Our February Product of the Month is Chocolate Cherry Cordials. Imagine a sweet yet slightly tart Amarena cherry, filled with cherry liquor, and then drenched in our rich semi-sweet chocolate. Perfect for a sweet Valentine’s Day gift, or a delicious treat anytime. Be sure to check out our Chocolate Talk video about Cherry Cordials on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/c/BransonsChocolatesAshland to see how we make them.
And our Valentine’s Special is back by popular demand. When you buy our heart-shaped box of delicious Truffles, we throw in a single red rose. So sweet! So romantic! (Limited availability)
This month we are celebrating five years of retail sales, and we would like to say Thank You! We are honored to have so many wonderful wholesale and retail customers. Whether you buy cases of chocolates or a single truffle, we thank you all!
If you are getting Valentine’s chocolate for your special someone, or especially if you are treating yourself, we’ve got your chocolate! Branson’s Chocolates is right here in Ashland at 1662 Siskiyou Boulevard. We’re just a block south of 7-11, in the Minute Market shopping center. We won’t be out and about in February, so stop by our store and get all your Valentine’s treats. We’re open Monday – Saturday 10-5:30.
You can also find Branson’s Chocolates on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube, and at bransonschocolates.com for online chocolate shopping.
If you like your dessert a little spicy, or slightly exotic, or even a bit adventurous, we have the chocolate for you—Wasabi Chocolates are the Product of the Month for January. Wasabi Ginger Squares are semi-sweet chocolate ganache squares flavored with wasabi, dipped in milk chocolate, and topped with crystallized ginger. And we have Gourmet Wasabi Ginger Bars for you milk chocolate lovers. Both the squares and bars are on the mild side. But for the daring, we have the semi-sweet AND spicy Gourmet Wasabi Wasabi Bar. Wow! However spicy you like it, Wasabi Chocolate is a gourmet treat for adventurous chocolate lovers.
Branson’s Chocolates, your home for wasabi chocolate, is
right here in Ashland at 1662 Siskiyou Boulevard. We’re just a block south of 7-11, in the
Minute Market shopping center. We won’t be out and about in January, so stop by
our store and try some Wasabi Chocolate for yourself. We’re open Monday –
Saturday 10-5:30.
You can also find Branson’s Chocolates on Facebook,
Instagram, and YouTube, and at bransonschocolates.com for online chocolate
shopping.
December is the perfect month for peppermint everything, and
at Branson’s Chocolates that means Peppermint Squares, White Chocolate
Peppermint Bars, and Gourmet Semi-Sweet Peppermint Bars. Our delicious
Peppermint Squares have a layer of rich dark chocolate topped with a layer of smooth
white chocolate and crushed peppermint candy. Our scrumptious White Chocolate Peppermint Bars mix peppermint
candies and a touch of locally sourced peppermint oil right into the white
chocolate. And our Gourmet Semi-Sweet Peppermint Bars have crushed
peppermint candies stirred into the rich dark chocolate with even more sprinkled
on top. Naughty or nice, you deserve some, so come in and pick up some for
yourself.
The holiday season is fast
approaching, so now is the perfect time to come in and order chocolate for the
holidays. Branson’s Chocolates, your home for peppermint everything (and chocolate
too!) is right here in Ashland at 1662 Siskiyou Boulevard. We’re just a block south of 7-11, next to
Abbey Carpet Mart. We will be creating chocolate deliciousness at our shop all
month long, so come on in and treat yourself.
Buy chocolate for someone else too and you’re sure to end up on the
‘Nice’ list! We’re open Monday – Saturday 10-5:30.
You can also find Branson’s Chocolates on Facebook,
Instagram, and YouTube, and at bransonschocolates.com for online chocolate
shopping.
At Branson’s Chocolates, we make our caramel, and everything else, by hand. We use a very old recipe, the highest quality creams and sugars, and cook our caramel in copper pots the old-fashioned way, all to achieve the best blend of sweet and gooey, but not sticky, caramel.
We serve our caramel plain or sea-salted; dipped in milk chocolate, semi-sweet chocolate, or nothing at all, in sticks, bars, and in our almost famous caramel sauces—Gourmet Lavender Caramel Sauce using local lavender from English Lavender Farms, Gourmet Whiskey Caramel Sauce using III Spirits Whiskey, and Gourmet Caramel Sauce for the purists. In other words, there’s a caramel for everyone.
