Wine and Chocolate Pairing Tips
The chief ingredients that impart those distinctive flavors and aromas to wines and chocolates are tannins and cocoa (the solids as well as the butter), respectively. Now, exactly how delicate or rich a chocolate tastes depends primarily upon the percentage of cocoa solids it contains and its proportion to the amount of sugar, milk solids, other additives and artificial flavoring agents put together. Higher the concentration of cocoa, richer the bittersweet flavor of the chocolate. Likewise, a wine that contains more tannins is drier on the palate and leaves an aftertaste that is somewhat bittersweet, the bitterness being more prominent than the sweetness and acidity. On the contrary, wines having less tannins taste milder and are easier on the palate.
Barring certain differences of opinion here and there, the majority of connoisseurs agree upon the 'complementary pairing' approach as opposed to the 'contrasting notes' concept. In other words, it is always good to match those chocolates and wines together whose innate flavors and underlying notes, as felt by the palate, appear to get along easily so that the combined taste is picked up by the taste buds smoothly with no pursing of the lips and/or scrunching of the nose involved. It means that a particular wine should be paired with a chocolate that has similar gustatory characteristics and the flavors are able to blend in such a way that the taste compounds in each are brought out by the other in a pleasant, agreeable manner. Following are some pointers that summarize exactly how a chocolate and wine pairing should go about:-
As discussed earlier, the taste of wine and the flavor of chocolate with which it is meant to be paired should be complementary and not contrasting. Hence, dark and bittersweet chocolates, that have high cocoa (say, 85% - 99%) and low sugar content, go best with stronger, drier red wines, such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Beaujolais, Merlot, Cognac, etc.
Semi-sweet chocolates having around 60% - 80% cocoa content may be paired with fortified wines as well as full to medium bodied wines that have a moderate amount of tannins present along with fruity or spicy undertones, such as Ruby Port, Orange Muscat, Zinfandel, etc. Medium or semi-sweet chocolate can also be paired with strong red wines as mentioned in the previous point, such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Shiraz, dark ruby Banyuls, etc. In fact, if you're experimental enough, you may try pairing semi-sweet chocolate with stronger, full-bodied red wines and bittersweet chocolate with fortified and medium bodied wines with fruity undertones. You could be swept off your feet by some unconventional combinations!
Mix and match as much as you wish in the bittersweet and semi-sweet categories but you must be careful when picking up a wine to pair with milk, white or any other predominantly sweet chocolate that has a delicate flavor and a subtly fragile aroma. Sweeter wines such as Muscat, Aszú, Sauternes, Sherry (the sweet variety), Tawny Port, etc. are the usual choices to accompany, rich, creamy, fruity-nutty milk chocolates. The more delicately flavored white chocolate may be paired with the mild and exotic flavored Riesling as well as any sparkling wine, such as Champagne. An interesting thing to note here is that while sparkling wines are not the ideal pairs for cocoa-based edibles, they get along just fine with white chocolate as this kind of chocolate does not contain any cocoa solids. The cocoa butter content of white chocolates hardly interferes with the acidity of sparkling wines, thereby, sparing your palate the tartness that may be experienced with a cocoa-rich chocolate and Champagne combination!
The chief ingredients that impart those distinctive flavors and aromas to wines and chocolates are tannins and cocoa (the solids as well as the butter), respectively. Now, exactly how delicate or rich a chocolate tastes depends primarily upon the percentage of cocoa solids it contains and its proportion to the amount of sugar, milk solids, other additives and artificial flavoring agents put together. Higher the concentration of cocoa, richer the bittersweet flavor of the chocolate. Likewise, a wine that contains more tannins is drier on the palate and leaves an aftertaste that is somewhat bittersweet, the bitterness being more prominent than the sweetness and acidity. On the contrary, wines having less tannins taste milder and are easier on the palate.
Barring certain differences of opinion here and there, the majority of connoisseurs agree upon the 'complementary pairing' approach as opposed to the 'contrasting notes' concept. In other words, it is always good to match those chocolates and wines together whose innate flavors and underlying notes, as felt by the palate, appear to get along easily so that the combined taste is picked up by the taste buds smoothly with no pursing of the lips and/or scrunching of the nose involved. It means that a particular wine should be paired with a chocolate that has similar gustatory characteristics and the flavors are able to blend in such a way that the taste compounds in each are brought out by the other in a pleasant, agreeable manner. Following are some pointers that summarize exactly how a chocolate and wine pairing should go about:-
As discussed earlier, the taste of wine and the flavor of chocolate with which it is meant to be paired should be complementary and not contrasting. Hence, dark and bittersweet chocolates, that have high cocoa (say, 85% - 99%) and low sugar content, go best with stronger, drier red wines, such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Beaujolais, Merlot, Cognac, etc.
Semi-sweet chocolates having around 60% - 80% cocoa content may be paired with fortified wines as well as full to medium bodied wines that have a moderate amount of tannins present along with fruity or spicy undertones, such as Ruby Port, Orange Muscat, Zinfandel, etc. Medium or semi-sweet chocolate can also be paired with strong red wines as mentioned in the previous point, such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Shiraz, dark ruby Banyuls, etc. In fact, if you're experimental enough, you may try pairing semi-sweet chocolate with stronger, full-bodied red wines and bittersweet chocolate with fortified and medium bodied wines with fruity undertones. You could be swept off your feet by some unconventional combinations!
Mix and match as much as you wish in the bittersweet and semi-sweet categories but you must be careful when picking up a wine to pair with milk, white or any other predominantly sweet chocolate that has a delicate flavor and a subtly fragile aroma. Sweeter wines such as Muscat, Aszú, Sauternes, Sherry (the sweet variety), Tawny Port, etc. are the usual choices to accompany, rich, creamy, fruity-nutty milk chocolates. The more delicately flavored white chocolate may be paired with the mild and exotic flavored Riesling as well as any sparkling wine, such as Champagne. An interesting thing to note here is that while sparkling wines are not the ideal pairs for cocoa-based edibles, they get along just fine with white chocolate as this kind of chocolate does not contain any cocoa solids. The cocoa butter content of white chocolates hardly interferes with the acidity of sparkling wines, thereby, sparing your palate the tartness that may be experienced with a cocoa-rich chocolate and Champagne combination!
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