Whether the chocolate is cheap or fancy, white or dark, I am not a fan. Please forgive me. Since most do like chocolate, I invested in a melting pot and a bunch of $1.99 molds to cover Christmas, birthdays, Valentine's Day, and Easter for the year. Then I needed a compound chocolate, as tempering frightens me. I tried the craft store kind, such as Make-n-mold. Cheap ($3.50/14 oz), but too sweet. Not good enough for solo gifts. The ingredient list was especially bad too. I tried Chocoley ($6.99/lb), and even I think it is good. In my opinion, the extra dark one tastes like layperson, homemade hot chocolate -- mild, flavorful, and yet not overly sweet. For a year of gifts to cover all holidays and birthdays (6-7 families+a few colleagues), I estimate that the chocolate, boxes/packaging, and shipping will cost about $600//$50 monthly. I am neither a cook nor artist, but decorating the chocolate is a fun project too. While not the cheapest gift ever, I know folks will like it. This route is still cheaper than the lovely truffles ($30-35/lb) in my local artisan chocolate shop (nyc) and tastes close enough for the layperson. Also, I like sending small gifts on non-major holidays.
