Valentine’s Day Gift Guide: The Best Boxed Bonbons

Chances are, you’ve probably been calling bonbons “truffles” all your life. While traditional truffles are filled with ganache and rolled in cocoa powder, bonbons are chocolates filled with all of the delicious things: caramel, fruit purées and so on. With bonbons you never know what you’re going to get, and that’s part of the fun.

Bonbons are a classic choice for Valentine’s Day gifting, but they don’t have to be boring or basic. They come in many different flavors, shapes and colors, with some that are almost too pretty to eat. For your gifting needs, I’ve rounded up some notable options from chocolatiers around the country.

Kokak Chocolates Harana Serenade Valentines Collection

Named after a Filipino tradition of serenading a love interest outside their window, this box of chocolates is sure to woo your Valentine. The San Francisco chocolate shop specializes in small-batch chocolates, with bonbons like these topped with delicate designs and bursting with flavor. In the box, you’ll find mango passion fruit, cafe bombon and vanilla bean sea salt caramel bonbons. 

Buy: Kokak Chocolates Harana Serenade Valentines Collection, $44.95-$98.95

Vosges Haut-Chocolat The Eternal Love Chocolate Collection

Inspired by Ancient Egypt, this heart-shaped chocolate box is filled with bonbons in unique flavors. These include Anubis (olive oil, sweet almond, 62% dark chocolate, spirulina), Cleopatra (fig honey caramel, Ceylon cinnamon, 62% dark chocolate, white poppy seeds, blue spirulina) and Osiris (Macedonian red wine, black raspberry, 72% dark chocolate). Playing “Eternal Flame” while you eat them is optional, but I wouldn’t be able to resist.

Buy: Vosges Haut-Chocolat The Eternal Love Chocolate Collection, $75

Lakrids by Bülow Love Selection Gift Box

I’ll be the first to say that I’m not a licorice person, but I do enjoy Lakrids by Bülow’s chocolate coated licorice balls. Their mission is to make the world love licorice, and they’ve made a believer out of me. This gift box is filled with six flavors of their chocolate licorice balls, from fruity and fresh to sweet and salty to caramel.

Buy: Lakrids by Bülow Love Selection Gift Box, $35

Jean-Marie Auboine Chocolatier 40-Piece Valentine Signature Collection

Go big with this massive box of bonbons from an award-winning chocolatier based in Las Vegas. Inside, you’ll find signature milk, dark and white artisan chocolates between rows of heart-shaped bonbons. It includes five pieces of their award-winning double sea salted caramel, and the heart-shaped bonbons have flavors like chocolate covered strawberry, peanut butter cup and passion fruit.

Buy: Jean-Marie Auboine Chocolatier 40-Piece Valentine Signature Collection, $124

Vesta Chocolate Valentine’s LOVE Jewel Bonbons

A chocolate maker and chocolatier all in one, Vesta is unique in that they actually make the chocolate they use — from bean to bar — for their handmade confections. This lovely set of bonbons with soft, romantic hues includes six limited edition flavors: strawberries and cream, passion fruit, lavender, raspberry, coconut and Earl Grey.

Buy: Vesta Chocolate Valentine’s LOVE Jewel Bonbons, $25-$45

ISOSCELES + JUSTIN Chocolates Valentine’s Gift Set

Chocolate and wine are a classic combination, and the experts at JUSTIN Vineyards & Winery have created the perfect pairing to enjoy this Valentine’s Day. The gift set includes a bottle of ISOSCELES, JUSTIN’s flagship Bordeaux style blend, and a five-piece chocolate box made in-house at The Restaurant at JUSTIN in Paso Robles. The flavors are passion fruit, strawberry and basil, sea salt caramel, Cabernet dark chocolate and hazelnut praline.

Buy: ISOSCELES + JUSTIN Chocolates Valentine’s Gift Set, $95

Kreuther Handcrafted Chocolate Tropical Bonbon Collection

Whisk your Valentine away to a tropical island without leaving your house with this beautiful box of chocolates. The colorful macaron shaped bonbons have fruit forward flavors like mojito, kiwi lemongrass and 10-flavor yogurt. Kreuther Handcrafted Chocolate is led by two accomplished chefs, Gabriel Kreuther and Marc Aumont, so you can expect luxurious and complex flavors.

Buy: Kreuther Handcrafted Chocolate Tropical Bonbon Collection, $40

André’s Confiserie Suisse KC Whiskey Caramel Drops

Made in collaboration with J. Rieger & Co., a multi-generational, family-owned distiller based in Kansas City (just like André’s), these bonbons can be enjoyed on their own or dropped into a hot beverage for added flavor. It has a Swiss milk chocolate shell and is filled with whiskey infused caramel. If your Valentine is a rye fan, they also make a limited edition rye whiskey version.

Buy: André’s Confiserie Suisse KC Whiskey Caramel Drops, $6-$12

Éclat Chocolate 16-Piece Heart Collection

Hawaiian rose tea, elderflower caramel, strawberry and mint, orange and smoked cinnamon, and blueberry and lavender bonbons make up this sweet collection. The heart shapes and pastel colors bring home the theme, and the beautiful box requires no additional wrapping. Éclat Chocolate is another chef-curated brand, with certified master chef and chocolatier Christopher Curtin at the helm.

Buy: Éclat Chocolate 16-Piece Heart Collection, $47.50

Christopher Elbow Chocolates Valentine’s Day Assorted Chocolates Heart-Shaped Box

Don’t be fooled by the classic look of this heart-shaped box with a red ribbon — this assortment of bonbons is anything but basic. It’s filled with 24 gourmet bonbons in various colors, shapes and flavors. This is the largest heart-shaped box of chocolates ever made by the brand, and there’s a flavor guide inside to help you choose which one to eat first.

Buy: Christopher Elbow Chocolates Valentine’s Day Assorted Chocolates Heart-Shaped Box, $65.95