LUSCIOUS. LOCAL. HANDMADE CHOCOLATES.

INDULGE IN THE SWEET CREATIONS OF FIVE NORTHERN MICHIGAN CHOCOLATIERS THIS HOLIDAY SEASON.

- SARAH BENCE

People tend to associate the flavors of Northern Michigan with late summer’s tart cherries and cool white wines. I’m, however, partial to the chocolate. For me, the taste of dark, dense truffles is inextricable from the North’s sand dunes and turquoise water.

There is perhaps no better time to visit the region’s chocolate shops than at the holidays. As the temperature starts to plummet, you can find me ducking inside (preferably by a crackling fire) to sip on decadent drinking chocolates—laced with cinnamon, smoked chili and sweet hints of local maple syrup. Not only will you find scrumptious sweets to share with family and friends throughout Northern Michigan, but also the communities these shops call home offer visitors the quintessential small-town holiday experience—decked out downtown streets, twinkling trees and glowing storefronts tucked into idyllic frosty vistas.

Happily, I’ve been able to indulge my passion for handmade chocolates at a handful of family-run establishments, peppered throughout the region. You’ll fall in love with these flavors, too—if you know the right places to look.

GROCER’S DAUGHTER CHOCOLATE

11590 S. Lacore St. (M-22), Empire grocersdaughter.com

Driving along M-22 into Empire, one of my favorite sights is not a magnificent natural wonder so prevalent in this area, but a wonder nonetheless. It’s the green building that houses Grocer’s Daughter, an artisan chocolate shop that’s graced the Northern Michigan scene since 2004.