Learn about our family and the heart that goes into each of our handmade confections.
Our Chocolate
Eschewing trendiness in favor of incredible flavor, Dorinda’s award-winning chocolates are all-natural, hand-made creations. You can trust that we make our products with high-end ingredients of the best possible quality. That means you'll bite into indulgence—ethically, every time.
Our Family & Legacy
Family is at the foundation of everything we do at Dorinda’s Chocolates. Be it the beautiful cabinetry that frames our chocolates in store, the visual presentation of our brand, or our range of confectionary creations—all that we do is made by the Vance family.
Dorinda Vance, also known as “the Duchess of Chocolate,” is the founder and CEO of Dorinda’s Chocolates. She brings with her a lifelong love of chocolate, which she began hand-crafting herself in the form of chocolate-dipped cherries when she was twelve. After developing her talent as a chocolatier in formal settings (like the L’Ecole Chocolat and the Berry Callebaut factory), Dorinda founded Dorinda’s Chocolates as a way to share something she loved with the world, and create a legacy her family could carry forward for decades to come.
Dustin Vance, the Vice President and COO, is one of Dorinda’s sons and one of the spirited personalities behind the brand. Like Dorinda, Dustin’s love for chocolate runs deep —and since joining the family business he has come to play a critical role in developing Dorinda’s range of tasty creations; in hiring and developing the Dorinda’s Chocolate staff; and in planning the future of Dorinda’s Chocolates, which he hopes to share with a wider market. His goal is to one day lead the operation so that his parents can retire and enjoy the rewards that came from their hard work.
Dillon Vance, a retired Marine, is yet another of Dorinda’s sons—with the same entrepreneurial and creative spirit that seems to run in the family. The founder of Rolled Mountain Creamery and supplier of a unique Thai-Style rolled ice-cream, Dillon adds a new dimension to Dorinda’s legacy by incorporating the family chocolate into a cool, tasty venture of his own. Rolled Mountain Creamery is the only one of its kind in the region, and can be found at both Dorinda’s Riverside Drive and in South Reno, Nevada locations.
The family business extends beyond these three masterminds, and it’s not hard to find any of Dorinda’s relatives adding something special to the business. Beyond that, we consider our team to be a part of our family and vision, and deeply appreciate the enthusiasm, loyalty and love for sweets we share with them.
Our Dream
It all started as an idea. Dorinda thought to hand-make chocolate dipped cherries at the age of twelve and returned to the idea with her sons later in life, first debuting her now famous salted caramel chocolate delights at a trade show where she was surrounded by a who’s who of top chocolatiers and taking home an award for “best, most original flavor”. This dream quickly evolved into a thriving business with an unconventional rise to prominence.
Founded in 2009, after Dorinda had homeschooled all four of her sons up until high school, Dorinda’s Chocolates made its official mark in Truckee, California before expanding into other markets, including Reno, Nevada and North Lake Tahoe.
Really, it was when Dorinda’s chocolates were awarded “best and most original flavor” at her first trade show—surrounded by major chocolate companies with big product ranges and even bigger budgets—that we knew we were onto something.
A gradually expanding selection of hand-made chocolate creations can also be found in stores throughout Reno including Sierra Street Kitchen and Cocktails, Fine Vines Cheese and Wines, Nakoma Golf Resort and Whitney Peak Hotel. Dorinda’s Chocolates also offers quick domestic shipping options for those who want to taste our confections at a distance.
As Dorinda’s Chocolates grows, we plan to enter more markets and to develop our wholesale offerings so that fans of Dorinda’s Chocolates will be able to taste the quality, care and connection packed into every bite anywhere.