Manassas' Chocolaterie Wanders Rich in Family Tradition

Two steps into the front office of Chocolaterie Wanders in Manassas and one is immediately enveloped by the warm and fragrant aroma of melted chocolate.

While perfectly symmetrical lined sheets of chocolates cool in the back, owner Melanie Wanders stands at a table in the front of the building and delicately places individual chocolates into a brown box.

Melanie’s husband Wilhelm Wanders, co-owner of Chocolaterie Wanders, sets up a banner with the company name and various sketches.  Melanie points to the first sketch on the long banner and says it is a rendering of the Wanders family land in Elten, Germany.

“The sketch was done by a student of Rembrandt and the original hangs in the Louvre in Paris,” said Melanie.

Though the sketch reveals a fairly uninhabited landscape with a small stable, Melanie mentions that in the stable’s place there now stands a hotel that was built by the Wanders family shortly before they started to perfect the craft of creating artisan chocolates.

The hotel is still family owned and is now run by Wilhelm’s uncle, the eighth-generation owner.

Listening to Melanie tell stories of her husband’s family as she ties a perfect red bow on a large box of chocolate, one understands that this is no ordinary chocolate factory where chocolates are produced on a line and placed into boxes by machinery.

To Melanie and Wilhelm, this isn’t simply a family business—it is a family tradition. 

Since 1726 the Wanders Family has produced world-class chocolates, pastries and savories. The focus on culinary craft manship began in 1726 in Elten, Germany. In 1798 ancestor Wilhelm Wanders began making pastries and other confections in what is today known as Hotel Restaurant Wanders.

Today, Melanie and Wilhelm continue the Wanders tradition in their shared passion of culinary treasures.

Melanie Wanders received her culinary arts and management degrees from the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, N.Y.  She interned at Alice Water’s famed Chez Panisse in Berkeley, Calif., before taking over ganache production at L.A. Burdick Chocolates in Walpole, N.H., where she met Wilhelm.

Growing up the son of a master pastry chef, Wilhelm worked in his family's pastry shop in Kleve, Germany. After completing his apprenticeship, Wilhelm gained the title of certified master pastry chef and continued his career by eventually moving to America.  After meeting Melanie, the two returned to Kleve, where they continued to work in the chocaltier and pastry business.  It was in Kleve that the two were married in a very "sweet" ceremony.

The couple relocated to America and in 2006 established Chocolaterie Wanders in Manassas. “We were coming back from Germany and looking for a place to settle.  We loved the history of the D.C. area and that’s what brought us here,” said Melanie.

 Today, Melanie and Wilhelm’s business is thriving.  The couple sells their chocolates wholesale to a variety of stores and vineyards.   Their creations are popular at weddings and corporate events nationwide.  The Wanders also operate an online store where customers can shop and view all their products at any time, day or night. 

Shipping is never a problem for the Chocolaterie; in the past year they’ve shipped their products to Japan, Canada and across Europe. 

“We have a fast turnaround.  We can usually get most packages out the same or next day that they’re ordered,” said Melanie.

But good luck to the individual who tries to order just a small sampling of chocolates-their selection is impressive and mouth-watering. 

From the hometown favorites: Salted Peanut Pave and the very popular Cheery Blossom, a house made cherry marzipan set atop a dark chocolate ganache studded with kirsch-soaked dried cherries, enveloped in dark chocolate and garnished with a crystallized flower, to the unique and decadent, like ‘Earl Grey,’ a dark chocolate ganache infused with earl grey tea and bergamot oil, complemented with local wild flower honey, garnished with lavender blossoms - Wanders Chocolaterie guarantees a chocolate that will seduce even the most discriminating palates.

But perhaps what makes the Wanders Chocolaterie so special is the creative process: each chocolate is made entirely by hand.

“Everything is mixed and cut and shaped and piped by hand.  Even packed by hand,” said Melanie.

Chocolaterie Wanders also draws inspiration heavily from the community by using as many locally grown products as possible.

“We really try and use as many local products are we can.  We go to local famers markets in the summer so we can get the berries to put in our forest berries confection.  We use local butter and local cream.  We use local lavender that we get from a farm in Catlett.”

The Wanders also cater their menu to each season.  For Valentine’s Day, they have created pistachio short bread cookies enrobed in chocolate to compliment another seasonal treat, a rich and dense truffle cake.

“In the spring we’ll have a fresh ginger chocolate and a rhubarb caramel,’ said Melanie. 

No matter the season, however, one is certain to discover an impressive treat. Since everything is made entirely by hand, one gets the sense that the recipe has not changed since the very first chocolates were crafted in the seventeen hundreds. Melanie and Wilhelm invite chocolate lovers to see for themselves and savor a piece of the Old World. 

One might never want to come back.

For more information on Melanie and Wilhelm Wanders and to shop online, please visit their website: http://www.chocolateriewanders.com.