Choctál
| Founded | 2007 |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | Pasadena, California |
Number of locations | Over 400 retailers |
Area served | Nationwide |
| Products | Pints and 4-ounce Cups of Single Origin Chocolate and Vanilla Ice Cream |
| Owners | Michael Leb, Nancy Hytone Leb, Robert Michero |
| Website | https://www.choctal.com |
Choctál LLC is a single-origin ice cream company that produces four varieties of chocolate and four varieties of vanilla in pints and 4-ounce single-serve cups. The 4-ounce cups are also packaged separately in Chocolate and Vanilla Tours. (4 cups per package). Choctál is known for being the only single-origin ice cream company; each type of ice cream is made from a single variety of cacao or vanilla beans, creating more complex flavor than traditional ice cream. Single origin is a concept often found in coffee. Choctál is headquartered in Pasadena, California. The ice cream is produced in Cedarburg, Wisconsin with no artificial additives, eggs, or gluten and rBST-free milk. Choctál ice cream is Kosher.
Choctál is a member of One Percent for the Planet.
History
Choctál debuted at the Specialty Food Association's Winter Fancy Food Show 2007. The name Choctál is derived from the indigenous Aztec word Xocolatl, a sacred chocolate drink made from cacao.
Choctál's ownership changed in 2013 and the brand was relaunched at the Specialty Food Association's Winter Fancy Food Show in 2014.
Origins
- Costa Rican Chocolate
- Ghana Chocolate
- Dominican Chocolate
- Kalimantan Chocolate
- Mexican Vanilla
- Papua New Guinea Vanilla
- Indonesian Vanilla
- Madagascar Vanilla
Awards
In 2014, Choctál's Ghana Chocolate was named one of The Gourmet Retailer's Editor's Picks.[1]
In 2015, Choctál's Kalimantan Chocolate was a finalist for a sofi Award in the "Ice Cream, Gelato, or Frozen Treats" category.[2]
Distribution
As of mid-2016, Choctál is available in over 400 stores, including AJ's Fine Foods (Arizona), Bristol Farms, Gelson's Markets, Target, Albertsons and Vons in Southern California, Metropolitan Markets and Whole Foods in the Pacific Northwest, Kowalski's Markets in Minneapolis/St. Paul, Straub's Markets in St. Louis and countless independent gourmet retailers throughout the country. Choctál is carried by frozen food distributors DPI Specialty Foods, Nature's Best/Kehe and other local distributors.
The company also sells online through its website.
Reviews
San Jose Mercury News gave Choctál's Papua New Guinea Vanilla "4 Stars" and called it "perfection on a spoon" (2014).[3] Choctál was featured in exclusive articles on Eat Something Sexy (2015),[4] ForbesLife (2015)[5] which called Choctál "the finest, most luscious and flavorful ice creams," and Pasadena Magazine (2015).[6]
Sunset Magazine featured Choctál in July 2015 in an article entitled "Not Just Plain Vanilla"[7]
Choctál's chocolate ice creams were mentioned by MarketWatch as one of "14 Valentine's Day chocolates better than a kiss" (2014).[8]
Choctál was featured by the Wall Street Journal as one of America's best mail-order ice creams (2015).[9]
References
- ↑ "The Gourmet Retailer's Editors' Picks Winners: Foods". The Gourmet Retailer, August/September 2014. Retrieved on July 15, 2015.
- ↑ "2015 sofi Finalists". Specialty Foods, 2015. Retrieved on July 14, 2015.
- ↑ "Taste-Off: The best vanilla ice cream -- and the truly surprising worst". San Jose Mercury News, 2014. Retrieved on July 14, 2015.
- ↑ "Greatest Chocolate & Vanilla Ice Cream Ever". Eat Something Sexy, January 27, 2015. Retrieved on July 14, 2015.
- ↑ "The Scoop on the Best Single Origin Ice Creams". ForbesLife, February 9, 2015. Retrieved on July 14, 2015.
- ↑ "Choctál: A World of Ice Cream in One Scoop". Pasadena Magazine, 2015. Retrieved July 14, 2015.
- ↑ "Not Just Plain Vanilla". Sunset MagazineJuly 1, 2015. Retrieved July 15, 2015.
- ↑ "14 Valentine's Day chocolates better than a kiss". Market Watch, February 14, 2014. Retrieved July 14, 2015.
- ↑ "The Scoop on America's Best Mail-Order Ice Creams". Wall Street Journal, June 19, 2015. Retrieved July 14, 2015.