Fifteen years ago, Angelica Duarte was awed by the arrays of hand-made chocolates, each one perfectly shaped and colored, reflecting dedicated passion and hours of meticulous work.

Those chocolates were made by Marc Dumas, a French pastry chef and chocolatier at Plumed Horse, an upscale restaurant in downtown Saratoga. Duarte was then a server at Plumed Horse. She was fascinated by Dumas’s craft and decided to ask him to teach her the process.

To her dismay, the master chocolate maker declined, insisting that teaching the process to someone is too difficult.

Duarte, undeterred, turned to books and the internet, learning and experimenting with chocolate making in her spare time and developing her speciality: colorful designs. Eventually her passion was enough to eventually persuade Dumas, who now lives in France, to guide and critique her work.

“I’ve been creative since I was a child, and I knew I could do it,” she said. “It was just a matter of figuring out how.”

In January 2016, Josh Weeks, Duarte’s friend and the owner of Plumed Horse, informed her of a vacant store, previously Saratoga Chocolates. He suggested they team up to open a chocolate shop.

With the opportunity to pursue her small-scale passion and turn it into something much bigger, Duarte accepted the offer and today, the Plumed Horse Chocolaterie is located right across the street from the Plumed Horse.

Every day, Duarte makes 380 chocolates, 200 for her shop, which is in a partnership with Plumed Horse, and 180 for the dessert menu of Plumed Horse. She displays 20 varieties of chocolates daily $5 a piece, and her most popular flavor, salted caramel, often runs out by the end of the day.

“[Dumas] would be so proud of me,” she said. “Chocolate making is an art and a science. It is difficult to do.”

Since its opening in early October, the store has attracted numerous locals and visiting passersby, who are lured in by the chocolates’ intricate designs and rich colors.

“Everything is unique about them,” said Cathy Del Masso, who had purchased chocolates in November. “The way they look — they’re art, and they taste like heaven.”

Duarte said that customer feedback has been positive and many have become regulars.

She  attributes the success to her love for her art, which she showcases through her original recipes and unique patterns, such as swirls and colored strokes.

“I just wanted to do it over and over,” Duarte  said. “It’s like an Olympic athlete, over and over.”

Choosing only the freshest ingredients, Duarte specifically uses mostly organic products and no preservatives.

She attributes the shiny texture of the chocolate shell to be the product of careful polishing and cocoa butter.

“I take colored cocoa butter, and put the designs on with either a gloved finger or paint brush,” Duarte  said.

This fastidious endeavor reflects in her beautiful chocolates, which have turned one-time customers into regular visitors.

“Passion goes a long way, which is why I’m here,” Duarte said. “I just love what I do.”