Free Shipping on all orders of $65 or more!
A New Chapter for Intrigue Chocolate Co.
After 20 wonderful years of making chocolate in Seattle, we’re thrilled to announce that Intrigue Chocolate Co. is embarking on a new adventure: we’re moving our entire operation to the small (and charming!) town of Chisholm, Minnesota at the end of April 2025. While we love making and sharing chocolate in the Pacific Northwest, this next chapter brings us closer to family and allows us to realize a dream we’ve nurtured for years—owning our own building that will house both our chocolate factory and our upstairs apartment.
Why Chisholm?
Closer to Family
Aaron grew up in Minnesota, so moving to Chisholm puts us near parents, siblings, aunts, uncles, nephews, and nieces. We can’t wait to be more present for family gatherings and share our love of chocolate in a region that feels like home.
Owning Our Space
For years, we’ve been renting in Seattle, which comes with uncertainties—rising rent, changing landlord plans, and a rapidly evolving city. By purchasing this property, we gain stability, freedom to grow, and an opportunity to invest in a historic building we can truly make our own. The building—dating back to 1912—was once a Masonic lodge on the second floor, with a shop on the ground floor. We’re excited to respect its heritage while transforming it into our dream chocolate factory. We'll be posting more about our new building soon.
A Charming Community
Chisholm sits on Minnesota’s Iron Range, brimming with history and lovely old brick buildings reminiscent of our old neighborhood in Seattle’s historic Pioneer Square. Much like Karl’s work on the preservation board in Seattle, we look forward to contributing to local historical preservation efforts in our new home.
Reflecting on 20 years of Chocolate in Seattle
Seattle has been an incredibly supportive and generous community for us to explore all things chocolate.
In February of 2005, our friends at Madres’ Kitchen encouraged the launch of Intrigue under the umbrella of their catering business as the chocolate dessert accompanying their boxed lunches.
In September of 2006, Intrigue became independent in a shared commercial kitchen in Queen Anne, hosting pop-up tastings at local wineries to pair our chocolates with wine. These events helped us build our community and newsletter list early on.
By 2010, we’d established a commercial kitchen in an historic building in Pioneer Square. This quickly became a destination for tasting adventures and coffee tours, as people found their way up the stairs and down hall to our secret chocolate laboratory.
In 2015, we opened our flagship retail shop on Jackson Street in Pioneer Square. The “Tasting Bar” allowed us to showcase our creations for the bustling neighborhood and visitors.
In early 2018 we opened our light-filled coffeehouse in Capitol Hill, which allowed us to explore many perfect meetings of chocolate-and-cup, bringing so much joy. The cafe closed after almost 3 years in late 2020, which we call "The Great Pivoting".
In 2020, which we call "The Great Pivoting", we had to vacate our kitchen as the building needed retrofitting and renovations after the viaduct was removed. Additionally, we decided to close the Coffeehouse due to the changes happening in the world at the time. Heartbreakingly, we said goodbye to our 14 staff members. We were forced to get creative and somehow moved all production into our small retail space on Jackson St, keeping our whole product line but losing the ability to provide beverage service and sampling.
Since then, we have expanded our skillsets. We learned to temper bars with precision. We learned to mill our own chocolate. We upgraded the molds of our spiced bars, and added 1oz craft chocolate bars to our lineups. In our new factory we hope to roast the beans as well, which will make us a fully bean-to-bar operation.
What You Can Expect
Online-Only Retail
After we close our Seattle store at the end of April 2025, all purchases will continue to be made through our website—just as many of you are already doing. We’ll keep crafting the same truffles, bars, cocoa mixes, and more, and we will continue offering our free shipping on orders over $65, so no change there!
Steady Supply During the Move
We’ll maintain a robust online store throughout the transition, stocking plenty of inventory so there won’t be many delays. Our final day at the Jackson Street location in Pioneer Square is planned for Saturday, April 26th, 2025. However, our website will remain fully operational before, during, and after the move as Mother's Day will be quickly approaching at that time.
Behind-the-Scenes Updates
Follow us on TikTok, Instagram, and Facebook to watch this journey unfold! We’ll share videos, photos, and stories of our road trip east, the renovations in Chisholm, and, of course, our chocolate-making process. Should we also start a YouTube? hmmm :)
Continuing Our Chocolate Tradition
We’ll still produce all the signature flavors you’ve come to love—just from a bigger and more flexible space. With our new location, we can develop fresh ideas and collaborate with Minnesota-based farms, coffee shops, spice shops, and gift retailers.
A Fond Farewell and Heartfelt Gratitude
It’s impossible to express how much the Seattle community means to us. Over the two decades, we’ve shared countless conversations and tastings with you. Many of you have grown up on our chocolate—annual Valentine’s Day visits, afternoon pick-me-ups, and pop-ins just to say hello have become traditions we cherish. While we’ll miss seeing you in person, we look forward to continuing these connections online and hopefully hosting you in Chisholm someday.
We’re deeply grateful for your support over the years, including the humbling recognition of being named Yelp’s Best Chocolate Shop in Washington State in 2022 for a decade of your excellent reviews. From our early winery pop-ups, to our speakeasy kitchen tastings, to our bustling shop in Pioneer Square, and our cozy light-filled cafe on Capitol Hill, you’ve been integral to our journey.
Looking Ahead
We are excited to build new relationships with local communities and fellow food makers in the Upper Midwest. We’ll keep you posted on every new collaboration—especially our outreach to coffee shops, spice shops, and gift retailers across Minnesota.
If you’d like to continue supporting us:
Order online at [your website URL]. We’re open for business 24/7, and free shipping on orders over $65 isn’t going anywhere!
Follow us on TikTok, Instagram, and Facebook for updates on new flavors, the move, and more.
Stay tuned for behind-the-scenes peeks at our renovations and future events.
Thank you for being part of our Seattle story. We hope you’ll join us on this next exciting chapter as we move to Minnesota and keep spreading the joy of chocolate far and wide.
Comments will be approved before showing up.
