What a hidden gem! We booked a Saturday chocolate factory tour and it was fantastic. Super affordable and fun family activity. We learned so much about the process of making chocolate, and how beautiful that they use stone-ground melanger machines from Europe. It is stunning to see such artisanal work being done. The staff were all kind and loved answering questions. We were able to sample all of their products, which was a dream. Highly recommend!! read more

Olive and Sinclair Chocolate - Samples of chocolate!! - Chocolatiers & Shops Near Me - Nashville, Tennessee

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I've been on a bit of a chocolate binge lately and decided to stop by Olive and Sinclair Chocolate while we were in town. Per some sources, they are the first bean to bar chocolate maker in Tennessee, and they even offer weekly factory tours, although I wasn't able to make it in time for one. Olive and Sinclair has a relatively small retail area. They have all of their products on display and more importantly, have tons of samples! I ended up trying basically everything. The chocolatier doesn't advertise where they source their cocoa from but I asked an employee and she said they switch it up all the time. Apparently the current batch is from Peru, which gives the chocolate a pretty neutral taste at the start but then transitions to a kind of sharper dried fruit taste. They also sell several types of caramels. The Ghost Pepper Caramel starts with the caramel sweetness. It's only a second or two later that some heats starts to show up. I'm not sure how much ghost pepper they actually use; the heat is a bit more than just a warmth, but isn't nearly to the point of being painful. The heat lingers for quite a while, enough that I had to wait a good five minutes before trying another caramel! Interestingly I think this one has the "cleanest" caramel taste, at least at the start before the pepper kicks in! The Duck Fat Caramel has similar sweet undertones but adds on a really savory and almost meaty element on top. The Sea Salt & Vinegar Caramel has a light vinegar scent. It starts with sweetness and a light tang, but then the vinegar gets stronger. It never gets to the point of tasting like a vinaigrette, but is quite noticeable. To be honest, I'm not a fan of any of the caramels. They are certainly unique and nice to try though! I ended up picking some of their more intriguing products - the Bourbon Nib Brittle and the Smoked Nib Brittle - for gifts. From what I tried in store, they're both exactly as the names imply: super bourbon forward sweet candy, and a surprisingly intense smoky sweet. Yum! Olive and Sinclair Chocolate is definitely a place to pick up some unique local gifts! I wish I had made it in time for one of their tours. read more

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This is such a great local business! My wife and I did a tour for Valentine's Day this year and it was very informative and very fun. They roast and process all of their chocolate by hand in house and it was fantastic to see how the process is actually done, particularly that they use 100+ yr old stone wheels to grind their chocolate and that the chocolate is ground 24/7 (you can see it from the storefront window). The chocolate itself is very, very good and it's definitely worth the money. They also make duck fat caramels that are intensely flavorful and delicious. The tour was so much fun and I highly recommend it and you can sample all of their products, which was a great way to try all the different flavors and find which ones we wanted to bring home with us. It's our new favorite chocolate and it's truly a gem to have here in Nashville! read more

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On a whim, my husband and I picked up a box of Olive & Sinclair's "Duck Fat Caramels" at Whole Foods and we've been hooked ever since. I've driven by their shop and factory on Fatherland a handful of times, and finally stopped in this week to pick up a few locally-made stocking stuffers. Oh my goodness ... the smell of this shop is absolutely intoxicating. Upon entering, you're hit with the most wonderful scent of melted chocolate, and it sticks with you throughout your shopping experience. As I was browsing I thought, "They should make this into a candle," ... only to turn around and see that they've already thought of that! They have all sorts of chocolate-scented candles for sale. Sadly, I missed out on the big boxes of Duck Fat Caramels this holiday season - apparently those sell out quickly this time of year! Thankfully they did have a few two-packs still available, along with some interesting looking "Salt and Vinegar Caramels," which I'm anxious to sample on my next visit. read more

As you walk up you can see through the window the chocolate being made. I was greeted when I walked in and the guy had said the machinew were over 100 years old which is neat. They have little samples for you to try the chocolates and brittle. It is a lil pricey, so bring your money. I got the Bourbon brittle ($20) and chocolate candle ($22). I think thats kind of extreme for a small candle, but it smelled good. if you like bitter chocolate you will like this place. read more

Olive and Sinclair Chocolate - $20, $22 - Chocolatiers & Shops Near Me - Nashville, Tennessee

The chocolate is to die for! My favorite dark chocolate. Wish I could have it more often.

