When it comes to indulging in your two most sinful pleasures, you might as well indulge in both at once! Mixing wine with chocolate might not be the first thing on your mind after a delicious meal, but it can certainly be a rewarding combination. However, you must choose your selections carefully.
Here are a few tips to help you find the perfect wine for your chocolate taste:
1. Make it Sweet!
Whether you are a connoisseur of dark chocolate or live on the wild side with tasty white chocolate, when you combine chocolate with wine, it is important for you to select a sweet wine so that the chocolate does not get a tangy, bitter taste.
Sweet ports offer the perfect touch that is rich in texture and delicately sweet. Try the Croft 2003 Vintage Port
, a sweet, creamy wine from Portugal, with your next chocolate soufflé or other dark chocolate indulgences.
Muscat, which is traditionally known to be a very sweet dessert wine, brings out wonderful flavors when combined with chocolate covered strawberries and other lighter varieties of chocolate. Pair a light Yalumba NV Museum Reserve Muscat (half-bottle) with a crisp milk chocolate truffle for a delectable combination that will wow your entire pallet.
2. Ask an Expert
When it comes to paring wine with chocolate, asking an expert for advice might be your best bet. Many finer grocery stores and wine specialty stores can provide you with some guidance when it comes to selecting the products that they carry in stock. Alternatively, you can do your own investigative research on the Web for a pairing chart that can help to match your favorite chocolates.
Bruts are fairly comfortable wines that offer a high degree of versatility. In addition to going well with rich chocolate cakes, you can also pair it with vegetables and nuts. Thus, you retain the option of changing your dinner wine and dessert wine – or you can use the same wine for both! Check out the Alfred Gratien Cuvee Paradis Brut NV
, which is served in the First Class cabin on British Airways.
Austria also produces a fine, sweet white wine called the Lyss-Doux Scheurebe Trockenbeerenauslese 1995 (a long name for a deserving wine.) This particular vintage wine goes well with sweet berries, tarts and cakes and is made from late-harvest grapes. Keep in mind that if you are hosting a dinner party, not all of your guests will eat chocolate. You want to be sure that the wine is every bit of an experience alone as it is when paired.
Also, Napa Valley produces a Cabernet Sauvingon that is specifically designed to be paired with chocolates. It is called the Madrigal Vineyards Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 1999. The tastes in the wine are of black cherry and currant. Avoid combining the Cabernet with cake or other flour-based desserts. Rather, pair it with pure chocolate, such as truffles. The flavors will bounce off of one another perfectly.
3. Know Your Chocolates
Naturally, there is a wide variety in chocolate types. When selecting the perfect wine to go with those chocolate types, it is a good idea to find a wine that fits your compliments the chocolate you are serving.
The two most popular chocolates, of course, are milk chocolate and dark chocolate. Milk chocolate is best paired with a sweeter dessert wine (as opposed to simply a sweet wine.) Look for a Muscat, Riesling or light-bodied merlot. Avoid dry wines, as they will leave a bitter taste in your mouth. The creamier and sweeter the wine, the better the combination. Try our favorite Royal Reds
.
Dark chocolates tend to taste best when paired with Zinfandels, such as the cost-friendly Brassfield Estates Zinfandel - 2003, Clear Lake, California. You can also pair it with the Bighorn Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon - 1999, Napa Valley, California, as dark chocolate can handle a drier variety of wine. Be sure to avoid pairing dark chocolate with very sweet wines, for the combination will be immature and not complimentary at all.
Whether you are entertaining guests or sampling some fine wines and chocolate on your own, be sure to take the time to choose wines and chocolates that will compliment one another. After all, with so many options available for both indulgences, why not choose the best pairs!
