Chocolate Explorers Club

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Chocolate Explorers Club

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A chocolate discovery club founded by craft chocolate expert Lauren Adler, a.k.a.

Founded by Lauren Adler (), The Chocolate Explorers Club™ is a specialty chocolate discovery club that curates and delivers high-quality, artisan chocolate to the doorsteps of chocolate lovers across the United States. In addition to a monthly delivery of the world's best chocolate, members experience exclusive tastings with craft chocolate makers and connect with a passionate community of chocolate lovers.

10/15/2026

This month, we’re heading to Africa with a guest curator who knows it well: Dr. Kristy Leissle

“Lauren, we’re in Ghana. Here, we say ‘cocoa’ not ‘cacao.’” That was Kristy’s advice when I visited her in 2019. Before we set out on our first cocoa adventure, she wanted to make sure I was mindful of the cocoa culture in Africa, which differs significantly from cacao’s birthplace in South America.

Cocoa arrived in Africa as a colonial crop. Today the continent grows most of the world’s supply, but its tradition has been about farming rather than eating. That’s starting to change, and Kristy is part of it. She wrote the book Cocoa, founded the African Cocoa Marketplace, and now works with a growing community of craft chocolate makers in Uganda.

Inside the box:

🍫 Moka Origins® Sanaga Cacao, Cameroon 72%
🍫 Moka Origins, Lemon Ginger, Ghana 72%
🍫 Ocelot Blood Orange 70%
🍫 Standout Chocolate Sambirano, Madagascar 60% dark-milk

Subscribe by 20 October to receive this collection.

Kristy will also join us on 30 October for a Meet the Expert event, open to subscribers and digital members.

Subscribe here... https://chocolateexplorersclub.com/products/chocolate-enthusiasts

10/12/2026

Save at least 30% on craft chocolate with our new Treasure Box – available for a very limited time only! ⏳

We’ve gathered craft chocolate from our shelves into SURPRISE boxes and priced them below the retail value of what’s inside.

Some chocolates in this release are near or past their sell-by date, which helps keep the price low. Sell-by dates mark peak freshness, not safety.

We have a handful of these Treasure Boxes available and when they’re gone, they’re gone.

Three options:

3 chocolates: $25.99 (normally $37.99)
4 chocolates: $34.99 (normally $49.99)
5 chocolates: $41.99 (normally $59.99)

Every box includes at least two chocolate bars (plain or filled) and may include panned treats (chocolate-coated nuts or fruit) or confections.

📦 Boxes ship within 2 business days.

Treasure Boxes appear only when our inventory allows, so if one sounds like your kind of adventure.

Order here... https://chocolateexplorersclub.com/products/craft-chocolate-treasure-box

10/08/2026

Who doesn't love a salty, crunchy pretzel with the smooth and creamy intensity of chocolate? Today I join Gourmet seasoned sourdough pretzel nuggets for an IG Live event, pairing pretzels with chocolate.

When I was a kid and my parents were going to leave me with a baby sitter, they lessened the blow by letting me have chocolate milk with pretzels, a favorite treat. There's just something about the combo.

I've been tasting different flavors of the fabulous sourdough pretzels from OMG! Pretzels and will share some of my favorite combos. Join me and OMG! Pretzels CEO and co-founder, Stephanie Kriebel today at 4pm PT, 7pm ET.

10/07/2026

So many great photos from Northwest Chocolate Festival – we had to do a second post! 🥳

10/06/2026

Club members turned out in force at last weekend's Northwest Chocolate Festival in Seattle, including one who flew in from Los Angeles. Craft chocolate makers, cacao producers, chocolatiers, and chocolate lovers came from around the world for the largest and oldest craft chocolate festival, ready to taste. 🍫

With so many talks and booths, I never manage to see everything. A highlight this year was the Maricel Presilla talk on the history of drinking chocolate, drawing on her years of research, her family history, and her own lived experience. I also enjoyed hearing from Emily Stone of Uncommon Cacao and Katrien Delaet of Silva-cacao about their merger, which will bring many new cacao origins to the US market. My tastebuds are tingling just thinking about the diversity of origins we'll be able to taste soon.

Biggest surprise this year? The Thai booth, featuring five chocolate makers, many of whom also farm cacao. Their chocolate had very little bitterness or astringency, with lovely nut and floral notes. I especially loved the inclusions inspired by local fruits and spices and Thai desserts, like mango sticky rice.

Another proud moment: Seb & Nica of Allelon Chocolate won multiple awards, including Best in Show for their black sesame and white chocolate bonbon, which I can't stop thinking about. They got their start as chocolatiers at my former shop, Chocolopolis, and it's great to see them getting the recognition they've earned.

Personally, I loved reconnecting with chocolate colleagues, many of whom have become like family. A special shout-out to Kim Wilson of Cocoa Future Collaborative who brought us together Saturday evening for dinner and conversation with so many of the people in these photos.