For Mother's Day, my son, and I took a tour of Olive and Sinclair's chocolate factory. This is a wonderful little hidden gem! The tour guide is wonderful, very informative, and funny! We got to taste so many different forms of chocolate from the nibs to the pulverized chocolate before sugar is added, and the final product. He was also very kind in answering my son, who apparently has read about chocolate making, and asked many many questions. The store is cute and small and has lots of great samples. Everything is absolutely delicious and naturally made. I've never had such a good chocolate before. Not sure I can go back to eating big box chocolate. This is a tour you should not miss. East Nashville is also a really cute place to visit. Street parking around the area is free and pretty easy to find. read more

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The chocolate-making machinery is a prominent part of the storefront, though the limited space for actually buying chocolate is quite pleasant. The price of chocolate here is quite high, but you can see the quality. The bars I got were reminiscent of other au natural stone-ground chocolate; the taste is similar to Taza (a New England company that sells little chocolate wheels) but the texture is smoother. I didn't realize a tour was an option, but it seems like teat would be worth doing. read more

Olive and Sinclair Chocolate - Chocolatiers & Shops Near Me - Nashville, Tennessee

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Unlike several of my reviews where I just give my personal perception, this one is filled with data and references. I bought three products and will review them in detail after a few paragraphs on initial impressions. The product reviews are a consensus between my adult son, my wife and I as we sampled the wares in a formal taste testing. Acting in a venue across the street, I noticed the sign that this was actually a candy shop. From the title, I was not sure if maybe it was a Mediterranean place or an architectural firm. I ventured in and short of cash at the time, I sampled some of the bits out for that purpose. Those tids and bits were great and I promised I would be back. In the interim, I told the rest of the cast and anyone who would listen that they needed to check the place out. On my return, I had two minor disappointments. Family sent me in with a list and two of the varieties they requested were no longer available, even though they were on the website. Now, on the products. First up is the 67% cacao. My adult son had the most input to this product but we all agreed. For reference, he rated this as a 5 on a 1-5 scale, 5 high. For reference, here are his ratings: Rausch Chocolate from Germany is a 5. Lindt is a 3 and Hershey dark is a 2. The reasons for this are many. All of us present rated this high percentage cacao as extremely smooth due to its processing. We all agreed it was not bitter, but had a pleasant bite to it, not overpowering. We detected notes of cherry and the aroma when we opened the wrapping wafted to our noses quickly. My son noted that they listed the country of origin for the cacao on this, and that was a big plus. While he nor the rest of us have tasted enough chocolates from various countries, we could not use this data effectively. Next up was the Candied Lemon and it did not get as rave a review. The overall rating was "adequate". I was the dissenter. It had salt and lemon. I would have preferred on or the other but not both. We all agreed that with the 75% cacao it was good. Lastly, the Duck Fat Caramels took the most courage to try. I sampled them on my first visit and because they did not have two of the chocolates on my list, I bought this box. It was expensive. My son passed strictly on the concept of duck fat being one of the prime ingredients. Yes, it is duck fat and not a moniker to rename another ingredient. The label states that this was literally born in duck blinds by hunters. Both my wife and I agreed that if you did not know it was duck fat, you could not identify it. I will try this as a blind taste test on a few friends. Other ingredients besides the sugar include cream (although the person selling it to me said it had a bit of butter), salt, black pepper, chilies and thyme (to enhance the duck fat). They do have tours, but I did not have the time for one. Not a neighborhood I frequent as I live 35 miles away, if I find myself there, I will try to find some of the product I missed the first time. You can almost make this a destination confectionery. read more

