Easter may be be this weekend, but there's still time to snag yourself or a loved one a luxurious Irish-made chocolate egg.
Not content to dominate the foodie world when it comes to drinks, cheeses and more, Ireland has proven itself to be a serious contender when it comes to chocolate, with numerous ambitious chocolatiers making our days even sweeter.
Here, we've rounded up the best Irish-made Easter eggs still available - but be quick! They're hopping off shelves faster than you can say "hot cross bun".
Grá Chocolates
If you need your Easter egg to be as beautiful as it is delicious, look no further. Founded in 2020 by Gráinne Mullins - who cut her teeth in a Michelin-starred restaurant in Aix-en-Provence - Grá Chocolates has built a reputation for melding luxurious homegrown ingredients with striking design. Each confection is handpainted and handmade in Galway.
Their Easter egg offering features five flavours: the Lil Bit Salty, the Mint to Be, the Nuts about You, the Bee My Honey and the Ex-STRAW-dinary eggs. Each one is filled with a mouthwatering surprise, from minty aerated chocolate and marshmallow, to chunks of honeycomb. €49 each.
Also on offer is the Cracking White Egg, filled with passion fruit truffles (€25, or their selection of Posh Mini Eggs (€20-€35).
Bon Chocolatiers
Bon Easter Eggs are now live! Each of these luxurious triple layered chocolate eggs have a surprise centre and comes with delicious handrolled truffleshttps://t.co/ooUobOrsbF pic.twitter.com/zXbMyi8TUN
— Bon Chocolatiers (@bonchocolatiers) February 25, 2023
Headed up by two classically trained chefs - Georgia and Daniel - Bon Chocolatiers is another producer leading the charge when it comes to standout eggs.
You'll be spoiled for choice with these indulgent eggs, which include a Sweet & Salty offering (€43), a Pretzel egg (€43), and a luxurious gold-covered Ferrero Rocher egg (€50). You can also sample a range of flavours by buying their marshmallow or nutty caramel-flavoured mini filled eggs (€11), or the golden crunch or nutty whip tiny eggs (€16.50).
Wilde Irish Chocolates
Tired of the usual chocolate Easter egg? Wilde Irish Chocolates in Co Clare have one of the most expansive Easter offerings you'll come across this year.Founded in 1997, their chocolates are in a resolutely "experimental" way, while keeping everything handmade.
Among their products are stuffed solid white, dark and milk chocolate eggs filled with praline or salted caramel fudge (€15.95), a milk chocolate truffle egg (€13.95) and colourful dotted cracked eggs (€7.95).
Bean and Goose
Headed up by sisters Karen and Natalie Keane from their factory in Gorey, Co Wexford, Bean and Goose are a go-to for chocolate lovers with a more elevated palate. Their chocolate slabs studded with toppings and laced with complex flavours are a perennial hit, but their Easter offering pares it back to the chocolate itself.
Opt for their classic milk or dark chocolate hares or geese (€25.50), or nab one of the tempting hot cross bun Easter sharing slabs, a collaboration with Wildflower Bakery (€38.50). For something really unusual, go for the smokey milk chocolate and sumac caramel goose egg (€22.50).
Chez Emily
Founded by couple Ferdinand and Helena - who met in 1983 in Belgium, spoke via letters for a year and moved to Ireland in 1996 - Chez Emily is a producer with sweetness right through it. The team place keen focus on ingredients, sourcing the best for their family recipes.
Their Easter collection includes a joyous stuffed Rocky Road half-egg (€18.50), chocolate lollipops (€5), a candy-covered Sweetie Egg (€13.25)and a decadent gold-dusted dark chocolate cacao nib egg (€13.25), among others.
Hazel Mountain Chocolates
Located in the breathtaking Burren, Hazel Mountain Chocolates apply a typically earthy approach to their chocolate, creating relationships with cocoa bean farmers and inviting visitors into the factory for tours.
Their adorable Easter range features almost-too-cute-to-eat chocolate carrots filled with a crunchy hanzelnut caramel (€12.95) and a duo of chocolate hens (€9.95), Henrietta and Henrik, though he's already sold out. You can also opt for a multicoloured speckled milk chocolate egg (€26.95), salted caramel Easter bunnies (€16.95) and solid chocolate bunny bites (€4.50).
The Chocolate Garden of Ireland
Founded in 2001 by Jim and Mary Healy, this family business draws its inspiration from the natural beauty of its surroundings, on the Carlow-Wicklow border.
If you're looking to feed a bundle of bunnies, the hampers are chock-full of sweet treats (€39.50-€45.50), or opt for the massive 1kg milk chocolate Easter egg basket (€56). You can also choose from their Milk Chocolate Homeycomb Egg (€17.50), their Dark Mint Crisp egg (€17.50), their Caramel Gold Chocolate egg (€22.50), and lots more.
NearyNógs
#chocolate Easter eggs, with a layer of sea salted caramel pic.twitter.com/Hn8eJZU222
— #Chocolate NearyNógs (@NearyNogsChocs) March 9, 2024
Founded in 2011 in Co Down as Northern Ireland's first bean-to-bar chocolate producer, NearyNógs have built a reputation for making delicious and decadent chocolates using fresh ingredients.
Their Easter collection has dwindled fast in the lead up to the weekend, but if you're fast you can still grab their charming floral chocolate egg, made using 60% Ecuador and Hacienda Limon cacao and giving notes of caramel, cream, toffee and sweet fruit (€15.95). You can also pick up a trio of their Somm bunny loves me chocolates: three chocolate bunnies filled with vegan sea salted caramel (€7.95).
Lorge Chocolatier
Created and run by Benoit Lorge, Lorge Chocolatiers runs the gamut when it comes to confectionery, creating everything from truffles and bars, to spreads and marshamallows. It's fast becoming a leader in Irish chocolate, as the team offer courses throughout the year.
Choose from their hollow eggs in dark, milk or white chocolate (€10.65-€24.95), or their luscious filled eggs, stuffed with their equally rich handmade chocolates (€14.20-€44.70), all of which come in a range of sizes and price points.
Lir
An Irish institution, this Navan-based chocolatier was founded in 1987 by Connie Doody and Mary White on Connie's kitchen table and has gone on to be a leader in Irish chocolates.
This year's Easter offering takes its inspiration from Ireland's iconic beverage industry, with collaborations with Guinness and Baileys sure to sweeten your weekend. Eggs cost €14 and come with mini truffles in the same flavour.
Koko Kinsale
Pivoting from running one of Ireland's foremost ceramics gallery to creating chocolates sounds like something from a rom-com, but for Frank Keane of Kinsale, Co Cork, it's exactly what he did. Koko Kinsale followed in the footsteps of Keane on Ceramics by becoming a fixture of the town, turning out edible - but no less breathtaking - works of art.
The locally made chocolates pull from the Irish larder as much as possible, using honey, seaweed and more as flavourings. Their handpainted Easter eggs - in shades of blue, red, green and more - cost €28 and come in milk, white, and dark chocolate varieties. You can also grab their dark chocolate and orange zest egg (€35) or their milk chocolate bunny (€17).
Skelligs
Located amid the natural beauty of the Wild Atlantic Way, it's no surprise that Skelligs look to the natural world for inspiration when it comes to their products.
Their classic and pared back eggs showcase rich flavours. Choose from classic milk and dark chocolate, Mint Shard, Orange Shard, Honeycomb, Marshmallow Cluster and more.
