Frequently Asked Questions

Ordering FAQs

• Do you offer quantity discounts?
• I want to ship to an address in the United States, but I live in another country. Can I still order?
• Do you do make custom gift baskets and chocolates?
• Do you ship chocolate outside of the United States?

Chocolate FAQs

• What kind of chocolate do you use?
• How long will my chocolate last?
• Do your chocolates have allergens in them such as soy, nuts, dairy, and gluten?
• Do your chocolates contain hydrogenated oils?
• What is the percent of cocoa in your chocolates?
• Are any of your chocolates kosher? Are they pareve?
• Are any of your products vegan?
• Do you have sugar free chocolates?
• Does your chocolate have caffeine?
• Is your chocolate alkalized?
• What is your position on transparency?
• Is your chocolate fair trade?
• Are Lake Champlain Chocolates organic?
• Do you use refined sugar?
• What is the nutritional information for your 5 Star Bars?

Ordering FAQs

Do you offer quantity discounts?

Yes, when you order $500.00 or more. The discounts are as follows:

• $500 to $1,000 . . . . . . . .5% total discount
• $1,000 to $2,500 . . . . . .10% total discount
• $2,500 or more . . . . . . .15% total discount

I want to ship to an address in the United States, but I live in another country. Can I still order?

Absolutely! Call our Customer Service Center at 1-800-465-5909 and we will be happy to help you!

Do you do make custom gift baskets and chocolates?

For large volume orders, we can tie a customer-supplied ribbon or sticker, or include a customer-supplied item within one of our baskets. Lead time runs 3-6 weeks from time of approval. Contact our corporate sales department at corpsales@lakechamplainchocolates.com for more information.

Do you ship chocolate outside of the United States?

We limit our shipments to the 50 United States. Our experiences with international gift taxes and customs delays as well as refused and returned packages have forced us to institute this policy. Chocolate can also melt in transit, and this is more likely when shipped outside the United States.

Have a question about ordering that you don't see here? Submit your question to us using our General Request form, or call us toll-free at 1.800.465.5909.

Chocolate FAQs

What kind of chocolate do you use?

All of our chocolates are crafted from Belgian chocolate.

How long will my chocolate last?

When properly stored, solid milk chocolate will last approximately nine months and solid dark chocolate will last approximately one year. Filled chocolates, such as truffles and pralines, will last approximately two to four months.

Do your chocolates have allergens in them such as soy, nuts, dairy, and gluten?

All of our chocolates contain soy lecithin. The only exceptions are our cocoa products. Some of our products contain nuts, dairy, and gluten. It varies by product. We cannot guarantee that any of our products are entirely free of trace amounts of these ingredients. All of our chocolates are manufactured in the same factory with the same equipment, which could pose the risk of cross-contamination. We will be happy to assist you with the ingredients or nutritional information on any of our chocolates. Please email info@lakechamplainchocolates.com for assistance.

Do your chocolates contain hydrogenated oils?

Our chocolates are free of hydrogenated oils and trans fats.

What is the percent of cocoa in your chocolates?

Our standard milk chocolate has 34% cocoa, and our standard dark chocolate has 54%. Our Select Origin chocolates contain the highest cocoa content, ranging from 70% to 80% cocoa content.

Are any of your chocolates kosher? Are they pareve?

Our dark chocolate is both kosher and milk-free, containing only cocoa mass, sugar, cocoa butter (which is not a milk derivative), soy lecithin, and vanilla. We do not add milk to our dark chocolate. All dark chocolate and dark chocolate mint items (bars, hearts, squares, and coins), as well as the dark chocolate almond bars and the Select Origin dark chocolate squares, are dairy-free. *Please note: these items are manufactured in the same factory, and with the same equipment, as our products which contain milk products. Equipment is cleaned between products, but we cannot guarantee that any product is entirely free of minute traces of dairy. 

All of our products are certified Star-D Kosher by the National Council of Young Israel in affiliation with Star-K Kosher Certification, with the exception of our hot chocolate and unsweetened cocoa (which is certified by the Orthodox Union). You may check the full listing of our Kosher products on the Star-K website at www.star-k.org. Due to the manufacturing process, we cannot guarantee that any product is entirely free of minute traces of dairy, as there is a potential for cross-contamination. This prevents our products from being pareve.

Are any of your products vegan?

Our dark chocolate is milk-free, containing only cocoa mass, sugar, cocoa butter (which is vegan), soy lecithin, and vanilla. Put “vegan” in the search box on our website and you’ll get a list of vegan products. Please note that these items are all manufactured in the same factory and with the same equipment as our products which contain milk products. Equipment is cleaned between products, but we cannot guarantee that any product is entirely free of minute traces of dairy. Also, we use refined sugar in our chocolates, which some vegans avoid.

Do you have sugar free chocolates?

Unsweetened Cocoa is our only product characterized as sugar-free. All of our chocolates are produced with natural ingredients, never with artificial sweeteners, and contain no preservatives. As a general rule, the higher the cocoa content in chocolate, the lower the sugar content. Therefore, dark chocolate contains far less sugar than milk chocolate. We currently offer Select Origin Chocolates, which feature dark chocolates from around the world containing 70% to 80% cocoa content. And for a taste of single-origin, microbatch dark chocolate bars made entirely from scratch, try our Blue Bandana bean-to-bar chocolate. 

