Jason Adams, owner of Drew's Quality Chocolates in Dexter, Iowa. Photo by Becky Carlyle. Copyright Dallas County News.
By Becky Carlyle, Dallas County News
Valentine’s Day is almost here and area businesses are gearing up. Sweet treats are one of the many options for Valentine’s Day gifts.
Drew’s Quality Chocolates, which started in New Hampshire, has a history that goes back to the early 1900s.
Lloyd Drew and his wife Helen received a black walnut fudge recipe from a cousin back in New Hampshire. They decided to set up their candy store out of their home in Dexter, Iowa off of former Highway 6. Mrs. Drew put a sign outside their little white house, noting they were now a candy shop.
During the Christmas of 1926, the Drew family decided to make one thing, that black walnut fudge. Many motorists and truckers stopped at the candy store and their candy making efforts proved to be a success. In 1927, a hole was dug off of their house to make a basement candy shop. This is where Drew’s Quality Chocolates remains today.
Jason Adams, the current owner of the candy store, is a seventh-generation owner. Lloyd Drew was a second cousin to Adams.
Drew’s Quality Chocolates said they are the only company in the U.S. that still uses the chocolate making technique called fork-dipping. Smaller companies use a hand-dipping technique and large companies use an enrober chocolate making machine. The reason why Drew’s Quality Chocolates sticks with fork-dipping, is because it allows them to dip many different chocolates in one day.
Visit Drew's Quality Choclates Facebook page for gift ideas for your special Valentine! Drew's For Your Valentine!
To purchase Fourth Wall Films' Emmy-nominated River to River: Iowa's Forgotten Highway 6 or other award-winning documentaries on DVD, click HERE!
You can also get the River to River: Iowa's Forgotten Highway 6 DVD at the Wilton Candy Kitchen in Wilton, Iowa right on Historic Route 6!
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