Chocolate: A True Story

My name is Rudolf Lindt. I was born in Bern in 1854. Since my father had the same first name, I was later called Rodolphe. In 1879, I developed a process for homogenizing the structure of chocolate. At that time, the structure of regular chocolate was heterogeneous. My innovative product, however, had a homogeneous structure. I tried to differentiate myself in the market by calling it “Chocolat Fondant”. For over 20 years, my melting chocolate came exclusively from Bern. Its success motivated the competition to copy my technique. Thus, my technical process spread and ultimately became the standard in chocolate production. As a result, original chocolate was driven out of the market. The general use of my technique has led to the fact that the melting one is now simply called chocolate. In fact, there are only a few cities that can claim to be the birthplace of a globally consumed luxury food item. Yet this important story has been forgotten even in the city where I was born.

This counterstatement attempts to answer the question of why this culinary heritage is no longer remembered in Bern. The search for answers begins with the most popular biography, which can be found in the book entitled “Patriarchs.” According to the narrative in this book, I was a lazy greenhorn who only became a pioneer by pure luck. Furthermore, a judge is said to have sentenced me. For this reason, my successes are said to have been undeserved.

The book also describes a legend that is often interpreted as a harmless joke. It has even made its way into various Wikipedia entries about my person. As a result, it has become the most well-known disparagement of my personality. However, my family has been struck by various tragedies. Disparaging remarks about me can therefore not be meant ironically.

In court rulings, however, the facts are presented in a completely different light. This allows various untruths in the book to be identified. Thus, the counterstatement mutates into a revelation. This serves as an example of how important factchecking is. In “Patriarchs”, source texts originating from my opponents are listed. The disparaging remarks can therefore be attributed to a lack of objectivity.

I would like to take this opportunity to point out that no court has convicted me. If you want to stick to the truth, the myth about my important achievement should not be spread any further. After all, this could be a classic case of “The Winner Takes It All.”

Using a paradox, it is possible to deduce the potential consequences of the negative portrayal of my person. A conclusion can then be drawn. Information about the author of this revelation will follow at the end.

My invention is too often mentioned in connection with a myth. According to this legend, I supposedly forgot to turn off the machine when I left the factory on a Friday. Because of this oversight, the pastry was stirred on its own over the weekend. When I returned to work on Monday, I supposedly found a completely new kind of chocolate. According to this narrative, modern chocolate is thus the result of a lucky accident stemming from carelessness. Careless behavior can be attributed to the inexperience of a beginner.

At various places in the book, it is claimed that I was a vain person. Vanity is a character trait that can have a negative impact on a partnership. This characteristic will make sense, at the very latest, when the question of guilt is raised in the section about the conflict. Due to my vanity, I am also said to have rejected hard work and preferred leisure activities instead. Since the weekend is a prerequisite for leisure, these passages in the book can be grouped under the category “Weekend.” If the focus on leisure is too pronounced, it can also be interpreted as laziness. A lazy person tends to learn very little. They will likely always remain beginners. And so, the circle is complete. After all, both carelessness and inexperience can be attributed to a beginner. Even newcomers can be successful, if luck is on their side. Accordingly, there are other passages in the text where I am described as an amateur, and these can be summarized under the term “luck” or, in German, more accurately, “coincidence.” By categorizing the content into “Coincidence” and “Weekend,” the text analysis can highlight the sections that are connected to the legend.

However, my achievements speak against such laziness. For instance, I was able to sell my company in 1899 for 1.5 million Swiss francs. Of that amount, 1.3 million was paid for goodwill. Today, that goodwill would be worth between 50.7 and 65 million Swiss francs. Based on current figures, I generated an annual surplus of 2.5 to 3.2 million francs starting in 1879. Later, the opposing party also justified the high price by citing the unique global reputation my name enjoyed in the year of the acquisition. If I had been lazy, I could hardly have earned such a reputation. If the goodwill was possible without hard work, I would have received money for nothing. In that case, the high price paid for my company would actually have to be questioned.

A happy coincidence can only lead to a simple production process. To stay true to the logic of the legend, my method had to be reduced to nothing more than stirring the mixture for a longer time. Contrary to the narrative in the book, however, I developed a multi-step process.

