Cincinnati, OHChocolatiers and Candy Shops

Paul Picton and his wife Marlene began making their own bars after his globetrotting work trips ended, and Maverick was born at Findlay Market as a bean-to-bar maker, with organic cocoa beans first on the label. The Prohibition bar blends dark cocoa with smooth milk chocolate, Kentucky bourbon and bourbon barrel-smoked sea salt, and the 70 percent Belize dark bar is smooth and bright, with notes of cherry and roasted nuts. Order both bars.

Aglamesis Bro's has made candy since 1908, and a third generation of the founding family is in charge. The signature sweets are opera creams and pecandies, sold alongside the homemade ice cream at the Oakley ice cream parlor, with a second shop in Montgomery. Order a box of opera creams and a few pecandies.

This Bellevue candy shop has made sweets since 1939, and founder Robert Schneider's granddaughter, Kelly Schneider Morgan, runs it as the third generation with his recipes and tools. Opera creams are the signature, with homemade ice cream and ice balls besides. Order a box of opera creams.

This Northside chocolate shop keeps an ever-changing variety of colorful hand-painted truffles, and the Honey Bee Truffle is its poster child: a dark chocolate shell around a sticky-sweet honey center, painted as a charming little bee. Order a Honey Bee Truffle and a few of the painted truffles in the case.

This candy shop is built on fresh, quality ingredients, and its turtles move fast: old-fashioned caramel and rich, buttery pecans under a milk or dark chocolate shell, a creamy bite for classic candy fans. Order the turtles in both milk and dark chocolate.