Why Wine and Chocolate make "Awkward Friends"
- Oct 26, 2018
We often get questions from customers around Halloween, Christmas and Valentines Day asking which wines and chocolates to pair together. It's a question that stumps many wine professionals, simply because the two are quite difficult to pair. In the words of Wine Folly's author, Madeline Puckette, the two are just "awkward friends".
On their own, chocolate and wine are two delicious and sometimes luxurious individuals, which is why they are often given as gifts during festive holidays, birthdays, etc. Think about a romantic movie you once saw - what does the guy always get the girl to say "I love you", "I want to be with you", or the classic "I really messed up"? He comes to the door with wine and chocolates in hand. What you don't see in the movie is how those two taste when put together - in reality, it would really wreck that "cute" moment when she pairs the gift and is left with an over-powered and less than romantic taste her mouth.
So why don't these two flavours always work? Wine and chocolate both have very strong flavours that compete for the same taste buds in your mouth. When pairing wine and food, the idea is to showcase one "star flavour" or have two flavours that can complement each other such as sweet and spicy. When wine and chocolate are paired together the wine usually ends up tasting a bit (or a lot) sour and ultimately leaves us with a rejection to the pairing.
Our alternative to pairing wine and chocolate? Drink wine with flavours of chocolately goodness. For example:
Have a favourite wine you enjoy drinking on Halloween? Let us know in the comments below, and check out our list of Spook-Tacular wines on sale from Oct 26th-31st!
On their own, chocolate and wine are two delicious and sometimes luxurious individuals, which is why they are often given as gifts during festive holidays, birthdays, etc. Think about a romantic movie you once saw - what does the guy always get the girl to say "I love you", "I want to be with you", or the classic "I really messed up"? He comes to the door with wine and chocolates in hand. What you don't see in the movie is how those two taste when put together - in reality, it would really wreck that "cute" moment when she pairs the gift and is left with an over-powered and less than romantic taste her mouth.
So why don't these two flavours always work? Wine and chocolate both have very strong flavours that compete for the same taste buds in your mouth. When pairing wine and food, the idea is to showcase one "star flavour" or have two flavours that can complement each other such as sweet and spicy. When wine and chocolate are paired together the wine usually ends up tasting a bit (or a lot) sour and ultimately leaves us with a rejection to the pairing.
Our alternative to pairing wine and chocolate? Drink wine with flavours of chocolately goodness. For example:
- Redwood Creek Cabernet Sauvignon - a delicious and juicy Cabernet Sauvignon with delicious notes of chocolate
- Meadowhawk Zinfandel - an Old Vine Zinfandel from California with a lasting vanilla finish
- Mancura Etnia Merlot - a great value wine from Chile, balanced flavours with hints of chocolate
Have a favourite wine you enjoy drinking on Halloween? Let us know in the comments below, and check out our list of Spook-Tacular wines on sale from Oct 26th-31st!