“If you haven’t tried Branson’s Chocolates, you should do so immediately. I bought some p-nut cups and turtles for my wife… shared them with the family this weekend. Quote from the mother-in-law: ‘that’s the best caramel I’ve ever had.’” –Dan McKillop
“I bought two turtles last spring and still drool when I think of how amazing they were – and my friend agreed completely. You have mastered the blend of caramel with amazing flavor and chocolate.” –Joanne Turner
You can find your caramel deliciousness right here in Ashland at Branson’s Chocolates, at 1662 Siskiyou Boulevard. We’re just a block south of Omar’s, next to Carpet Mart. We’re open Monday – Saturday 10-5:30.
You can also find Branson’s Chocolates on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube, and at bransonschocolates.com for online chocolate shopping.
Here at Branson’s Chocolates we have chocolates that we call our Gourmet line. Some are not your everyday flavors, some are elevated flavors. They all are delicious and decadent. This month we are featuring our Gourmet Chocolates.
If you like your dessert a little spicy, or slightly exotic, or even a bit adventurous, we have the chocolate for you—Wasabi Ginger Chocolate. We add wasabi powder to a dark chocolate ganache square, dipped it in milk chocolate and top it with candied ginger. It’s a gourmet treat for adventurous chocolate lovers which is inspired by a wasabi ginger potato chip.
Matcha Green Tea square is made by mixing ceremonial grade match agree tea powder into a white chocolate ganache, formed into squares, and then dipped in dark chocolate with a green Matcha chocolate stripe. According to many studies, Matcha tea makes this a sweet treat loaded with benefits: L-Theanine, an amino acid known to create calmness and improve memory, powerful antioxidants including polyphenols and EGCg which is believed to be a powerful anti-carcinogen and catechins which help lower LDL cholesterol, to name a few. Thanks to http://www.naturallivingideas.com/10-amazing-benefits-of-matcha-green-tea/ .
Exotic jasmine tea is steeped to create the flavor in a semi-sweet ganache center, which is then dipped in delicious Belgian milk chocolate and topped with a sprinkling of jasmine tea. Jasmine Tea Square is a delicious combination of bitter tea’s antioxidants and jasmine’s floral delicacy with gourmet Belgian chocolate. Blissful everyday indulgence!
The best thing about Earl Gray Tea is that it is delicious, which is why BRANSON’S CHOCOLATES created our EARL GRAY TEA SQUARES. We steep Earl Gray Tea into rich cream, and then stir it into a dark chocolate ganache. We cover the ganache in milk chocolate and top it with a stripe of more dark chocolate. We are passionate about local products from local vendors, so we use tea from Full Leaf Tea Company based in White City, and cream from Umpqua Dairy.
This is just a few of our Gourmet Chocolates. To see the entire line of Gourmet Chocolates you can come into our retail location or check our website.
You can also find Branson’s Chocolates on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube, and at bransonschocolates.com for online chocolate shopping.
We have partnered with our local English Lavender Farms this month to bring you all things lavender—Lavender Ganache Squares, Lavender Sea Salt Caramels, and Gourmet Lavender Chocolate Sauce. They are all part of our gourmet line. Our delicious Lavender Chocolate confections are made using English Lavender Farms buds and essential oil, which is distilled locally in the Applegate Valley. Lavender Ganache Squares are made by steeping the buds, infusing them into a semi-sweet ganache center, then dipping the ganache in our rich semi-sweet chocolate. Lavender Sea Salt Caramels and Gourmet Lavender Chocolate Sauce are both made with the essential oil. The lavender is a subtle background flavor and beautifully complements our dark, delicious chocolate. English Lavender Farms Lavender Squares are an indulgent, aromatic treat for the senses.
The English Lavender Farm, run by Sue and Derek Owen, opened to the public for the first time in the summer of 2014. They have been planting Angustafolias (English Lavenders) since 2012 and are turning their lavender farm into a luxurious venue for weddings and other events. Their farm is set on a gentle hillside, and there are stunning vistas of row upon row of purple lavender. They have spent time in Provence with French lavender farmers, and love to discuss the history of lavender production. Their drying barn serves also as a gift shop, and it is well-stocked with a wide variety of handmade lavender products produced on the farm, including Branson’s Chocolates English Lavender Farms Lavender Sea Salt Caramels.
If you want to catch us out and about in May, we will be at—
The Jackson County Master Gardener’s Spring Garden Fair at the Jackson County Expo, Saturday May 5th 9am-5pm and Sunday My 6th 10am-4p.
