Denver chocolate shop celebrates Beyoncé album drop with “Cowboy Carter” confections

Beyoncé fans are celebrating the release of her latest album, “Cowboy Carter,” in a myriad of ways, from fashion statements to TikTok dances. Denverites looking for a unique way to indulge in the action can boot-scoot to a local chocolatier selling sweets to satisfy the Beyhive.

Temper Chocolates and Confections (2669 Larimer St., Denver) recently debuted a series of bonbons inspired by and fit for the queen. The company is selling them in boxes of four Beyoncé-esque flavors, including Texas Hold ‘Em featuring a Paloma fondant with lime salt in a dark chocolate shell.

The others are Queen Bey, a honey- and lavender-infused dark chocolate ganache in a dark chocolate shell; Crazy in Love with white chocolate-hibiscus lemonade filling in a white chocolate shell; and Single Ladies, featuring a strawberries-and-cream white chocolate ganache in a milk chocolate shell.

How does one go about infusing the essence of Beyoncé into a confection?

“Inspiration is kind of like a chicken and the egg situation. Sometimes the team comes up with a flavor and asks ‘What name would work for this?’ or vice versa, we have a name we want and choose the flavor based on that,” Victoria Johnson, Temper’s lead chocolatier, said in a statement.

The Queen Bey, for example, was originally called the Bee’s Knees chocolate, but the team wanted it to be relevant to pop culture. Texas Hold ‘Em was the opposite – the name came first and then Johnson researched Texas cocktails and food to decide which flavors to feature.

This isn’t the first time Temper Chocolates and Confections has made music-inspired bonbons since opening in 2016. It previously sold sweets honoring The Beatles’ John Lennon and R&B singer Frank Ocean, and rotates them back into the store’s lineup occasionally.