This is by far one of my favorite things I've ever done in Nashville. The tour is so cheap and takes up a good amount of time, plus you get to sample a bunch of things throughout. The man giving the tour was so kind and very eager to answer any questions we all had. He even spent time afterwards discussing my job with me because I'd mentioned working at a bakery. Everything is so cool to learn about here and you can get some beautiful pictures. Very cool experience, I highly recommend this place! read more

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Best candy ever. Duck Fat Caramels are amazing. Can't wait to try their other offerings

This place is so cute. We were rounding out a weekend girls trip to Nashville and had breakfast at the frothy monkey across the street. It was mid-morning on a Tuesday. The exterior is very non-descript. We walked past the entrance but the chocolate being made in the window down the block caught my eye and I begged my friends to go in. The smell is fantastic. We were immediately greeted by the owner(?), who was super friendly. The shop sells caramels and chocolates, and you can sample everything. I walked out with a box of caramels and 2 chocolate bars. Excellent last minute and random find. read more

Olive and Sinclair Chocolate - a coat hanging on a wall - Chocolatiers & Shops Near Me - Nashville, Tennessee

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Awesome people, delicious chocolate, and very fun to tour! Highly recommended going if you're in the area for anything. read more

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Very cute and clean chocolate store. Shelby was very helpful. Got a bunch of goodies. They have a candy shop tour and a bunch of samples. The store is located in a cute little neighborhood. Will visit again. Great chocolate. read more

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Enjoyed the tour with my family. Very informative and the antique machinery was fascinating.

Wonderful tour. Friendly customer service. What great place to learn about how artisan chocolate is made. The chocolates were AMAZING!

We had some time in between our scheduled activities so we looked up this place and decided to try it. We went in the $5 tour, great price and the tour was about 45 minutes. The lady doing the tour was awkward but funny. She knew everything you needed to know About making chocolate. She clearly knew her stuff and was able to really show and explain how everything works. We all got to taste multiple kinds of chocolate. My husband loved it and my kids hated it. The chocolate for the kids was too bitter and not sweet enough. I think majority of littles might have some trouble with the flavors. It's definitely worth the tour and can help break up your day! read more

Olive and Sinclair Chocolate - Chocolatiers & Shops Near Me - Nashville, Tennessee

The Duck Fat Caramels are the best! Been watching the interesting chocolate machine for a while and decided to stop by and try the chocolate. Tasted the chocolate offerings and they were great, however I left with Caramels. I highly recommend a visit to this interesting store. read more

Located conveniently in the heart of East Nashville's suburbs and close to both Five Points and downtown, this place was a great find. I was in town for the weekend and had the opportunity to pop in for their tour that they offer on Saturday's only for $5 per person. Olive and Sinclair is Tennessee's only bean to bar chocolate factory and provides an opportunity to see the behind the scenes of the process of how their treats are made. Our tour guide was very friendly and provided details of the process as well as fun snippets of history and the background of the factory. You get a snazzy hairnet to wear while you're in the back factory portion and get a full tour of their space which produces and impressive amount of chocolate for a smaller location. The tour includes samples and an explanation of the specific bars and treats that they make. In addition the front shop space includes samples of the bars and all of their products that are for sale. The chocolate bars and confections that are offered included unique flavors and were all delicious! Options such as sea salt, cinnamon and chili, coffee, salt and pepper, caramel, and various brittles. I ended up taking a sea salt bar home and my friend brought home some caramel and bourbon nib brittle. Overall I definitely recommend popping in to this place to do the tour or to bring home some chocolate. Hits the spot for anyone with even a small sweet tooth! read more

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This was a last minute activity that I found on Groupon for $5. I've never been to a choccolate factory before. Although this is a small one, it's local which makes it cool. You can pick your times by the hour. I was able to book 15 minutes before and I arrived 5 minutes before 2. Nathan was our tour guide and he was informative and funny. We were able to sample caramels and brittle chocolates at the end. I did wish that we could see the machines up and running in action. I would say this is great for teenagers and adults but not so much for the young ones. It's a lot of listening and the chocolate tasting would be too bitter for them. The tour was about 40 minutes long. We enjoyed it and was easy to fit into our schedule. read more