You can find Branson’s Chocolates on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and at bransonschocolates.com, or come down to our store at 1662 Siskiyou Boulevard here in Ashland. We’re just a block south of 7-11, in the Minute Market shopping center. We’re open Monday-Saturday 10-5:30. Stop on in, say Hi, and take home some Lavender Chocolate today!
Southern Oregon Makers: Deena Branson of Branson’s Chocolates
Travel Southern Oregon
By Eddie Wallace
Photographer Jak Wonderly
For confectioner Deena Branson, owner of Branson’s Chocolates in Ashland, there was always a dream that she would someday own and operate a successful small business, but it wasn’t until 2005 that she dared to imagine turning her passion for creating delectable chocolate confections into that business.
Fast forward to 2018, when the talented and endlessly creative lifelong Ashland resident has a thriving wholesale and retail business, featuring only the best Belgian chocolate that goes into such mouth-watering treats as Anjou pear creams, lavender squares, wasabi ginger squares and blood orange creams, as well as your more standard treats like toffees and caramels.
After spending ten years in the late 90’s and early aughts learning everything there was to know at the Ashland Fudge Company – she even trained two sets of new owners during that time Deena and her husband Kevin leapt at the chance to purchase the equipment and recipes when the company went out of business in 2005.
Since that time, through dogged determination and countless hours of hard work, Branson’s Chocolates has steadily grown its business and burnished its reputation as Ashland’s only locally-owned, locally-produced chocolate business, culminating in the opening of their retail space in 2014.
The early years of the business were spent working out of a production facility in a business complex, producing mostly for wholesale customers. Ashland’s Paddington Station and Grange Co-op were early supporters who sold not just the chocolates, but also the custom packaging that Deena created for each wholesale customer. Today’s customers include Butler Ford, the Ashland Springs Hotel, Anderson Auto Body and many others. In addition to making the chocolates, Deena’s ability to do custom molds and packaging has been a huge selling point for clients.
“I SOURCE LOCALLY AND DIRECTLY FROM THE FARMERS AND DISTILLERS WHENEVER POSSIBLE,” SHE SAYS. “FOR EXAMPLE, OUR MACADAMIA NUTS AND HAZELNUTS COME DIRECTLY FROM THE FARMERS. I CHOOSE OREGON-PRODUCED PRODUCTS AND LIQUORS OVER NATIONALLY PRODUCED PRODUCTS. THE MINT OIL THAT I USE COMES DIRECTLY FROM THE FARMER IN CLATSKANIE, OREGON. AND WE MAKE EVERYTHING IN SMALL BATCHES WITH CARE TO ENSURE THE QUALITY OF OUR PRODUCTS.”
Luckily, for the past five years, one hasn’t needed to be a wholesale client to enjoy the dazzling, mouthwatering array of treats that Deena, Kevin and their hard-working crew create. The retail location for Branson’s Chocolates is 1662 Siskiyou Boulevard in Ashland, and is open Monday through Saturday 10:00 AM – 5:30 PM.
Visitors to the retail shop will be greeted with a selection of chocolates that is impressive not only in taste but in variety. The ever-popular toffees and caramels are always available, but adventurous types will also find port wine ganache squares, truffles flavored with tequila (lime, sea salt and Patrón tequila), pomegranate, espresso, toasted coconut porter, pumpkin, raspberry Chambord, amaretto and so much more. Product sourcing and quality are important considerations that go into all of Deena’s creations.
A lifelong Ashland resident, Deena cherishes the supportive atmosphere for small-town businesses that Ashland offers. “We deliberately chose Ashland as the home for our business,” she says. “This is a community that is dedicated to supporting small businesses, and we are also fortunate enough to attract the kind of visitors who support local artisans and locally-owned businesses. We have people who stop by our store every year on their way out of town after their annual Ashland visit.”
Branson’s Chocolates is debuting a new chocolate just in time for the holidays—Port Ganache Squares. We start with our delicious semi-sweet chocolate and local cream, stir in a heavy drizzle of Port, let it set, and then dip it all over again in that rich semi-sweet chocolate that you love. Can you say gourmet?
Fun fact about Port—the name Port is derived from the city of Porto, Portugal, where for centuries merchant ships loaded with casks of Port began their journey up the coastline to England. Port is a fortified wine, because brandy is added during fermentation, which helped sustain the fragile wine during its voyage to England, and also made the wine considerably sweeter. Port is known to pair well with decadent desserts, which makes it a perfect match for our chocolate!