Were you at the festival? Tell us your favorite discovery in the comments.

09/29/2026

We can’t wait to see you at the Northwest Chocolate Festival this weekend! 🍫

At this year’s festival you'll find more than a hundred exhibitors, an extensive program of events, and more chocolate than any one palate can sensibly handle. A little preparation is highly recommended.

Lauren Chief Chocophile is presenting twice:

Saturday, 10am: "Chocolate 101: What Every Craft Chocolate Lover Should Know"

Sunday, Noon: "The Three Things That Actually Matter on a Chocolate Label"

You can also say hi to Lauren at the Fine Chocolate Industry Association booth from 4-6pm on Saturday.

A ticket tip before we start: get 20% off tickets with the code NWchocolate2026. You can buy tickets at www.nwchocolate.com

Swipe left for ten top tips for the festival 👉

If a weekend of tasting leaves you wanting more, that's what The Chocolate Explorers Club is for. Each month, members receive a curated box of small-batch bars from award-winning makers around the world, with tasting notes, pairing tips and access to a community of fellow chocolate lovers. Find out more here... https://chocolateexplorersclub.com/products/chocolate-enthusiasts

09/23/2026

How cool is this?! 🤯

One of our club members, Karen, has an 8 year old son with an inquisitive palate. He had a list of rare fruits he wanted to try and on that list was cacao... "Fortunately there is an Asian market near us so we found one. We did an exotic fruit tasting with our friends and WOW the cacao was bright citrus and sweet."

After tasting the fresh fruit, they fermented the beans outside for 48hrs, roasted, peeled them and now they're onto the next steps of chocolate making... "We also learned that we have enough nibs for a Hershey Kiss lol."

Who knows, maybe this young man is destined to be a great craft chocolate maker!

Thanks so much to Karen for sharing this experience with us. 🙏

09/21/2026

Thanks to everyone who joined on Sunday when I shared the results of our Women in Cacao survey at the WOMEN OF CACAO Summit.

While I was putting this talk together, I kept coming back to the same thought: women have always shaped this industry, even when the visible roster of craft chocolate makers didn't reflect it.

Emily Stone rewired how cacao gets bought and sold with Maya Mountain Cacao Cacao. Andal Balu at CocoaTown put small-batch equipment within reach of makers who could never have justified a $40,000 refiner. More recently, Julia Zotter became Managing Director of Zotter Schokolade , putting one of the most experimental bean-to-bar makers in the world in a woman's hands. These are just three examples of many.

The women who answered our survey described an industry that looks very different now than it did when they started. Being one of the only women in the room was once the norm, but it's now far less common.

What struck me most about the results wasn't just the growth, it was how differently women are building their place in this industry now – less asking for a seat, more setting the table.

Thank you to everyone who filled out the survey, and to the Women of Cacao team for the space to share it. 🙏

09/15/2026

Meet Mateo Prophecy Chocolate live 🎙️

Next Thursday, September 24, join us live with Mateo, founder of Prophecy Chocolate, as he walks us through the genus Theobroma – the genetic differences between cacao and its lesser-known relatives, and how he used them to create the six treats in this month's subscription box.

Mateo's journey started on organic farms in Peru and Colombia, learning traditional methods from generations of campesinos, before apprenticing in European-style chocolate making. Don't miss this opportunity to hear the story straight from the source.

📅 Thursday, September 24

🕓 4pm PT / 5pm MT / 6pm CT / 7pm ET
🎟️ Members: find the link under Events & Expeditions on your member portal

Not a member yet? Digital memberships are just $10/month, available worldwide!

Sign up now and you'll be all set to join Mateo live, plus you'll get full access to all our live and recorded Meet the Maker events (past and future), our members-only community portal, curated travel content, member meet-up events, and more.

Sign up today 👉 https://chocolateexplorersclub.com/products/digital-membership

09/14/2026

New on the blog: The Queen of Wild Chocolate 🌿🐆

Meet Luisa Abram Chocolates – a former medical student turned chocolate maker who now works exclusively with wild cacao harvested deep in the Brazilian Amazon.

After tasting five origin bars side by side and realizing how dramatically flavor can shift from river to river, Luisa was hooked on tracking down cacao from every corner of the Amazon she could reach.

Luisa sources cacao from communities along the Amazon's rivers, training locals – many of them women – in fermentation and drying to bring out the best in beans that would otherwise go to waste in the region's wet, unpredictable climate. It's work that supports both families and rainforest.

Last month, members explored four of Luisa's origin bars – Acará River, Purus River, Tocantins River, and a Tocantins River with Jambu Flower – each one named for the river where its wild cacao was harvested, and each with its own distinct character.

Our new blog post digs deeper into Luisa's story – from a life-changing recipe in a dessert cookbook, to trekking the Upper Amazon in search of cacao.

📖 Read the full story – https://chocolateexplorersclub.com/blogs/news/the-queen-of-wild-chocolate

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http://www.chocolateexplorersclub.com/

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