Single Origin To Dark: Everyday Is Chocolate Day With These 18 Homegrown Brands

Based out of Auroville, Mason & Co is touted to be the first indie bean-to-bar chocolate brand in India. It was founded by husband and wife duo Jane and Fabien. Made with organically sourced cocoa, their chocolates are vegan, gluten-free, and soy-free. We love their neat and sleek packaging and their flavours range from Dark, Bittersweet and Semi-Sweet to Sourdough Sea Salt, Peppermint, Zesty Orange and more. 

LBB Picks: 85% Intense Dark Chocolate, 75% Zesty Orange Dark Chocolate, and 70% Sourdough & Sea Salt Dark Chocolate 

Price: INR 295 onwards 

Another bean-to-bar chocolate maker, this one uses only Indian cacao beans to make its chocolate. Formerly known as Earth Loaf, Naviluna's chocolate is handcrafted in Mysore and includes single-origin bars as well as inclusion chocolate bars mixed with flavours that will appeal to your Indian palate. We’re talking about flavours like Mango, Red Capsicum and Chilli chocolate bar, Kerala Single Estate chocolate bar, Spiced Fig & Walnut, Himalayan Fruit and Nut and more. Their packaging is worth a mention too! 

LBB Picks: Almost Dark 61.8% Kerala Single Origin, Almost Dark 61.8% Tokai Coffee & Pineapple, and Bambooshyam

Price: INR 390 onwards

All Things Chocolate is a bean-to-bar chocolate brand uses directly traded cacao and infuses it with fresh local ingredients to create nostalgia-invoking flavours inspired from cities, flowers, colours and even moods. There’s single-origin, dark, milk, and even vegan chocolate that you can get in the form of bars, truffles, baking chocolate, and drinking chocolate (Cocoa Cappuccino is our favourite). The rustic packaging with on-point illustrations that complement the flavour of the chocolate makes the whole experience a real treat. 

LBB Picks: All Things Dark 64% Single Origin Malabar Dark Chocolate, All Things Barcelona, All Things Air, and All Things Jaipur 

Price: INR 180 onwards

Soklet is a tree-to-bar chocolate brand which means they grow their own cacao plantations and turn them into decadent chocolate that's ready to eat. Single-origin all the way! Their flavours range from 100 per cent dark chocolate and 80 per cent zero sugar milk chocolate to more exotic flavours like Spiced bar, Filter Kaapi, Candied Ginger and even Bhut Jolokia Chilli. They’ve got gourmet baking bars, drinking chocolate and cacao nibs too. 

LBB Picks: Peanut Butter Crunch (60 per cent dark chocolate with roasted peanuts and sea salt) and Mint & Nibs(60 per cent dark chocolate with peppermint and cacao nibs) 

Price: INR 200 onwards 

An artisanal dark chocolate maker, Pascati uses only sustainably sourced and organic ingredients to make its chocolate. From sea salt dark and 90 per cent dark chocolate to fruity combinations of mango, blueberry and walnut and mint dark chocolate, they’ve got 12 different types of dark chocolate bars you can choose from. They've got dark chocolate truffle and pralines too.  

LBB Picks: 72 per cent Dark Idukki (mix of coffee, dark chocolate and mild herbs) and Rose Almond Dark. 

Price: INR 180 onwards 

If dark chocolate is all you can think about, then you must try Darkins. A Delhi-based chocolate brand, Darkins offers handcrafted and vegan bean-to-bar chocolate made with cocoa sourced directly from farmers in Andhra Pradesh. You can pick from options like 75% Dark Chocolate, 85% Dark Chocolate with Blueberries, and 65% Coffee Dark Chocolate. The best part — all their chocolates are gluten-free and made without added preservatives. 

LBB Picks: Darkins 70% Dark Chocolate

Price: INR 295

With flavours like Milk Sitaphal Chocolate, Amazonian Pink Pepper, and Caramelised Sesame Chocolate, Paul And Mike is a farm-to-bar chocolate brand offering bars made with natural ingredients like fruits, nuts, spices, and cocoa beans. We love that their creations are rather exquisite and come in vibrant, colourful packaging. Their flavours range from 87% Dark Chocolate to 41% Fine Milk Chocolate. 

LBB Picks: 64% Mild Dark Balkan Rose Chocolate and 72% Plain Dark Chocolate

Price: INR 500 onwards

Founded by Pragati Sawhney, a dentist-turned chocolatier, Chockriti offers artisanal chocolates made using sustainably-sourced, organic cacao from South India and Belgium. Their bars and bonbons are a mix of the finest Indian and globally-inspired flavours made with no additives like sugar, butter, oil or preservatives. From Thandai, Goat Cheese, African Rooibos Tea, Zataar and Kaffir lime To Rooh Afza, Kaaju Kulfi, Sencha Green Tea, and Kashmiri Kahwa, you can pick from an array of flavours. The best part is that they're dentist-approved too. Their packaging is too gorgeous to boot.

