Gearharts Fine Chocolates Goes for a New Look to Celebrate 25 Years

Charlottesville, Virginia-based artisan chocolatier Gearharts Fine Chocolates recently unveiled a new packaging design, featuring refined typography and cacao blossom-inspired botanical artwork, to celebrate their 25^th anniversary.

Even if you’re not in the Charlottesville area, chances are you’ve heard of Gearharts, as they were recently honored as USA Today’s Best Chocolate Shop in the annual USA TODAY 10BEST. The list, initially nominated by a panel of experts, is then voted on by readers, and Gearharts took spot number one in 2026.

Marking a 25-Year Milestone

The accolade arrives at the perfect time to celebrate twenty-five years and highlight the brand new packaging. Founder Tim Gearhart reflects –

“For 25 years, we’ve created chocolates designed to bring people joy. As we celebrate this milestone, we wanted packaging that reflects both where chocolate begins – with the cacao blossom – and the craftsmanship that defines every piece we make. Our goal was not to reinvent who we are, but to express it more clearly. The new design honors our heritage while positioning us for the future.”

Gearharts Fine Chocolates features quite the unique background story thanks to Tim’s own adventures. He served as a Marine Corps cook in the Asia-Pacific, received pastry training at the Culinary Institute of America, and continued to hone his skills some in unusual locations, from an English castle to a Western dude ranch.

It sounds like an unusual journey, tailor-made for an In Focus Feature, so let us know if you’d really like us to deliver much more in-depth coverage of Gearharts.

The beautiful new packaging rolls out across several of Gearharts’ most popular products, including Dark Chocolate Caramels, Virginia Maple Caramels, Chocolate Dipped Pistachio Toffee, and Brown Sugar Pecan Toffee.

Thankfully, for chocolate connoisseurs, it also rolls out across Gearharts’ handmade chocolate bar collection, featuring Maya, Criolla, Almond, Blueberry, Ginger, and Espresso varieties.

Although the new packaging design hasn’t made its way to this product yet, we’re still very appreciative of Gearharts Vegan Fine Chocolate Assortment as well. It showcases just how nice the new packaging upgrade truly is.

Featuring these three varieties, this vegan option sounds like quite the standout in Gearharts’ wide array of chocolate options:

• Hazelnut Praline Ganache, made with Almond Milk, dipped in dark chocolate
• Passionfruit Ganache crafted with Coconut Milk, dipped in dark chocolate
• Chai Tea Ganache with Oat milk, dipped in dark chocolate

For more on the new look, and of course the chocolate itself, visit gearhartschocolates.com.