The idea for Port Ganache Squares came from our newest intern, Tori. Tori is only a junior in high school, but is working with us for her senior project because she plans on graduating a year early—talk about hard work paying off!
If you want to catch us out and about in December, you’d better hurry! We will be at—
The 4th Annual Christmas Showcase December 1st-3rd at the Jackson County Expo in Central Point. It’s the region’s largest holiday gift and craft show with over 190 vendors. We will be there Friday & Saturday 10am-6pm, and Sunday 10am-4pm.
The rest of the month we will be right here at our store to fill your all holiday wish lists, your must-impress gift needs, and your own candy bowls and secret stashes. We’re at 1662 Siskiyou Boulevard, just a block south of 7-11, in the Minute Market shopping center. We’re open Monday-Friday 10-6, and Saturday 11-5.
You can also find Branson’s Chocolates on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube, and at bransonschocolates.com for online chocolate shopping.
(Thanks to www.thespruce.com/what-is-port-wine-3510911 for the history of Port.)
The delicious finishing touch for any business, any occasion, any event!
Let us customize our delicious chocolate for you.
Custom labels can be created from your business logo, your motto, your event, your photograph, even your name, just about anything that will fit on a label.
We custom label chocolate bars for many local businesses. In fact, if you’ve had chocolate at Paddington Station, Paddington Station’s Inspired By Oregon, The Paddington Jewel Box, all nine locations of The Grange Co-Op, Tudor Guild Gift Shop, Craterian Theater, Camalot Theatre, Holly Theatre, The English Lavender Farm, Sew Creative, Griffin Creek Coffee Roasting, Kriselle Cellars, Schmidt Family Vineyards, Paschal Winery and Vineyard, or Weisinger Family Winery, you’ve probably had Branson’s Chocolates without even realizing it.
Many businesses including Abigail’s Bed and Breakfast, Bayberry Inn Bed and Breakfast, The Iris Inn B&B, McCall House Bed and Breakfast, AmeriTitle Inc., Highbanks Machining, Siskiyou Endodontics, and Larry Steiner at Edward Jones Investments use our custom labeled chocolate for Thank You Gifts.
We create custom labeled chocolate for events such as weddings, showers, races, fundraisers, corporate meetings, grand openings, promotions, company dinners–anything you want to be remembered.
We can create Custom Molded Chocolate in almost any size bar or square, with your name or logo. Just ask Butler Automotive Group, Acorn Consulting Services Inc., Ashland’s Main Street Inn, or The Blue Giraffe.
If you want to talk about customizing Branson’s Chocolates for your business or event, stop by our store at 1662 Siskiyou Boulevard here in Ashland, M-F 10-6, Sat 11-5, except August 27th we will be at The 3rd Annual Benefit Car Show at Phoenix’s Petro Truck Stop/Iron Skillet Restaurant , 10am-4pm.
We have partnered with our local English Lavender Farms this month to bring you English Lavender Farms Lavender Squares. We have been making Lavender and Sea Salt Bitter-Sweet Chocolate Bars and Lavender Salted Caramels. English Lavender Farms Lavender Squares will join our gourmet line. We steep English Lavender Farms lavender buds and infuse them into a semi-sweet ganache center, then dip the ganache in our semi-sweet chocolate, and top it with a stripe made from purple- tinted white chocolate. The lavender is a subtle background flavor and beautifully complements our dark, delicious chocolate. English Lavender Farms Lavender Squares are an indulgent, aromatic treat for the senses.
The English Lavender Farm, run by Sue and Derek Owen, opened to the public for the first time in the summer of 2014. They have been planting Angustafolias (English Lavenders) since 2012 and are turning their lavender farm into a luxurious venue for weddings and other events. Their farm is set on a gentle hillside, and there are stunning vistas of row upon row of purple lavender. They have spent time in Provence with French lavender farmers, and love to discuss the history of lavender production. Their drying barn serves also as a gift shop, and it is well-stocked with a wide variety of handmade lavender products produced on the farm, including Branson’s Chocolates English Lavender Farms Lavender Squares, Lavender and Sea Salt Bitter-Sweet Chocolate Bars, and Lavender Salted Caramels.
We won’t be out and about in June, so come see us in the store at 1662 Siskiyou Boulevard here in Ashland. We’re just a block south of 7-11, in the Minute Market shopping center. We’re open Monday-Friday 10-6, and Saturday 11-5. Maybe you will even catch us dipping and pouring chocolate!
You can find Branson’s Chocolates on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube, and at bransonschocolates.com for online chocolate shopping.