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Awesome place to visit and do the tour, you will learn the path from the cacao bean to the chocolate bar ! Samples of all the products for you to try. Delicious chocolate. read more

Might be me, but I found this tour boring and not that interesting. Cool old building, smelled delicious in there, but the mechanisms of the machinery and process was tedious. Not sure what I expected but the Ben and Jerry's tour in Vermont was wayyyy more interesting than this. Don't bring kids. They will hate their life. read more

I loved this! We signed up for the tour about a minute before it started - they were so kind. They gave us hair nets and we got to it. It was very educational - overall their story is a good one. They let us smell a bunch, taste a bunch, and ask so many questions. You get your tour payment refunded when you spend over $35 in chocolate at the end... we spent way more than that. It was nice to support a small batch chocolate spot while we visited Nashville for the weekend. Again, the group couldn't have been nicer. read more

I LOVE Olive and Sinclair Chocolate! The factory tours are a must for visitors or locals in Nashville. The chocolate itself is very robust in flavor and definitely worth the few extra dollars. read more

Olive and Sinclair Chocolate - I love taking my friends and family when they come to visit me in Nashville to Olive and Sinclair for their chocolate tour! - Chocolatiers & Shops Near Me - Nashville, Tennessee

Unique chocolate "factory ". Awesome attentive owner who spent time sharing the history of the location and community! Rustic, authentic feel of a special product. Samples available and encouraged!! Not your average confectionery store! read more

Olive and Sinclair is Tennessee's only bean-to-bar chocolate company. And once you've seen their chocolate bars, you'll realize you've seen them all over town: grocery stores, souvenir shops, general stores, etc. Yeah, their chocolates are great (more about that later). But the best surprise about O&S? YOU CAN TOUR THEIR CHOCOLATE FACTORY FOR $5. That's right, for $5, you get a 30-45 minute tour. An O&S employee walks you around the back of the store, tells you how they make their chocolate, showing and explaining the equipment they use, and giving you samples of chocolate through the process (raw cocoa nibs, "chocolate liquor" - which is cocoa nibs that have been pressed to a liquid, and finished chocolates). It's really interesting, informative, and fun! And it smells great! And the samples are awesome! (And, if you spend $30 in the shop after the tour, they give you $5 off.) You do have to wear a hair net on the tour. We all looked awesome. It's a good look! Heads up: tours are only on Saturdays and they DO SELL OUT. Get your ticket online before the tour. Their location is completely adorable. Very cool, very hipster. Even the ticket they give you for the tour is adorable! The store is stocked full of all of their chocolate products (and their new candy store's candies, too - the candy store is based in Franklin!), including all the chocolate bars, brittle, and more! I walked out with a box of Bourbon Nib Brittle (it's amazing), a bar of Mexican style chocolate (which has an amazing crystal-y texture), and some candy! This was such a fun experience! Completely worth the $5 the tour cost! read more

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Our tour guide was so passionate about the process that we couldn't t help but be intrigued. He had corny jokes that kept us entertained. Small group sizes allows time for questions The chocolate is really good too. read more

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Awesome chocolate and the staff is SO amazing. Talked with Scott for a little bit and he was extremely nice and gave excellent recommendations for while we are here on our trip. We really appreciated the welcoming spirit to the town. Try the caramels as well! They are amazing. read more

Do the tour and taste the sweet treats! The tour guide, Jason, did a wonderful job of explaining the processes with a bit of humor. Our kids are aged 12-17 and all enjoyed the experience. Favorites were the duck fat caramels, cinnamon and chili chocolate, and sea salt chocolate. read more

Olive and Sinclair Chocolate - Granite grinding wheels for crushing chocolate nibs. - Chocolatiers & Shops Near Me - Nashville, Tennessee

