8 Perfect Wine-and-Chocolate Pairings You Need
What's better than drinking wine or eating chocolate? Drinking wine and eating chocolate at the same time.
Wine and chocolate can be the ultimate power couple, as long as they're paired properly. Together, the right wine and chocolate can bring out the best flavors in each other. It can even make your knees weak, according to Charles Ford - sommelier and general manager at Daisies, a restaurant in Chicago - who gave Cosmopolitan.com the most delicious wine-and-chocolate pairings he knows about.
Next time you're in need of some wine, try it with these chocolates and you can thank me later:
1. Chocolate Sea Salt with Verde
Milk chocolate with sea salt combined with white wine will introduce you to a whole new world of flavors. "White wine is a terrific pairing for salty foods," Ford says, and it still works when the salt is on a creamy chocolate bar. When you combine white wine with anything salty, you get a delicious sweet-and-salty taste. He recommends pairing Bodegas Shaya Arindo - a verdejo wine - which is wine that comes from the Rueda region of Spain, with the milk sea salt bar from Green & Black's.
2. Salted Caramel with Chenin Blanc
"Easily the most savory of all the pairings, this is for all those who don't necessarily like desserts or sweets," says Ford. So, even if you don't love chocolate, you'll appreciate dark salted caramel and chenin blanc together. Ford recommends Domaine Guiberteau Saumur chenin blanc because "the intensity of salty, juicy apple flavors is undeniably mouthwatering."
3. Cherry Cordials with Tempranillo
Ford recommends a "bold, smooth-on-the-palate wine," to go with cherry cordials. His choice from Finca Villacreces - which is a blend of tempranillo, cab, and merlot - will accent the chocolate "beautifully" because of its brown sugar components.
4. Raspberry and Hazelnut with Rosé
Rosé is always a good idea, especially when it's paired with raspberry hazelnut dark chocolate. For this, Ford recommends Val de Mar brut rosé, which is a brut rosé made from pinot noir. "There are great deep ruby and red fruits that come out in this French sparkler, a perfect pairing to bring out the red raspberry flavors in the chocolate."
5. Chocolate Strawberries with Muscat Blanc
I mean, really, have you ever met a chocolate strawberry you didn't like? To get the most of the flavors out of the strawberries, pair it with Vietti Cascinetta Moscata D'Asti. "This light, sweet sparkler is a perfect palate cleanser to ripe juicy strawberry covered in chocolate." Yum.
6. Hershey Kisses with Champagne
~*Bubbly and kisses*~. Ford recommends pairing Hershey Kisses with Champagne. He says, "It's refreshing to have a dry finish to something sweet for the non-sweet people out there." Ford recommends Tarlant Champagne Zero, which has no added sugar.
7. Nestlé Crunch Bar with Semillon
If you're all about crunchy chocolate, Ford recommends pairing that with a semillon. "A sweet, acidic finish is what brightens up your mouth after taking a bite of this play on a French classic," he says. Ford suggests Carmes de Rieussec from Sauternes which he says is "arguably the greatest region to produce sweet wines." He says it smells so good, it will make your knees weak. Damn.
8. Coffee-Flavored Chocolate with Sherry
Coffee addicts, meet your match. "Sherry is a dream pairing for crunchy chocolates with a thing of coffee and caramelization," Ford says. I'm not saying that you should also drink wine for breakfast, but, Ford says sweet sherries make for a great morning-coffee side sipper. He recommends the Tio Pepe Alfonso solera sherry, which isn't overly sweet.
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