Local Chocolatier, Truffle Shots of Essex CT Named Country’s Best Chocolate Gift By Forbes Magazine

Forbes magazine recently named local chocolatier, Truffle Shots of Essex, Connecticut among the country’s best chocolates for gift giving this holiday season. Forbes "loved the Fig and Balsamic shot—with aged balsamic and fig ganache as well as the Chipotle Cinnamon—dark chocolate ganache with a whiff of cinnamon and a slight kick from the chipotle."

Truffle Shots® brand chocolate truffles are the Chocolate Award-winning creation of mother-daughter chocolate lovers in Essex, Connecticut. The duo has replaced the chocolate shell of a traditional chocolate truffle with a sealed shot glass to create new levels of truffle indulgence.

The decadent, silky ganache of Truffle Shots® brand chocolate truffles melts on the tongue in sensory bliss in 30+ amazing flavors like Fig Balsamico, Tellicherry Cardamom, Caramel Beurre Noisette, Bumbleberry, Miel Habanero, Castelvetrano Olive, and Ginger, to name a few.

Truffle Shots® brand chocolate truffles are made fresh, in small batches, with premium ingredients—and no preservatives, and are perfect for personal indulgence, dinner parties, wedding favors, business and personal gift giving, and more.

Truffle Shots® contain no alcohol, making them ideal for chocolate lovers of all ages.

Sherri Athay, who created Truffle Shots with her daughter, Lauren, is delighted to have made the list. “I saw Forbes’ Top Artisan Chocolates for Gift Giving list back in 2015 and wondered how one even happened to be considered for such a list,” Athay said.

The answer came in October when Bell (who scouts the globe for the best experiences in wine, food, and travel) reached out to Athay because of recommendations from fellow food writers and recent International Chocolate Award wins.

To date, Athay has won 30 International Chocolate Awards in competitions held in New York and London, as well as Gold and Silver Fave Awards at the Big Chocolate Show in New York City. Locally, Truffle Shots have been featured in Connecticut Magazine’s “Best of Connecticut.”

Bell cites a trend in America toward a savvier chocolate consumer, to which Athay can attest. “Our customers are looking for a unique and novel chocolate experience,” she says. “They also tend to be naturally curious and inquisitive.”

To satisfy that curiosity, Athay now offers chocolate tastings and classes where consumers learn about chocolate’s varieties and provenance—and its incredible diversity of flavors.

At her shop in Essex, Athay offers a collection of some of the finest chocolate bars in the world—in addition to Truffle Shots. She enjoys meeting bean-to-bar chocolate makers from around the globe and earlier this year visited a chocolate plantation and factory in the Dominican Republic with her husband, Larry. “Together,” says Athay, “we are becoming quite the chocolate geeks.”

Truffle Shots® brand award-winning chocolate truffles can be purchased at 1 North Main Street, in Essex or online at www.truffleshots.com.

More information about Truffle Shots can be found at www.truffleshots.com or by calling 860.581.8351.