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Chilly January is drawing to a close and that means that Valentine’s Day is just around the corner. Here in Japan, Valentine chocolates are big business, which means shops pull out all the stops to create delicacies as easy on the eyes as they are sweet in your mouth. We’ve picked our favorites for this year, so whether you are buying for your lover or yourself, check out these dainty nibbles!

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Starting at 2,516 yen (about US$21), this series really brings the chocolate. Bite-size, melt-in-your-mouth good raw chocolate truffles are boxed in gorgeous rose-patterned boxes that are themselves made of chocolate. Not only delicious, but eco-friendly!

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A box of eight of these pretty pearls will set you back 2,600 yen (about $22). While they may look like the real deal, these shimmery little drops are actually balls of chocolate in champagne, sea salt caramel, lemon zest and milk flavors. Perfect for the lover who can’t choose between chocolate or jewelry!

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Ganzashi are the ornate, elaborate hair pins you see geisha sporting, and these chocolate recreations are another jewelry-cum-candy option. At just 1,620 yen (about $15), they’re a bargain, and that’s not even counting the cute box designed by popular illustrator Aya Kato.

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Come on, these are chocolates modeled on the solar system! Who wouldn’t love that? Not only are they exquisitely painted, but you can also pretend to be a galaxy destroying alien while eating them. Not bad for 3,240 yen (about $27).

1_000000000674This white chocolate creation is perfect for the Cinderella in your life, but you better hurry because the chocolatier is only making five of them. And bring your wallet because they’re about as much as a real shoe: 5,400 yen (about US$45) each.

Any of these take your fancy, Rocketeers?

Images: 池ノ上ピエール, スーザンロックフェラー, 高島屋オンラインストア, 楽天市場, カカオサンパカ
[ Read in Japanese ]