Greg wrote:

> Not Chili powder. Chile powder, or powdered chile (cayene pepper or
> powdered anchos or arbols or somesuch.) Just a dash, good stuff.
>
> Anyone ever try black pepper? Gotta be an Indian somewhere who's done
> this.

I tried ancho powder in hot cocoa and didn't care much for it. I'd probably
never even notice a dash of cayenne. Cinnamon is good, though.

I did try black pepper, and thought it was kind of "off" in combination with
the chocolate. But after reading your post and giving it some thought, I
decided that black pepper is better off in some kind of vanilla-spice
setting, so I tried it in eggnog, which was a bit better. Tinkering with
the idea, I made a Tom & Jerry with Torani Ginger-Spice syrup, and added
black pepper to it. Now THAT is a good setting for black pepper! (Of
course, black pepper is one of the common mulling spices for wine or cider,
too.)

Bob