Olive & Sinclair Chocolate was founded by Scott Witherow back in '09, making Southern Artisan Chocolates. I like their cool wrapper design - they offer different varieties, such as 67%/75% Cacao, Sea Salt, Salt & Pepper, Double Chocolate Nibs, Coffee, Mexican Style Cinn-Chili, Buttermilk White (45% Cacao or Salt & Pepper versions), Smoked Nib Brittle, and Bourbon Nib Brittle. They also have Chocotuerie (charcuterie style) and truffles. My absolute favorite was the Mexican Style Cinn-Chili, containing bright organic Ceylon cinnamon with a salt-driven chocolate - the flavors are deep, has a little kick, and is quite delicious! :D It was cool to see the chocolate mix behind the glass window. The staff were more focused on one customer, so we weren't greeted or helped when we were in the store. :( +Mexican Style Cinn-Chili - YUM! +MIA staff read more

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Crammed people in the lobby reaching and grabbing and grubbing for chocolates. I love chocolate. Loooove chocolate. But there was not a single chocolate that I liked here. And I tasted all of them. I tasted and tasted (despite the icky feeling of paranoia amidst the nose-wiping, little kid sticky, germy hands all around from both kids and grown-ups in this small space). I have to be honest. Actually, I thought the chocolate was not good at all. It was yucky. Just blech. I didn't take the tour. I walked out and got some fresh air from the distasteful, germy, crammy lobby. Dumped. Everyone seems to love this place. Sigh. You are right. You know what Darlin' it's not YOU, it's ME. read more

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A tour of a chocolate factory for only 5 dollars?! Yes please!! I was visiting Nashville for the day and Olive and Sinclair was one of the places to visit if you're on a tight budget. The building/factory is in a small neighborhood like area. When I came here, it was very quiet and relaxing. The staff are so friendly and they will talk to you about anything. We were early for the tour so we talked to the staff in order to kill time. I apologize if we drove you crazy by not being quiet. The tour lasts about an hour and you actually learn a lot. There is so much detail in order to make their chocolate. A bonus is you get to try free samples. I think I ate my weight in chocolate, but I wasn't complaining. You have to try their white chocolate. I am honestly not a fan on white chocolate in general but they make theirs with buttermilk. It is the best chocolate I've had. The tour is only open on Saturdays and if you do not book your trip online, you may want to call ahead of time to make sure there are spots open. I'm not going to lie, the chocolate is expensive, but that's because it's made right there and is only sold either in the shop or online (I think). Olive and Sinclair is a little gem that makes Nashville so interesting. I will gladly take another tour here and I will drag my friends with me so they can have the same experience as I did. read more

Amazing in every way. Don't miss the bourbon brittle which has a perfect layer of their dark chocolate on top. Caramels with duck fat are 5 Star. They do tours of the factor on Saturday and they will start up again on the 3rd of October. They are happy to give free samples!! Packaging is so cute and plan on buying a tee shirt or hat. read more

What an amazing find. When you step in the front of the store it feels like you're stepping back in time about 60-70 years. The displays, packaging, samples, and swag let you know you've walked into something special that just doesn't happen much anymore. The tour: It lasts about 45 minutes depending on the tour guide and amount of interaction. You'll learn about how they make the goodies from people who love what they do there. The only disappointment was they just talk through the process rather than demonstrating it. The samples: There so delicious, and you should eat them all. Seriously. Eat. Them. All. Personally, I'm not a fan of sweet treats and like good flavors. If you're that way too then this chocolate is for you. The shop: it's been said before but spend $35 & you'll get your tour admission refunded in a discount. Be careful though...the samples will get you. We easily spent $100 on different chocolates. Why 4 starts and not 5? I would've appreciated a demonstration of some of their machines. Truth is it didn't really take anything away from the experience - just a personal preference. read more

