Thorncrest Farm

Goshen, CT

45 acres

25 milking cows

A different kind of chocolate milk

Farmer-chocolatier Kimberly Thorn crafts her Milkhouse Chocolates by meticulously matching the milk of each cows with all-natural flavorings like farm-grown mint or raspberries. The “buttery, honey, creamy caramel” milk of Daydream, for example, is featured in a line of caramels. Viola, explains Kimberly, “is my dark chocolate cow,”whose milk has a natural acidity that stands up to flavors like roasted espresso. And confections are not the only creative endeavor on the farm: Clint and son Lyndon also run their own furniture and sculpture business, while the couple’s other son, Garrett, focuses on the farm.

The family built their own barn.

Milkhouse Chocolates are only sold direct from the farm.

Delicious inspiration

The idea for farm-fresh chocolates came to Kimberly when she was working on a horse farm in Ireland and noticed an older gentleman regularly cycling by with milk totes headed to a small café and confectionary. When her then-boyfriend, Clint, came to visit, the two resolved to combine farming and food production, which they’ve done successfully for almost 30 years.

Sweet job perks

Although their mom suspects that the chocolates might have something to do with it, the Thorns are very thankful that their sons have stuck around. “I’m really thrilled that the younger generation sees the value in farming and caring for the cows,” says Kimberly. “It is a wonderful, beautiful, satisfying thing to do, a very honorable way to spend a life.”