Everyone loves chocolate, right? I know I do! As much as I eat chocolate though, I never really thought about what goes into making it. On Saturday my husband and I took our daughter Reese to take a tour of the Long Grove Confectionery. On this tour we learned all about the process.

We began our tour learning about how chocolate is actually grown. We were surprised to hear that chocolate actually grows on trees. From there we walked through a long hallway and got to see the step-by-step process of making the chocolate. There are large windows that look into each area. Each step of the way there is a short video that describes the tasks that take place in that particular spot. It is so amazing how much time and detail goes into each piece of chocolate.

One of the neatest things we saw were numerous sculptures made out of 100% chocolate. There was a huge Santa Claus, a couple patriotic pieces made after 9/11, paintings on the wall, huge bunnies, etc. They have an artist that works with them and creates these sculptures for events and to place around the confectionery. Reese was in awe over the huge pizza sculpture.

Even though it was only 10am, we were craving chocolate after the tour was completed. Everyone who takes the tour gets a gift bag at the end. We got chocolate covered rice crispy treats which we promptly dug into! The tour ended in the factory store. We walked around and picked up a few items. They have anything and everything you could ever dream of made out of chocolate. They even had several different samples to try.

We truly enjoyed the tour and learning so much more about the process. Our tour guide, Kay, made our experience even more enjoyable. Now when we eat chocolate, we have a better appreciation for just how it came to be. We left the tour and headed home…hoping Reese’s sugar high would subside by the time we reached our house!

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