I've been familiar with Lake Champlain Chocolates for several years, but when I first spotted their products at my local Whole Foods they weren't fair-trade or organic certified. Now, nearly 100% of their chocolate is fair-trade certified, and much of it is also organic. What really sets them apart from other brands for me is their wide selection and rich, classic chocolate flavor--while other organic and fair-trade chocolate often has "gourmet" fruity, earthy, or spicy notes, Lake Champlain's chocolate reminds me of the chocolate from fancy candy stores I had on special occasions when growing up.
They carry a full range of organic chocolate bars, including plain bars in various levels of cacao intensity plus filled varieties like peanut butter and caramel that I've never seen in other organic fair-trade brands. They make plenty of organic seasonal and holiday varieties as well, like the foil-wrapped milk chocolate coins for Halloween and the filled leaf-shaped autumn chocolates in the photo above. Milk and dark organic chocolate turkeys, organic Christmas and winter holiday chocolates, and filled organic chocolate Easter eggs are also available seasonally.
One thing to note is that even for organic and fair-trade brands, Lake Champlain's products are a bit on the pricey side. However, if you're going to indulge for a holiday or special occasion, I think they're worth it, especially since their products are excellent in quality and hard to find elsewhere. I've ordered from Lake Champlain's website several times and my orders have always been nicely packaged and properly insulated during warm weather, but if you'd prefer to shop in-person, I've found a decent selection of their products at several Whole Foods stores in my region.
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