Cocoa consists of 50–60 percent fat. As a plant, it always contains some water as well. To achieve homogenization, the water content had to be reduced. To do this, I first developed the conching machine. This allowed the grinded mixture to be made thinner and heated. The evaporation reduced water in the mixture. To prevent the mixture from drying out, I had to add cocoa butter during the conching process. By reducing water and increasing fat, the mixture became more liquid. Only then did the machine begin to stir, allowing unwanted flavors to escape along with the evaporated water. In fact, the conching procedure alone involved several steps that had to be considered. A single lucky strike would only have resulted in the discovery of one part of it. However, my development work had not yet been completed.

Once the mixture has set, the crystals return to a stable state. To control the crystallization process, I also had to develop the technique of tempering. To do this, the viscous mixture is exposed to a specific temperature range after conching. The conched and tempered mixture could then be molded into shapes. However, the original chocolate mixture was harder and had to be pressed into molds. So, in order to fill the molds with my viscous mixture, I also had to establish another new procedure.

If the conching machine had really run unattended throughout the entire weekend, the mixture would have first dried out and eventually burned. Thus, the legend of a “lucky weekend” falls apart upon logical understanding after being subjected to a fact-check. The analysis of the book also concludes that the passages in the book that refer to the legend are incorrect as well. However, all these descriptions are not only untrue but also negative overall. Given the links in the text, the legend alone is enough to spread all these negative comments about me.

The wording of the legend contains a slightly ironic tone. This allows it to be spreaded without hesitation. However, there was also a dark side to my life. These circumstances must be examined in the next section. Afterward, any ironic intent behind this portrayal can be ruled out. The text analysis has already shown that both my character and my success are devalued by the narrative in the book.

Important note: The history of the company in Zurich dates back to 1836, when a confectionary was taken over. In 1845, the company began making original chocolate. In 1892, as part of a succession plan, the business was divided between two sons. Since then, the confectionery has been independently managed. It therefore has nothing to do with my history. Consequently, it is also not involved in the events I am about to describe.

In 1899, I sold my factory to a company in Zurich. Subsequently, a dispute arose within the merged company. According to the narrative in the book, I am said to have acted against the interests of the Zurich-based company leadership. In connection with a private real estate purchase in 1902, the book describes actions on my part that could be misinterpreted as potentially criminal. The negative portrayal of me in connection with the legend now makes sense. According to this narrative, I am said to have been solely responsible for the split between the Bernese and Zurich parties in 1905. After my resignation, I am said to have gone into competition with my former company and to have been convicted of this in 1909.

I would like to respond to these allegations as follows: For example, the book makes no mention of the location clause in the 1899 purchase contract. Following the merger, the arrangement for autonomous operations at the Zurich and Bern locations should have been implemented. However, this contractual clause was never put into action. Furthermore, in 1905, the Board of Directors decided to supply the German market exclusively from Zurich. As a result of this new sales strategy, the Bernese site would have lost much of its significance within the merged company. This decision is also not mentioned in the book, even though it would have had drastic consequences for workplaces in Bern. This additional information comes from the 1909 court ruling against my brother. He and my cousin had already been working for me prior to the merger. In fact, I announced my resignation just after this Board of Directors’ decision.

My brother and cousin left the merged company at the same time. In 1906, they founded A & W Lindt. By establishing this second chocolate factory, they violated the non-compete clause in their employment contracts with their former employer. The company subsequently sought contractual damages. Three judgments were handed down in these civil lawsuits in 1909. One of the rulings concerned the former production manager at the Bernese facility. Another concerned my brother, who was ordered to pay damages. My cousin, on the other hand, was acquitted. Seven days after my brother’s conviction, my death was announced. As if these circumstances weren’t bad enough, the claim in the book is also false. At no time was there a legal conviction against me.

Following my death, another civil lawsuit was filed against A & W Lindt. In 1927, my brother and my cousin were ordered to pay damages of 800,000 Swiss francs for unfair competition. As general partners, they were liable in solidarity with their private assets. The plaintiff, however, had sought damages in the amount of 4 million Swiss francs. To that end, they tried to claim additional damages, which they alleged I had caused during my active career. After my death, the liability for damages was said to have passed to my brother as my sole heir. In the judgment, however, the court concluded that no culpable misconduct on my part had been proven. Thus, the judge effectively granted me a posthumous exoneration.