I love chocolate in all forms, and my diet is about 30% sweets so I was super pumped to check out a local chocolate shop. It was nice that they had samples of all of their chocolate laid out but unfortunately I didn't like how any of them tasted. I must not get the whole artisan thing because I wanted everything to be way sweeter and less tangy/bitter. The different flavors definitely come through but none of the chocolates blew me away and left a weird aftertaste in my boyfriend's mouth according to him. I'd rather eat a Hershey's bar so if you like standard grocery store chocolate, Olive and Sinclair is not for you. What was good though are the duck fat caramels and the orange/white chocolate/shortbread/cranberry chocuterie. I felt bad sampling everything so I bought the chocuterie but I don't think it's worth $16. read more

Items Tasted: Duck Fat Caramels Sea Salt and Vinegar Caramels Smoked Nib Brittle Bourbon Nib Brittle Mexican-Style Cinnamon Chili Chocolate Bar Sea Salt Chocolate Bar Coffee Chocolate Bar Salt and Pepper Buttermilk White Chocolate Bar Having seen the words Olive and Sinclair, or O+S, on almost every menu in Nashville over the course of more desserts than most would dare to try in just a five day span, it was at the Chocolatiers factory that Saturday afternoon found us and with the admission fee easily reimbursed on items in the giftstore where samples of no less than five chocolates were offered in limitless quantity one would be hard pressed to name a better way to spend an hour, let alone five bucks. Originally a bean-to-bar outfit, but recently making its name with brittles and caramels oft named amongst the nations 'best-of,' Olive and Sinclair is a far smaller operation than their Whole Foods reach would make one guess yet at the same time certainly larger than spots like Dandelion or Tcho, let alone the newly hatched HeXX back home in Nevada. Utilizing old stone grinders, admittedly for show according the owner Scott Witherow, before proper milling, blending, tempering, and more the tour at O+S takes the visitor literally from bean to bar and allowing for tastes of dried cacao, black liquor, and the milkfat white chocolate in their purest forms a sense of passion is clearly perceived, the final station showing off Brittle made of smoked cocoa from nearby purveyors of cured meats. Clearly playing on Southern themes with bars that include everything from buttermilk to bourbon it warrants mention that Olive and Sinclair's chocolates are not the typical flavors one would associate with purity, region, or terroir, yet with flavors that pop and smoothness almost incomparable in the market the decision of which is 'best' largely becomes one of personal preference - the dark sea salt a bit too 'fruity' for my preferences while the cinnamon chili was admittedly a shocker in its subtleties, both brittles pleasant in their slowly evolving flavor profiles beneath bold topnotes while a duo of caramels rivaled the best on this side of the Atlantic, the acidic finish likely not to everyone's taste but lightly reminiscent to that of a Chess Pie and all the better for it in my eyes. read more

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Officially naming this place ILOVE & Sinclair Chocolate. From the minute you walk in the door of this old building you are welcomed with free chocolate smells..and samples!! This southern gem sat nestled in an eclectic area. The building itself is an old store from the 1900s. I entered from the chilly streets and was immediately warmed with the worker's smile from behind the counter. Luckily I had arrived on a Saturday when they do $5 tours. The tours start at the beginning of each hour until 4. The tour was amazing and really made me appreciate the delicacy. Make sure to stop in for a tour if you want some tasty Tennessee treats! read more

Scott has an amazing operation going here. He was very informative and personable. He told us back stories behind the chocolate and it's other products. We will definitely be back next time in Nashville. read more

Totally awesome little chocolate shop in a semi-residential area. $5 will get you a short tour through the back. The chocolate is a little bit on the pricey side but the caramels are worth it by far!! We bought a muzzle loader - super amazing single bite chocolate ball- you've got to try!!! The $3 is worth it! The staff is well knowledged and friendly and the chocolate is good!!!! read more

Olive and Sinclair Chocolate - Chocolatiers & Shops Near Me - Nashville, Tennessee

I was staying in East Nashville a few weeks ago, and was surprised when I learned that there was a chocolate factory right around the corner! I definitely recommend taking the tour, because it is great information and you get to taste the stages of the chocolate along the way. Also, the staff are incredibly welcoming. However, if you plan to buy chocolate, you will probably end up spending a small fortune rather quickly. read more