Jennifer Dean stopped by Grapevine’s Chocolate Hangover two years ago to buy some of its well-known alcoholic chocolates after she received them as a gift. Instead of walking out with a box, she bought the business from the previous owners, who were looking to retire.

“This is what the universe said I was going to do,” Dean said.

Chocolate Hangover specializes in Texas-made chocolate bars, fudge and truffles. Dean makes the fudge and the truffles. She also sells chocolate moonshine truffle bars and alcohol-infused chocolates from a chocolatier in Fredericksburg. Other products include alcohol popsicles, which are also made in-house.

“You see my little in-store video. ... [The store name] plays off the theme of bootlegging and rum running,” Dean said. “People are drawn to it for the fun aspect of it, and you’ll see some alcohol-related flavors in our fudge and our truffles.”

One aspect that makes Chocolate Hangover’s sweets unique is their nutritional value. According to Dean, the store’s fudge has 30% less sugar than average fudge and is made without eggs or wheat. The truffle bars are also gluten-free, except for the alcohol-flavored ones, and have just 100 calories per bar, she said.

“[Our fudge is as] smooth as butter,” Dean said. “I’ve had people from all over the world in the store, which is really cool. There’s a lot of people that are definitely chocolate connoisseurs and fudge connoisseurs, specifically. They have [ours] and say it’s the best [they’ve] ever had.”

Each year, the store carries anywhere from 70 to 80 different flavors of fudge and between 35 and 50 truffle flavors, Dean said. Every truffle is hand-painted using French cocoa butter, she said.

“The Texas-shaped truffles are unique to us,” Dean said. “They are gaining traction, and people are recognizing them all over the place. I have a lot of businesses that are starting to buy them as gifts for clients.”

Two years into the chocolate business, Dean said hopes she can expand the store and offer more communal space for her clients. Although she has had requests to open locations in other cities and other parts of the state, Dean said she wants to remain in Grapevine.

“What makes it rewarding for me is when people come back and bring their friends or family over and over and over again. ... That’s what keeps me going,” she said.

Chocolate Hangover

520 S. Main St., Ste. 207, Grapevine

817-527-6499

wwww.chocolatehangover.com

Hours: Sun.-Mon. noon-4 p.m.; Tue.-Wed. noon-5 p.m.; Thu. noon-6 p.m.; Fri.-Sat. noon-7 p.m.