The accusations in the book can thus be clearly disproved. Both parties appealed the second instance ruling to the Federal Supreme Court. Three days after the briefs were filed, my brother passed away. In 1928, the two parties reached an out-of-court settlement. Even while still in mourning, my nephew had to sign on behalf of his dead father. This rendered the pending appeal proceedings moot. As part of the settlement, A & W Lindt was transferred to the plaintiff’s ownership and was immediately liquidated. In the 1930s, the merged company also closed its facility in Bern. Thus, the craft that had revolutionized the global chocolate market disappeared in the oldest district of Switzerland’s federal city.

In the book, however, the settlement is incorrectly placed before my brother’s death. As a result, the tragic event is perceived merely as a footnote, and the rest of the narrative can be interpreted ironically. Only with the correct chronology does it become clear how much the Bernese side was weakened by the death. This was followed by the closure of both plants in Bern. The loss of jobs led to further personal tragedies. Under these circumstances, it should now be clear to everyone why there is no room for jokes in a story about me. Furthermore, an analysis of the sources shows that this irony is partly based on the subjective impressions of the winners in Zurich.

The book “Patriarchs” includes a bibliography. It lists “Pioneers of Business and Technology: Sprüngli and Lindt”. This biography, published in 1970, was written by H. R. Schmid. To mark the 125th anniversary of the merged company, his version was also published under the title “125 Years of Bringing Pleasure”. The coincidence is mentioned only in passing. Otherwise, the text is written in a very factual style.

Another source listed is the company biography published in 1995, titled “150 Years of Bringing Pleasure.” It was written by P. Treichler and G. Corradi. The legend appears in this book for the first time. In the text, it is already linked to other disparaging remarks. Given the long-running legal dispute, this text cannot be objective. The section covering the period when the Bern and Zurich sides were united is thus titled “A Time of Wars and Crises.” My nephew was born in 1905. He turned 90 in the year of the company’s anniversary. Incidentally, he lost his father during the time of wars and crises. Even while he was still in mourning, he had to step in as the heir during the out-of-court negotiations. The way the 150th anniversary was celebrated on Lake Zurich was inconsiderate toward him.

The following insights can be gained from the source review: The research on “patriarchs” was limited to existing texts. The legend and the associated characteristics are based on the portrayal in the company biography written in 1995 by the other party involved in the dispute. The simplification of my achievements and the devaluation of my person can thus be explained by a lack of objectivity. The description of the dispute, however, follows more closely the account given in the biography from 1970.

The exception to this is the incorrect chronology surrounding my brother’s death. Furthermore, there is no indication in any source that I was convinced. These errors in the book cannot be explained. It is evident that the version presented in “patriarchs” is not only insufficiently objective for a biography but also includes several errors. Rather, it is a narrative written to the disadvantage of the Bernese side.

The author is also a historian. For this reason, his narrative comes across as particularly professional and has become the most popular interpretation of my walk of life. As a result, his text is frequently cited by the media. One example of this is “Schweiz und die Schokolade.” Although the legend is illogical, it is given a platform in this documentary film. Thus, it became the most well-known devaluation of my innovation. It can even be found on Wikipedia. Today, this myth is probably better known than my achievement, which ultimately resulted in modern chocolate.

Biographies often serve marketing purposes as well. Consequently, the individuals portrayed in them are generally depicted in a very positive light. The portrayal of me, therefore, deviates significantly from the norm. Given this significant deviation, one might even speak of a paradox. This paradox can be used to extrapolate the potential consequences of the negative portrayal. However, there is no causal link to the book, and so these extrapolations are, of course, open to debate.

Bern
The large number of different chocolate makers in Bern was unique in Switzerland. Moreover, the Tobler family’s triangular-shaped idea gave rise to what is now the most famous Swiss chocolate. In addition, the Wander family’s breakfast drink—a powder made from eggs, malt, and defatted cocoa—became a worldwide hit. Thanks to my procedure, Bern is also considered the birthplace of modern chocolate. Thus, Bern’s rich history of chocolate also includes quality attributes that allow it to compete on an international level.

Nevertheless, Bern’s important role in global development is hardly known even in Switzerland—paradoxically, a so-called “chocolate country.” The wrongly presumed condemnation may have caused me to lose my role as a role model. Furthermore, the simplification in the spirit of the legend may have caused my procedure to lose significance. Under these circumstances, the paradox may have distorted perceptions, making this extensive history of chocolate seem less significant.

