Cocoa Tea?

What shall we call it? Cacoa, cocoa, hot chocolate, hot cocoa/cacoa or cocoa tea? Most of us are familiar with either hot chocolate, hot cocoa or cocoa tea. Are they different? Do you know what is being referred to? In doing my research I actually got a bit confused mainly because the word "cacoa" came up. Another word for cocoa to confuse me? However, it showed me that the best way to approach the understanding of the terminology would be to start from the tree. In so doing I realised that history will also help with clarifying things. So what is the difference among cacoa, cocoa, hot chocolate, hot cocoa/cacoa or cocoa tea?

Theobroma cacoa is the scientific name of the cacoa tree. This tree produces cacoa pods from which the cacoa seeds are derived to make products. So for me, "cacoa" is the name based on that information, the origin name, is a good way to put it. According to the Science of Chocolate website article titled, "The difference between cacoa and cocoa,"  cacoa is the phonetic adaptation by the Spanish for "kakawa" from the Maya they encountered in the 16th century and it is generally believed that the English "corrupted" the "cacoa" into "cocoa." Thus it is understood that the words can and are used interchangably. However, there is some thought and understanding that "cacoa" tends to be used to refer to the unprocessed cacoa, so we say cacoa tree, cacoa pod and cacoa beans. While "cocoa" is used to refer to the processed cacoa, so we say cocoa nibs, cocoa powder, cocoa butter and even cocoa tea. At the end of the day it all comes down to your culture, cacoa and cocoa are interchangeable.

Now let's tackle cocoa tea. Apart from cocoa tea being a popular beverage in the Caribbean, it also comes up in Caribbean music culture. We fondly remember the Jamaican reggae singer and songwriter, Cocoa Tea, whose birth name was Colvin George Scott who emerged in the 1980s. His hits included Rocking Dolly and I lost My Sonia. He passed away in March 2025. Kes' 2024 hit song, "Cocoa Tea," refers to the hot beverage that is made by boiling grated cocoa in a pot with desired spices and then enjoying with possibly milk and sugar, with reference to romance. What may be confusing to some is that word "tea." Tea is defined as the beverage produced by steeping in freshly boiled water the young leaves and leaf buds of the tea plant Camellia sinesis. Interestingly, I found a non-Caribbean site called Cocoa Terra and in its article entitled, "What is coca tea?" they define cocoa tea as, "a warm drink made from whole cacao beans. Unlike many teas that come from plant leaves, cocoa tea uses cocoa beans (shell and nibs) to give it a rich chocolate flavor." This definition corresponds with the Caribbean's culture that anything with hot water is considered tea. So cocoa tea is an accepted term.

Let's get into hot chocolate and hot cocao. "Hot cocoa" refers to the beverage that is made using cocoa powder, sugar and hot milk or water. "Hot chocolate" also known as "drinking chocoalte" on the other hand refers to the beverage that is made by melting solid chocolate into hot water or milk. Remember now, chocolate is cocoa/cacoa beans that have been further processed; the smooth ground beans are mixed with sugar, vanilla and other ingredients to make chocolate.

So no matter what you call it, cacoa, cocoa, hot chocolate, hot cocoa/cacoa or cocoa tea, you can make it how you like it and enjoy it!

References

Geoseph. (2024, April 24). “Cacao” vs “Cocoa” — Science Of Chocolate. Science of Chocolate. https://scienceofchocolate.com/bean-to-bar-blog/cacao-vs-cocoa

CocoTerra. (n.d.). CocoTerra - Experience the magic of making chocolate. CocoTerra Company. https://www.cocoterra.com/what-is-cocoa-tea-how-to-make-cocoa-tea-at-home/

Goodnow Farms Chocolate. (2025, January 3). A brief history of cacao - Goodnow Farms chocolate. https://goodnowfarms.com/a-brief-history-of-cacao/?srsltid=AfmBOootcPlIGIAT8s-U_TxENii1XnvS5PqmsRo1Nqi1YiU6jqB87iQc

Jawad, Y. (2024, November 24). How to make hot chocolate. Feel Good Foodie. https://feelgoodfoodie.net/recipe/how-to-make-hot-chocolate/

Pliester, M. (2023, May 23). Decoding cocoa and chocolate: Understanding the difference. La Chocolaterie Concept Chocolate. https://conceptchocolate.eu/blogs/news/decoding-cocoa-and-chocolate-understanding-the-difference?srsltid=AfmBOoqMFR7dMBpKEDBUnmv7RIRGwZK9VHgw_m3q-vpoDL4f-mD3Gw1q

Sivasubramaniam, & Sinnathurai. (2025, September 18). Tea | Definition, Types, & History. Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/topic/tea-beverage

Theteafile. (2022, February 25). Tea culture in the Caribbean. TheTeaFile. https://theteafile.com/?p=40

WebstaurantStore. (2025, January 23). Hot Cocoa vs Hot Chocolate. https://www.webstaurantstore.com/blog/5212/hot-cocoa-vs-hot-chocolate.html?srsltid=AfmBOoqA3pwZrh_8yWkzt5SPIlnKuXgKjDQi4ou1vw1PGB0dPggVA6dT

Wikipedia contributors. (2025, September 15). Cocoa bean. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cocoa_bean

Wikipedia contributors. (2025a, April 1). Cocoa tea. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cocoa_Tea