Cost Plus World Market Gourmet Chocolate Bars

Cost Plus World Market offers a wide variety of exotic products from all over the world. They also have product lines of their own, one of which is a marvelous selection of gourmet chocolates.

With pomegranate, chipotle chilis, sea salt, and several different grades of dark chocolate as well as a milk chocolate bar, Cost Plus has put together a package sure to please any chocolate lover.

The dark chocolate bar with sea salt is one of the most pleasant surprises I've had in a while (after Mo's Bacon Bar from Vosges). Rich, dark chocolate studded with bits of sea salt, it's the perfect bar for that particular salt-and-sweet craving. Best of all, it's considerably less expensive than comparable gourmet chocolate bars. These bars are only available at World Market stores, and cannot be ordered through their website. Highly recommended.

Bath and Body Works Aromatherapy

The Bath and Body Works Aromatherapy line is a great collection of herb-infused products from shampoos to body wash and even candles and the B&BW Wallflowers.

Without the perfumey, artificial-smelling overkill of many of the "regular" body products, the Aromatherapy line offers light, natural scents that can help invigorate, relax, or focus the mind. Some of the scents include Eucalyptus Spearmint, Lemon Cardamon, Orange Ginger and Warm Milk and Honey.

My personal favorite so far is the Orange Ginger, but I haven't tried all of them yet, and many other varieties look tempting. They come in gift sets, too, which would make great Christmas presents.

Metro Mint Mint Water

Metro Mint Mint Water is seriously the best flavored water I've ever had. With just enough mint to invigorate but not overwhelm, MetroMint is a great afternoon pick-me-up or morning palate cleanser.

MetroMint comes in spearmint and peppermint flavors. I prefer the spearmint, because I've always preferred spearmint to peppermint. It has no calories, no carbs, and no sugar--just water with a fresh, clean, mint taste. Its only drawback is that it's not a great choice to drink with meals, but the unique, refreshing flavor more than makes up for that.

Look for MetroMint in healthfood stores or in your grocery's natural food aisles.

Hot Chili and Chocolate from Vosges

In addition to their phenomenal bacon bar, Vosges also makes the Red Fire Exotic Candy Bar. This bar offers a combination of dark chocolate, Ceylon cinnamon, and Mexican ancho and chipotle chilis. Sweet at first bite, then fiery, it's a perfectly balanced combination of flavors.

Vosges also makes an Aztec cocoa with combined cocoa, cinnamon, peppers and vanilla bean.

Starbucks Pumpkin Spice Latte

The Pumpkin Spice Latte has returned to Starbucks. The seasonal drink only appears during the fall, and apparently there are people who wait on tenterhooks for it to arrive. Some of these people are celebrities who hang out on Twitter, and who tweet frantically back and forth to each other about whether the PSL has arrived, and if not, when will it, and why can't they get it early since they're all famous and everything? (This would be Mikey Way and Pete Wentz, if anyone cares.)

Unfortunately, I don't really get the Pumpkin Spice Latte Love. It's not a bad drink, with a nice balance of nutmeg and ginger, but it doesn't do much for me. It's too sweet, for starters, and for enders, it's too expensive, especially with the recent price hikes at Starbucks. If I'm going to toss out over four dollars for a Venti, I'll stick with my Venti Caramel Macchiato.

Bacon Chocolate Bars from Vosges

Vosges Haute Chocolate makes some of the most intriguing chocolate combinations out there. But one of the most intriguing is Mo's Bacon Bar. Sweet, applewood bacon, sea salt, and deep milk chocolate all combined in a single bar. (The bar also comes in dark chocolate.)

I was skeptical that bacon in a chocolate bar would be anything but, well, weird. Maybe even kind of gross. But one bite of this bar changed my mind. It's the perfect balance of salt and sweet, and the bacon and chocolate flavors are perfectly balanced. Vosges is a great place to go to try something aside from regular, humdrum chocolate, and Mo's Bacon Bar is a great place to start on your new chocolate adventure.

Dr. Bronner's Castile Soap

Dr. Bronner's Castile Soap is all natural, olive-oil based soap infused with natural oils. It's invigorating, a joy to use, and is safe for even sensitive skin. Dr. Bronner's also makes bar soaps and a variety of other skin care products as well as the liquid soaps

I've never tried anything other than the peppermint liquid soap, but this soap is a great way to wake up in the morning. It clears out the bleariness and can even help clear the sinuses if you tend to wake up a little congested. Unlike artificially scented bath gels and body washes, Dr. Bronner's provides a natural scent that won't disturb your allergies, and that will get you started off on the right foot every morning.