Claremont
Additionally, the company has a name for the Grade A maple syrup-sweetened chocolate line — Mountain Maple Chocolate — Mona Changaris, a principal with the company, said recently.
Changaris said they have ordered equipment for making the chocolate but must first complete interior and exterior renovations to the brick building at 40 Union St., which was constructed in the early 1830s on the banks of the Sugar River.
Removing the exterior paint from the brick while maintaining the building’s historical integrity has proved to be more of a challenge than expected, she said.
“We needed a mason who is familiar with historical buildings,” Changaris said. “The goal is not to have the brickwork destabilized.”
Sandblasting, or even power washing, were not options because of the damage they could cause. Instead, Changaris said, they are working with a contractor from Keene, N.H., who will apply a “goop-like” material that, when peeled off, brings the paint with it. The cleaned brick will be “tuckpointed,” which is described as using two colors of mortar in the brickwork, one of which matches the bricks, giving the appearance that fine joints have been made, according to the application on file with city when the business received a special use permit from the Planning Board.
Deglace’s, the holding company that bought the property, wants to “return the building to an attractive appearance and provide the community a desired business,” the application states.
Other improvements will include new wood windows, a wood door replacing the glass one, new electrical panels and new wiring. The business will operate on the first floor.
Changaris said the company has been developing a chocolate sweetened with maple syrup for a few years and produced the first batch in 2015. Creating maple-sweetened chocolate — not maple flavored — is “very tricky” because the chemical makeup of maple sap is different than most other sweeteners, she has said.
Changaris said it makes sense to produce the chocolate in New England, the heart of maple syrup country, instead of trucking the syrup to Kentucky. Vermont is the top producer of maple syrup in the United States, and Maine and New Hampshire are also big producers.
The Claremont location will not sell retail, Changaris said. Instead, the chocolate will be sold as packaged bars through other outlets. The company also will sell the chocolate to businesses that want to use it in their own, private label products.
“A couple of companies want the chocolate for their own snack offerings,” she said.
Changaris said her company has a private label agreement with a Michigan company and has lined up maple suppliers.
“We don’t see ourselves as competitors with other chocolate makers, but more as collaborators,” Changaris said. “We are here to serve the community in whatever way we can.”
According to its website, the Amore di Mona line of chocolate is made with ingredients imported from Europe. Its “nutrition-focused food artisans” produce allergen- and gluten-free low-glycemic vegan chocolates using organic ingredients and “raw, organic, Fair Trade agave nectar, cocoa solids and cocoa butter.” The company is running a contest to design the packaging. It is open to anyone. Details can be found at www.mountainmaplechocolate.com
Patrick O’Grady can be reached at pogclmt@gmail.com.
