Once upon a time, living the sweet life in Portland meant owning an art gallery or two, surrounded by the local political and cultural upper crust. The new dream? Helming a start-up artisan food business with a family recipe, and cavorting with foodies in the know.

Riding the wave of that paradigm shift is Brad Rogers, legendary owner of the now-closed B. Rogers Gallery on NE Broadway and Plan-B Gallery in the Pearl, who now spends his days making small-batch sweet and savory treats under the moniker Goldfinch Caramel.

The company launched in March 2012 using a family recipe passed down from Rogers' great grandmother Rose, and now offers a growing line of hand-wrapped caramels with ingredients like Oregon black truffles, Hopworks "7-Grain" stout, black mission figs, rosemary, espresso, Jacobsen Sea Salt, and cinnamon chocolate.

Don't let the inventive flavors fool you: these sweets aren't just creative, they're delicious, classically smooth, soft caramels worthy of tracking down at these local retailers: 

• Cheryl's on 12th 1135 SW Washington St
• Bin 21 5011 NE 21st Ave
• Local Choice Market 830 NW Everett St
• Butterscotch 144 NE 28th Ave
• Beaumont Market 4130 NE Fremont St
• Food Front Co-Op 2375 NW Thurman St
• Hogan's Goat Pizza 5222 NE Sacramento St
• and Astoria Coffeehouse & Bistro 243 11th St in Astoria, Oregon

Know of a locally-made product that deserves some attention? Give me a shout at [email protected] or give me a shout over on Twitter at @allisonejones.