foot long. The fruits color is brownish yellow to purple, and contains plenty of cacao seed. This seeds are the cacao beans, which turn out to be tablea tsokolate or cacao chocolate.