What Wine Goes With This Chocolate?

White chocolate

White chocolate is, as we all know, not really chocolate at all but rather it’s a confection usually flavored with vanilla. This is ‘chocolate’ at its creamiest, since it is mostly cocoa butter, and the rest is basically sugar, making this an extreme chocolate! Rich and sweet, with some vanilla tones -- sounds like a good match for a sweeter Champagne. Demi-sec, anybody?

Milk chocolate

We all love us some good milk chocolate, and with its sweet, creamy flavors, milk chocolate is actually fairly easy to pair with wine. I like a sweet, sparkling red like Brachetto, though if there are nuts involved, a nice tawny Port could be the perfect match. If pairing with citrus flavors you might want to consider a nice Riesling as well.

Dark chocolate

Dark chocolate tends to be deeply flavored but not terribly sweet. While the percent of cocoa naturally produces a more bitter flavor element the higher the cocoa percentage goes, some producers just compensate by adding more sugar, lending very high percentage cocoa chocolate an intensity of flavor that many simple dark chocolates don’t have. This makes dark chocolate ideal for pairing with a nice ruby port or even some table wines that frequently have a little bit of residual sugar such as Zinfandel, even ‘white’ Zin!

Dark chocolate is often paired with caramel or butter crunch and some wines that have similar flavors work superbly here. The Alcyone dessert wine based on Tannat is an incredible wine for these types of chocolate!

Bittersweet chocolate

By ramping up the intensity, bittersweet chocolate demands more from your wine. While many people find that table wines based on Syrah or Cabernet Sauvignon work well with bittersweet chocolate, I still think you need some sweetness to help the wine work with the chocolate. Here a late harvest wine based on Syrah, Zinfandel (Primitivo!), or Grenache (back to Banyuls) works wonders! Bittersweet chocolate is often paired with nuts, and while some aged spirits might be an ideal match, if you’re looking for the right wine you might want to consider a sweet cherry here. The dried fruit character and intensity of a nice Px can work wonders with this combination.

Valentine's Day Chocolates

If you're confused about what chocolates will be best to woo your loved one this Valentine's Day, we're here to help. Check out our guide to top choc selections at WhatsCook.in Valentine's Day Chocolates.

While you're at WhatsCook.in, if you're thinking of a romantic dinner at your place, we have the perfect menu at Seduction: Scandinavian-Style.

And don't forget the wines to go with it. Take a tip from Top Wines for Valentine's.

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Comments

inthegrape

147662 5

Here's a thought: I know it is not a wine but another amazing pairing is Armagnac with Dark Chocolate. For a combination that will really wow you, try the Castarede 20 Year Reserve de la Famille, the Chateau de Laubade XO or the Delord 25 year, it will be a revelation to your senses.

Feb 10, 2011 at 1:07 PM
dyye

314202 49

Here in the NW corner of Washington we have a lot of rasberries and some pretty good rasberry wines that seem to go well with dark bittersweet chocolate,of course some people would not consider a fruit wine at all. My preference would be a late Harvest Syrah.

Feb 10, 2011 at 3:53 PM
TannicBeas-
t

275117 3

Black Muscat goes really well with most chocolate based desserts.

Feb 14, 2011 at 12:35 PM
Gregory-
Dal Piaz

Hand of Snooth Voice of Snooth

89065 89,415

Nice call on the black muscat. It adds some nice spice elements in to the mix.

Feb 14, 2011 at 12:38 PM