Sweet Earth Organic Chocolates recently held the Grand Opening of its second retail shop on July 2 in downtown San Luis Obispo, 950 Chorro St., next to Trio Boutique.

The shop carries an assortment of Sweet Earth Organic Chocolates' award-winning organic, fair-trade chocolates as well as chocolate memorabilia, art and cocoa-butter-based body-care products. The original shop, four doors down from Splash Café Artisan Bakery, will continue to serve the full array of Sweet Earth’s offerings, hot and cold chocolate drinks, and frozen treats. Visit the original location at at 1445 Monterey St.

Chocophiles of every taste will find something to love in Sweet Earth’s broad range of delicacies — from the deepest of rich, aromatic dark chocolates paired with complex and exotic flavors (try the cinnamon ancho Aztec Caramel Nugget or the Chili Orange Walnut bark), to a playful array of chocolates on sticks. New items also include a line of vegan caramel nuggets, the perfect treat to nibble on while watching a movie at the Palm Theatre.

Visitors enter the new shop through a charming Dutch door. Inside, beautifully displayed chocolate is offset by bright hand-painted furniture and an eclectic assortment of books, china, tins and tools, all related to chocolate. Lee Lawson’s paintings add color and serenity to the setting.

Profits from sales directly benefit cacao farmers in Ghana and Cote D’Ivoire through Project Hope and Fairness; and Sweet Earth Chocolates are made from carefully selected beans grown in Fair Trade certified co-ops in Peru and Dominican Republic and are certified organic by CCOF. Sweet Earth is a local, artisan business and its chocolates will continue to be produced by hand on the second floor of Splash Café. Tours are available; call (805) 782-9868 for reservations.

Tom Neuhaus, chocolatier and founder, learned his craft in Switzerland and from Jacques Torres at Cornell’s Hotel School. A professor in the Food Science and Nutrition Department at Cal Poly, Neuhaus also runs the student enterprise project, Cal Poly Chocolates. He travels to Africa regularly to work directly with the people of the cacoa-growing villages Project Hope and Fairness sponsors.

More information can be found at www.sweetearthchocolates.com.