A Chocolate Maker’s Gelato Creation Journey

Why We Do It 

Inspired by Dandelion Chocolate's brownie flights, we wanted to use frozen treats to help people discover the diverse flavor profiles of fine cacaos from different regions. Thus, in 2020, we began crafting single-origin chocolate gelatos in Shanghai. To our delight, they quickly gained popularity, with many people expressing that the distinct cacao flavors were easier to appreciate in gelato form than in chocolate bars. This product became an excellent tool for educating consumers about single-origin cacao.



However, making gelatos in Austin wasn’t initially part of our plan. Navigating the challenges of establishing KESSHŌ, our chocolate brand, in Austin has been a journey shaped by the city’s intense heat. Drawn by Austin’s sunny days, vibrant energy, and burgeoning food scene, we relocated, fully aware of the heat yet unprepared for the sweltering summer of 2023. Our inaugural chocolate-making season in Austin’s kitchen was a hot reality we had to contend with!

Fortunately, our background in bakery and gelato-making armed us with the knowledge and skills to innovate. We transformed our melted chocolate into single-origin chocolate gelatos, incorporating other Asian flavors into frozen delights like black sesame and ube gelato.

How We Do It

We hand-select the ingredients that go into our gelato. We visited Mill King, a small dairy manufacturer outside Waco, TX, to see firsthand how they treat their cows, just as we strive to understand the origins and fermentation processes of our cacao.

We infuse our gelato with nostalgic flavors. Black sesame, boba tea, lychee rose, and hojicha echo the tastes of our award-winning chocolate bars. We go beyond traditional flavors by adding tapioca pearls into our boba tea gelato and black sesame chocolate chunk cookies into our black sesame gelato, or building a gelato sandwich using dark chocolate chunk cookies and milk chocolate gelato scoops.

We keep it small batch. Just as we small-batch our chocolate to ensure freshness, we do the same with our gelatos.