A Taste of Excellence

A Taste Of Excellence

Chocolate Factory Now Open In Spencer

The truffle-making class was one of the social things to do in Berkeley, California. It was close to home for David and Leslie Senk, so they signed up. After the couple took the class, they were inspired to try their hands at making non-dairy, white chocolate truffles and bought the white chocolate needed to make them.

“The non-dairy, white chocolate we bought was horrendous,” he says. So they decided to make their own. Their own was much better, and with the success, they wondered if they could make their own dark chocolate.

More than 2,400 miles and thousands of chocolate-making hours later, the couple moved their chocolate factory last year to Spencer.

The Senks moved their successful chocolate-making business, Arete Fine Chocolate (pronounced ar-eh-tee’), from Northern California. They also opened The Little Chocolate Shop, a small retail location, to sell some of their products and other tasty treats from local bakers and budding chefs. For now, it’s only open on Saturday mornings. There was a buzz in Spencer when locals learned the California couple had purchased the old Haston Block building downtown for a chocolate factory, expanding the number of small businesses in Spencer. The first question was, “Why Spencer?” Senk says. The next question — when could they get a taste?

“People would ask, ‘When are you going to be open so we can buy some chocolate?’” he says. “After about 500 people walked away with a long face when we told them we make the chocolate and sell it wholesale, we decided to try our hand at a small retail shop, too. We had never done retail, and it evolved quickly.”

WHY SPENCER

The Senks grew up in Michigan and knew each other in high school but went their separate ways. He lived in California and she lived in Florida when they reconnected about 11 years ago. She moved to California in 2008, and they married the next year.

He was a chemical engineer in the printed circuit board industry, and she was a dental assistant. They were looking for a change when they fell in love with the art of fine-chocolate making. Arete, the Greek word for excellence, exemplified their goals. Arete Fine Chocolate opened four years ago in Northern California. “We knew we would one day relocate to be closer to our family, and we were looking for some kind of business we could take with us wherever we went,” he says.

They wanted a central location close to family. With children in Nashville, Knoxville and Kentucky, Spencer was ideal. They wanted to find a building that reminded them of their hometown of Milford, where the businesses often were downstairs and business owners lived on the second floor.

His wife discovered the Haston Block building quite by accident in an online search. “It was listed in the wrong category,” he says. They flew to Tennessee, toured the building and bought it right away.

David Senk, along with his wife Leslie, moved from California to Tennessee in May 2018 to start their premium chocolate-making business, Arete Fine Chocolate, in the historic Haston Block building in downtown Spencer.

The building dates to 1906 and once housed Citizens Bank. They discovered the lower level has been a casket business, general store, diner, restaurant, church, video rental store, cloth shop, thrift shop, real estate office and even the chamber of commerce office.

“We thought we could spend $15,000 to $20,000 on renovations and be ready to move in,” he says. But the expense was significantly more. They replaced the old wooden floors with concrete, and they replaced walls and joists, but they retained as much of the old charm as possible.

“It was practically a new building when we finished,” he says.

The 2,000-square-foot chocolate factory is downstairs, and the Senks live in the 2,000 square feet of upstairs space. “We have a 16-step commute,” he says.

CHOCOLATE MAKERS

With Senk’s chemical engineering background, the couple kept experimenting, and they developed a wonderful dark chocolate.

Next, they went a step further and purchased cocoa beans online to make their own chocolate bars. “We just kept going,” he says. Business was booming when they made the decision to relocate. They packed up the equipment and put manufacturing on hold. Now they are back in full production.

Online sales account for about 10 percent of sales, and wholesale to specialty markets and boutique shops accounts for about 90 percent. The bars sell across the country and recently sold in a few foreign countries.

The dry cocoa beans arrive at Arete in jute bags from several South American and Central American countries, the Caribbean, Fiji, Madagascar, Tanzania, India and Vietnam.

Similar to coffee beans, the highest quality cocoa beans grow in locations between 20 degrees north and south of the equator, Senk says. The resulting chocolate is categorized as fine or heirloom chocolate. Heirloom cocoa accounts for about 3 to 5 percent of the world’s cocoa bean market.

While commodity cocoa beans used by most major nationally known companies sell for $2,200 a metric ton, the heirloom beans sell for about $10,000 a metric ton.

The beans are sorted and then roasted, and the husks are removed. The inside, or nib, is crushed and goes through a refining and conching process for three days to remove the off-flavors. “You want it to melt in your mouth and think it’s a liquid,” he says.

Senk hopes to add factory tours soon as well as baking classes and community events at The Little Chocolate Shop.

“We have a nice selection of what we make,” he says. Riley Scoggins, a 14-year-old budding chef, makes delicious chocolate croissants, bear claws and other popular treats. She works at the shop part time.

“Every week, we post on Facebook what we will have that coming Saturday,” Senk says. “We really wanted to do this for Spencer. For us, it was about becoming part of the community.”

Arete Fine Chocolate and The Little Chocolate Shop are located at 172 College St. The Little Chocolate Shop is open from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturdays. For more information, visit them on Facebook or at www.aretefinechocolate.com.