Swiss
Switzerland is generally associated with milk chocolate. This, too, has a homogeneous structure. From a technical point of view, it is therefore a type of melting chocolate. It follows, then, that melting chocolate is the “mother” of milk melting chocolate. Nevertheless, the “daughter” seems to be better known. The milk-based variant was developed by my colleague Daniel Peter on Lake Geneva. The year of invention is generally given as 1875. At that time, however, the structure was still heterogeneous. It was only after my invention in 1879 that homogenization became possible. Consequently, it could not have acquired its melting properties until then.

As a rule, the year of completion is what matters when it comes to inventions. By backdating it, Peter’s invention is separated from mine. Consequently, it is also unaffected by the simplification of my procedure and the devaluation of my person. This allowed the milk chocolate to develop much more freely than my “Chocolat Fondant.” In this case, the paradox would have helped the daughter step out of her mother’s shadow. The mother’s lower popularity can even be described as a paradox of Swiss chocolate.

Globally
In technical literature, the terms “conching,” “tempering,” and “molding” are each described separately. However, these methods are closely linked to the homogenization of the chocolate’s structure. The section on the legend already mentioned the combination of water and fat in cocoa. In 1828, Coenraad Johannes van Houten developed a process for de-oiling cocoa. Like my father, he was also a pharmacist. Without fat, the cocoa powder dissolved more easily in milk. Thus, the Dutch Process is considered the breakthrough in drinking chocolate. I also have my colleague from the Netherlands to thank for the cocoa butter, which allowed me to prevent the pastry from drying out during conching.

When edible chocolate was first homogenized in 1879, the problem of mixing water and fat also had to be solved. To ensure that the individual components melt together in the mixture, water must be reduced during conching, and additional fat in the form of cocoa butter must be added. Tempering the conched mixture stabilizes the fat crystals. This prevents the fat from separating—the so-called fat bloom problem. Conching liquefies the mixture so that it can be poured into molds after tempering. Before my invention, the mixture remained harder and had to be pressed into molds by hand in most cases.

To achieve the breakthrough in edible chocolate, I therefore had to develop a multi-step procedure. However, to justify the logic of the legend, it had to be reduced to “stirring for a longer period of time.” This simplification creates the impression that anyone could have achieved this success if they had only waited a little longer. As a result, my invention loses its importance in global chocolate development. The individual steps for homogenizing the chocolate structure are collectively referred to in this counterstatement as the Bernese Process. This term is a tribute to my birthplace, which has unjustly lost an important cultural heritage.

This counterstatement identifies various factual inaccuracies in the book “Patriarchs”. Furthermore, it became clear that the oversimplification of my procedure and the disparaging remarks are based on the subjective perceptions of my opponents. If this is the reason why the story about my person is unknown, then this culinary heritage has undoubtedly been unjustly pushed off its pedestal. Considering the tragic events on the Bernese side, the legend created by the opposing side should not be further spread. Moreover, I have never been convicted by a court.

The production time more than doubled as a result of the Bernese Process. My production costs were therefore much higher than those of my competitors. For me, my customers’ moment of pleasure was more important than profit. Complex problems require multiple solutions. Just as the iPhone revolutionized the mobile phone market, my product revolutionized the chocolate market in 1879. In fact, my sweet walk of life was a positive story - from start to finish, or, putting it more chocolatey: from the fair-traded bean to the delicious bar.

Felix has written down the true story of my achievement. He was born in Bern and grew up in the surrounding area. To preserve this cultural heritage, he founded Chocobern. Since January 2020, he has been sharing his local knowledge with guests on a walk of life along Bern’s sweet past. Now, one could accuse him of trivializing the story about myself. Moreover, since the broadcast of “Schweiz und die Schokolade,” he has been repeatedly asked about the legend. However, a complete explanation of the background is not possible. He has therefore decided to publish a counterstatement to the version presented in “Patriarchs.” Interested guests can be referred to this website in the future.

With Felix, guests can enjoy various specialties that sweeten up their stay in Bern. I would therefore highly recommend a visit to him for any chocolate lover. Click the link below to learn more about what he has to offer regarding Switzerland’s most comprehensive history of chocolate.