Valentine's Day is around the corner and chocolate boxes are back in focus. Along with heart-shaped assortments and glossy pralines, a viral social media video has sparked an interesting question. Do the swirls and lines on top of hand-dipped chocolates actually tell you what is inside? At first glance, they may seem purely decorative, but you may be surprised to know that in some cases, these tiny markings do have a reason behind them. It sounds almost like a secret code. A caramel marked one way, a cherry another, a cream centre with its own pattern. The idea is fascinating. But while there is some truth behind it, this is not a global chocolate rule. It is a practice followed by some makers, mainly in traditional boxed assortments, and even then, it depends entirely on the brand.
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Watch the video below:
How The Swirl Idea Started
Historically, some confectioners used small markings on top of chocolates to help identify flavours inside a mixed box.
Here is what some makers did:
- Added lines, loops or squiggles on top of hand-dipped pieces
- Used dots or strokes to separate one filling from another
- Followed an internal "design key" so staff and customers could tell flavours apart
This helped distinguish between fillings such as caramel, vanilla cream or cherry without cutting the chocolate open.
However, there was never an industry-wide standard linking specific swirls to specific flavours. Each chocolatier created their own system. What a swirl meant in one shop could mean something completely different in another.
According to the website Straight Dope, while "squiggle codes" were discussed in confectionery circles, they were never formalised as a universal practice across the chocolate industry. As chocolate production became more mechanised and packaging improved, most brands shifted to printed flavour guides instead.
What Filled Chocolates Actually Are
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To understand this better, it helps to know what these chocolates are.
Many boxed chocolates are what the confectionery world calls pralines. A praline is essentially:
- A thin outer shell of tempered chocolate
- A soft centre such as ganache, caramel, cream, nut paste or liqueur
These filled chocolates are especially associated with Belgian and French chocolate traditions, where presentation and flavour variety play a big role.
Indian Chocolate Culture Has A Different Focus
India's artisan chocolate scene has grown rapidly over the past decade. Many Indian brands now focus on bean-to-bar production, single-origin cacao and locally inspired flavours.
Instead of using swirl markings to indicate fillings, Indian craft chocolatiers typically rely on:
- Clearly labelled boxes
- Tasting cards inside assortments
- In-store descriptions
- Website flavour guides
There is currently no clear evidence that swirl-coding is widely followed by Indian chocolate makers as a standard identification method.
Indian artisan chocolate culture is more centred around origin, sourcing and flavour innovation rather than decorative codes on the surface.
When Do Surface Marks Appear Today?
Photo: Unsplash
If you notice patterns on chocolates today, they usually fall into one of these categories:
- Brand-specific flavour markers used within a single assortment
- Decorative finishing touches added by hand
- Natural patterns formed during dipping or drizzling
Since there is no universal chocolate marking system, the safest way to identify a filling is still to check the box, the flavour guide or ask the chocolatier directly.
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So yes, some chocolate makers have used surface markings to help identify fillings. But this is not a global chocolate rule, and it is not something universally practised, especially not in India. Swirls on top of chocolates may be meaningful in certain artisan contexts, but they can just as easily be decorative.