Chocolate Treats from Lake Champlain Chocolates

I first learned about Lake Champlain a few years ago from my church pastor. For Mother's Day, he ordered a bunch of chocolate hearts to give to every mom in the congregation, explaining that they were the BEST chocolates he'd ever had. My mom, who doesn't love chocolate (I get my sweet tooth from my dad), passed hers on to me and I had to agree that they were pretty awesome indeed.

A couple years later, I came across them again in a small gift shop up in Vermont, where the company is based. This time, I purchased a few different Vermont-inspired flavors--ya know...for research purposes.

I brought them on the 6-hour ride from Vermont to New York to share with Eugene, but for some reason there were none left by the time our bus rolled into the city.

(I suppose six hours on a bumpy bus will do that to a girl.)

The chocolates are good, but what I appreciate most about this company (and why I was happy to do this giveaway--I'm not getting paid to say any of this), is because it's a family-owned company that really values quality and tradition.

Last year for Valentine's Day, Eugene ordered me a giant cookie from one of those big chain places. He knows I love cookies and comically-sized things (either super giant or super tiny), so he thought it would be a good surprise.

Unfortunately, there were issues with shipping (due to excessive orders) and the cookie arrived a day late. When we opened it, it was covered in too-sweet waxy frosting and the cookie itself tasted dry and chalky. We took two bites and then threw the whole thing out. We both ended up feeling pretty sad and disappointed about the whole thing, which is not the way people should feel on holidays.

Which is why I very much encourage you to support high quality, family-owned businesses like Lake Champlain and the others that I've featured here on my site. (Check out the story of how the company was founded--love things that begin with a dare!)

UPDATE: This giveaway is closed, but if you're a chocolate lover, click here for some great recipes, treats, and inspiration.