Katrina Markoff, founder of Vosges, is in tune with the times. Perhaps best among her peers, Katrina has learned the lesson taught by Howard Schultz and Starbucks: She’s not just selling chocolate, she’s selling lifestyle—chocolate as a fashion accessory. You go into a Vosges boutique and you get a lesson in flavor as well as the option to buy apparel, handbags, and videos. Oh, and chocolate, too.

There is a danger in this, especially if the chocolate does not live up to the expectations that are set. Virtually without exception, the chocolate challenges most people’s conceptions of what flavors chocolate can be paired with; sadly, the execution is not always up to the idea.