Chocolate is native to Mesoamerica. The beans were ground and consumed in prehispanic times as a hot drink, but unlike today the ancients drank their chocolate spicy, not sweet. In the past the cacao was ground on a metate (grinding stone), but nowadays it's usually ground in a special mill. The Day of the Dead season is when the weather starts to get colder, and hot drinks are favored at this time of year. Besides hot chocolate, atole and champurrado are also popular Day of the Dead drinks.