Meet McCrea's Candies

Posted on November 27, 2017 by Katy Ibsen | 2 Comments

We at VelvetCrate undeniably have a sweet tooth, which is exactly why McCrea’s caramels are in constant rotation in our crates. The handcrafted caramels will melt in your mouth and keep you coming back for more. It’s hard to resist flavors such as Single Malt Scotch, Rosemary Truffle Sea Salt and of course, Classic Vanilla. 

To sweeten these already delicious morsels, we wanted to learn the story behind the artisan candies. The husband/wife duo, Kate and Jason McCrea, created a flavor family all their own after praise from friends and family.

Kate fills us in on how the candies came to be and why they are so special, and don’t forget to add these to you holiday crate!  

Tell us how McCrea’s Candies got its start? McCrea’s began out of job loss. It was the possibility of creating a completely new life that drove us to start our own business. We [Jason and Kate] are both scientists by trade. Double layoffs found us cooking sweet treats and gifts for neighbors, teachers, and family friends. Rave reviews and a nudge from an across-the-street neighbor gave us the courage to transition into the sweet science of making candy full time and start McCrea’s Candies.

What does the average sweet tooth not know about making caramels? Making caramel takes patience, science, and a whole lot of love. It can be challenging to make because of its sensitivity to temperature. The wonderful flavor comes from cooking the sugar, butter, and cream slowly and to the prefect temperature, letting the natural chemical processes bring out the complexity of the candy. 

How do you come up with your very creative flavors (what was the first flavor)? Not everything we try passes the McCrea’s flavor test; only the best tasting flavors make it onto shelves and into gift baskets. We brainstorm flavors as a team. However, in the beginning there was just me, Jason, and our three boys, Gabe, Finn, and Rowan, to taste the caramels. The first five flavors were Classic Vanilla, Black Lava Sea Salt, Ginger Fusion, Deep Roasted Mocha, and Single Malt Scotch. They were so fun to make that we couldn’t stop there! Now we have 15 unexpected and delicious flavors.

Why do caramels make such a good gift? Caramel as a gift is unexpected; it’s something sweet and a little different. And while it’s unexpected, it is also filled with a lot of nostalgia. Once you’ve surprised someone with McCrea’s caramels, it’s sure to become a tradition!

If you could send any VelvetCrate to a favorite person, which one would you send and why? We’d gift the Love Box. We love caramel and adore how the components of this gift box complement each other. Together, they say “You’re special,” and “We’re thinking of you.” For this reason, we’d gift it to our moms who showered us with love and who have been there with us on this extraordinary caramel journey.

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