LBB Picks: Turkish Coffee 65%, Almond Sea Salt 80%, and Mirchi Mango Dark Chocolate Bar

Price: INR 290 onwards 

Also a bean-to-bar chocolate brand, Toska offers dark, white and single-origin chocolates made with rather offbeat ingredients like ginger and cardamom along with rose petals, saffron, biscuits, berries, dried fruits and nuts. Take your pick from flavours like Rose & Saffron white chocolate, Smoked Salt & Crystalised Sugar dark chocolate, Madagascar single-origin chocolate and more. They've got chocolate jars and chocolate-coated nuts as well. 

LBB Picks: Caramel-Biscuit Elixir and Single Origin Brazil chocolate

Price: INR 290 onwards

Love chocolate but really want to cut back on sugar? Zevic lets you indulge in chocolates guilt-free offering bars made from the more popular sugar alternative, stevia. You can choose from around 16 flavours which include roasted almonds, dark chocolates, orange zest, roasted coffee, Turkish hazelnut, Himalayan pink salt and more. Know more here. 

LBB Picks: Belgian Milk Chocolate Californian Almonds & Saffron and Belgian chocolate with Organic Jaggery 

Price: INR 135 onwards 

Popularly known for its wide array of freshly baked goods and chocolate creations, La Folie's chocolate bars are worth indulging in at least once. With flavours like Maple & Chunky Almond Butter, Smoked Pink Himalayan Salt, Crunchy Cocoa Nib, Intense Black Jaggery, Sea Salt Caramel, Ecuador Single Origin and more, we bet you will have a hard time choosing your favourite.

Mumbai folks who are reading this, you get to indulge in more options. Click here for more deets. 

LBB Picks: Nutty Hazelnut Rocher, Mint After Dark and Butterscotch Nuggets 

Price: INR 280 onwards 

Founded by Vasudha Munjal. Choko La offers artisan chocolates in the form of chocolate minis, chocolate bars, vegan chocolates, bonbons and more. Classic milk chocolate bars, sugar-free chocolate bars, hazelnut chocolate marbles, mini chocolate squares in flavours like orange, mint, chocolate chip and more are on offer. They've also got some delicious hot chocolate blends and chocolate lollipops that you can choose from. Know more here. 

LBB Picks: Crunchy French Biscuit Chocolate Bar and Dark Mocha Solo Souvenir Box

Price: INR 260 onwards 

Another Mumbai-based chocolatier, Entisi's pralines have our heart! They're available in four varieties — pistachio praline, hazelnut praline, marzipan, and hazelnut gianduja, which come with 72-78 per cent centre filling (yum!). If you like to keep a check on your sugar intake, their espresso or zero chocolate bars with 55 per cent cocoa might suit your taste buds better. Of course, their hot chocolate mix is a must-try! Know more here. 

LBB Picks: Hazelnut Praline, Crunchy Hazelnut and Almond Dragees box 

Price: INR 295 onwards

We can't get over how unbelievably smooth Ether Atelier's chocolate is. All their chocolate is single-origin and not only the packaging is delightfully classy, but the actual chocolate is also stunning, too. Go for the Noir bar if you like clean dark chocolate with a sprinkling of sea salt, or check out their preserves, too. If we had to describe their chocolate collection, we'd call it a high-fashion dessert.

LBB Picks: Noir Tablet Chocolate

Price: INR 575 for a bar

Bombay Sweet Shop brings you the Indie Bar, which will make you ask the question is it chocolate? Or is it mithai? We hear it's the best of both worlds. The decadent, 100% vegetarian bar is made of all things delicious — layers of fluffy coconut, sticky and gooey pepper caramel, and melt-in-your-mouth patissa (a quintessentially Indian, crisp and flaky mithai, made with gram flour, sugar and ghee), and a rich 54% dark chocolate that wraps everything together. It's sinful and a must-try. 

LBB Pick: Indie Bar

Price: INR 150

All of Savorworks offerings are made from scratch. They have bean-to-cup coffees and bean-to-bar chocolates. They love to experiment and have fun with chocolate, which explains why they have over eight flavours. If you like dark chocolate, do try their 57% Dark Milk variant. It's super smooth and tastes perfect.

Cavasa is a luxury artisanal chocolate brand founded by Harshaa Jain, delivering a rounded sweet depth of flavour in every bite. Crafted with supreme care and globally sourced cocoa, Cavasa offers indulgent experiences with a variety of chocolate bars and a collection that has something for everyone, plus they are great for gifting purposes as well. 

LBB Pick: Classic Hazelnut Dragees 54% Dark Chocolate and Classic Almond Dragees 54%

Price: INR 432