Long before Hines Hot Chocolate became a winter staple, it began as a closely guarded treasure inside a tiny church tucked beneath the oak trees of River Oaks. There, a youth pastor named Stewart — a man rumored to possess both impossible kindness and an unexplainably perfect cocoa-to-cream ratio — crafted a hot chocolate so magical that it was whispered about in church halls like a sacred secret.

His partner in culinary crime, Susie, carried the recipe everywhere in a floral notebook she protected with the intensity of a mother hen guarding her youngest chick. Some say the aroma alone could calm rowdy teens faster than any sermon ever preached.

Then one snowy evening in 1974, fate stirred the pot.

While attending River Oaks one Winter day, the Hines family were handed a steaming mug of Pastor Stewart and Miss Susie’s hot chocolate. The moment that velvety sweetness hit their lips, the world seemed to pause. Angels didn’t sing — they full-on harmonized. Time slowed. A nearby Christmas tree allegedly burst into brighter twinkle.

Recognizing destiny when they tasted it, the Hines family asked for the recipe. Stewart and Susie, sensing this cocoa masterpiece had a higher calling, passed it on — not with instructions, but with a blessing.

And that’s how a humble church recipe from 1974 became the heart and soul of Hines Hot Chocolate: a story of warmth, family, generosity, and one perfectly timed sip that changed everything.