Sweet Stuff: WEN Closing, Say It With Chocolate

I received the news yesterday: After seven years selling artisanal chocolates and sweets near Riverfront, WEN Chocolates is closing up shop at 4 p.m. on Valentine’s Day. I’m devastated that chef William Poole‘s white-chocolate-dipped gingerbread tiles and handcrafted truffles and sweets will no longer have a storefront. But I take heart in knowing that WEN is only ceasing retail operations.

“The business and the kitchen are not closing,” says Poole. “So [we] will still be able to do amazing things in other ways.”

I look forward to seeing (and tasting) what Poole comes up with next. In the meantime, stop by the shop for some last truffles. Stock up on my favorite, the Pandora, a chewy combination of cinnamon, nutmeg, juniper berries, marzipan, and chocolate, that, as Poole puts it, tastes like a cinnamony Hansel and Gretel forest.

Bonus: Poole and dozens of other professional and amateur chocolatiers will compete in the Say It With Chocolate bash on Monday, February 8, at the Tattered Cover Book Store in LoDo. This annual event, which is open to the public, includes unlimited samplings, live music, and a silent auction that benefits the Third Way Center. Tickets ($20 suggested donation) can be purchased online or at the door. The event runs from 4 to 7 p.m.

Wen Chocolates, 1541 Platte St., 303-477-5765

Tattered Cover Book Store (LoD0), 1628 16th St., 303-436-1070