Does your chocolate have caffeine?

Cocoa Powder: 5 milligrams of caffeine per 8 ounce serving, or 0.002% by weight of the chocolate is caffeine (our Mocha Hot Chocolate and Mountain Mint Hot Chocolate are the exception, with 8.65 milligrams of caffeine per 8 ounce serving). Dark Chocolate: 1 ounce of dark chocolate has 20 milligrams of caffeine, or 0.07% by weight of the chocolate is caffeine. Milk Chocolate: 1 ounce of milk chocolate has 6 milligrams of caffeine, or 0.02% by weight of the chocolate is caffeine. For comparison, coffee has 47-164 milligrams of caffeine per 5 ounce serving.

Is your chocolate alkalized?

The alkali process, or Dutch Process, is used to neutralize the acidity normally found in chocolate. The process produces a powder with no cocoa butter by pressing the pure cacao paste at very high pressure to produce a fat free powder. We only use alkalized cocoa in our hot cocoas. If alkalized cocoa is used in any product, it must be stated in the ingredients.

What is your position on transparency?

We believe in the right of every consumer to know what’s in their food, and how it’s produced. Since 1983, LCC has been committed to sustainable agriculture, pursuing direct relationships with farmer-producers for our cream, butter, honey, and maple syrup, as well as partnerships with the Intervale Foundation and recent support for the Xerces Society. Our current R&D efforts are focused on developing organic, non-GMO products, with a commitment to sourcing non-GMO ingredients for most products by July 2014.

We’re also proud to support many community service initiatives here and around the world, including the Lake Champlain Chocolates Family Support Scholarship for women and youth in Ivory Coast.

Is your chocolate fair trade?

We recognize that third-party certifications offer us, and our customers, the most comprehensive assurance that fair labor practices are being followed. For this reason, we have committed to carrying third-party fair trade sourcing certification for all of our chocolates by Fall 2015.

We’re moving swiftly towards this goal by taking the following steps:

• Our new line of Organic Chocolate Bars and Squares (available in Spring 2013) will be sourced for 100% traceability.
• Our entire line of hot chocolates will be fair trade certified by Fall 2013. We currently offer two Fair Trade Certified hot chocolate products — our Organic Hot Chocolate and Organic Unsweetened Cocoa.
• We're also pursuing non-GMO project certification through the Non-GMO Project.

We are excited about all of these changes, and encourage you to check this webpage for updates on our progress!

Are Lake Champlain Chocolates organic?

We’re proud to offer a wide array of fine organic chocolates, all of them certified USDA organic by Quality Assurance International (QAI). From organic hot chocolate to organic chocolate bars and squares, chocolate Easter bunnies, and more — there’s an organic chocolate for every taste and season.

Do you use refined sugar?

We are a third tier chocolate producer, meaning we buy prepared chocolate rather than the raw cocoa beans. The chocolate we purchase already contains refined sugar by the time we buy it. We are aware of the concerns over refined sugar, and where possible we use organic evaporated cane juice.

What is the nutritional information for your 5 Star Bars?

The labels on our 5 Star Bars are too small to fit all of the nutritional information, but all our ingredients are fully disclosed and available from our offices. The nutritional information for each of the 5 Star Bars is listed here:

Five Star Caramel Bar 2 oz.

Ingredients:

Milk and dark chocolate (sugar, cocoa butter, cocoa mass, milk powder, milk fat, soybean lecithin, and vanilla), almonds, sugar, heavy cream, corn syrup, honey, vanilla extract, and soybean lecithin. Contains milk, soybean, and tree nuts. May contain traces of peanuts and wheat.

Five Star Fruit & Nut Bar 1.9 oz.

Ingredients:

Milk and dark chocolate (sugar, cocoa butter, cocoa mass, milk powder, milk fat, soybean lecithin, and vanilla), natural hazelnut paste, pecans, raisins, and dried cherries. Contains milk, soybean, and tree nuts. May contain traces of peanuts and wheat.

Five Star Hazelnut Bar 1.8 oz.

Ingredients:

Gianduja and milk chocolate (sugar, natural hazelnut paste, cocoa butter, cocoa mass, milk powder, milk fat, soybean lecithin, and vanilla), unsalted hazelnuts, wheat flour, whey powder, salt, barley malt flour, and baking soda. Contains milk, soybean, tree nuts, and wheat. May contain traces of peanuts.

Five Star Peanut Bar 1.8 oz.

Ingredients:

Milk and white chocolate (sugar, cocoa butter, cocoa mass, milk powder, milk fat, soybean lecithin, and vanilla), natural salted peanut butter, roasted salted peanuts, milled rice, and peanut flour. Contains milk, soybean, and peanuts. May contain traces of tree nuts and wheat.

Five Star Granola Bar 1.9 oz.

Ingredients:

Dark and milk chocolate (sugar, cocoa butter, cocoa mass, milk powder, milk fat, soybean lecithin, and vanilla), almond butter, salted roasted almonds, dried cranberries, granola (rolled oats, maple syrup, brown sugar, canola oil, and cinnamon), and salt. Contains milk, soybean, and tree nuts. May contain traces of peanuts and wheat.