It’s like eating a chocolate-covered strawberry, but with more sparkle: chocolate and lightening bolts of fruit. Suggested Wine Pairings: Port and champagne. This is true whether you’re serving a $20 bottle of table wine or a $4,000 bottle of Petrus. Chocolate cake — Pair chocolate cake with a rich red wine such as Port or some sweeter styles of Syrah. When it comes to pairing food and wine, the secret is to consider wine as an ingredient. Like pairing red wines with red meat, there are simple guidelines for combining solid and liquid desserts for the tastiest results. To start, the wine should always be at least as sweet as the dessert. This is true regardless of what wine style you want to serve. Luxurious, super-aged tawny port like Quinta do Portal 20 Year Old Tawny (available at the New District Dunbar Wine Shop) is your choice for spicy, single origin chocolate like Ecuador (Purdys has an exotic and fudgey one). And with Valentine’s Day upon us, we are ready for some sweet talk…. Late harvest or icewines are sensational matches, like Sperling’s Pinot Blanc Icewine. It tastes of … Why it works: Gewürztraminer combines fruit and spice in the same way that a warm apple pie does, making it one of the most obvious dessert and wine pairings on this list! Many wines dwell somewhere on the spectrum of off-dry to medium in sweetness. Think of the difference between tart, fluffy strawberry shortcake, and gooey fudge brownies — the chocolate brownies have exponentially more sugar than the fruit-laden shortcake. Gingerbread — Choose a sweet wine that has some elements of spice to bring out the spices in the dessert. Vouvray Brut: Made with Chenin Blanc grapes, Vouvray is a crisp, mouth-puckering white wine that adds notes of green apple, pear, and honeysuckle. Ice wines are one of the best dessert wines that goes well with almost any meal. Check out the following 8 best dessert wines and the different foods that they pair well with! Vintage ports are big wines, with black-fruit flavors and powerful tannins when young; pair them with something equally intense, like a rich, dark-chocolate dessert, or a blue cheese like Stilton. Here are a few essential guidelines when pairing sweet foods with wine: The wine must have as much (or more) sweetness as the food ; Match the weight of the sweet wine you want to serve with the dessert; Mirror or contrast the flavours and texture ; Consider the temperature of both dessert and wine – in general sweet wines … Try Fonseca Bin 27, Warre’s Warrior, Graham’s Six Grapes or similar reserve port. If you’re looking for something familiar but also unique, check out sparklers from South Africa, where Chenin Blanc is a super important grape! Pumpkin pie — The somewhat savory spices in this pie pair well with complex white wines that aren’t too sweet. Desired Flavors (in the wine and dessert): Dark, buttery, caramelized, rich. https://winefolly.com/wine-pairing/7-tasty-pairings-for-dessert-and-wine Fruit-based desserts that are less sugary will pair best with wines that have between 50 and 100 g/L of residual sugar, whereas more decadent, rich desserts (like chocolate pots de crème) will pair best with wines that have between 100 and 150 g/L of residual sugar. I throw words at the walls of Wine Folly’s channels until something sticks, like a fistful of verbal spaghetti. Take better notes! The harvesting of the grapes is susceptible to the weather, rot and hungry animals. Flavours like lemon, coconut, lemongrass or orange ice cream or sorbet are tailor-made for exotic Viognier Icewine, like the Whistler Icewine Viognier from Bench 1775. Why it works: Those sweet little bubbles are going to cut straight through the heavy creaminess of a chocolate mousse, while adding sharp texture and notes of candied fruit and red flowers. As a result, a very sweet wine like ruby Port is a natural choice for brownies (as opposed to dry Cabernet) while mildly sweet demi-sec Champagne would match the sweetness of strawberry shortcake. For a grown-up twist on the classic Rice Krispies Treats, Marcia Kiesel ingeniously swaps out marshmallows for the Latin American dessert sauce dulce de leche, then adds even more crunch with toasted, sliced almonds. Wine Pairing: Vintage Port. Kate Neumann adds fragrant browned butter to a sweet custard loaded with caramelized apples and baked in a buttery tart shell. And now back to the business of how to pair dessert and wine. If the residual sugar is between 50 and 150 g/L, then your wine is likely sweet enough to be served with dessert. You may see the residual sugar printed on the bottle, but most of the time, you’ll have to search on the winery’s website or look through professional critic reviews to find this information. Take a sip of Sauvignon Blanc after a bite of white chocolate. The winemaker has different options here: arresting fermentation by chilling or adding grape spirit, adding sweet wine to boost the sugar content of a dry wine, or starting with such insanely sugary grape juice that sensitive yeasts peter out, eventually leaving lots of sweetness behind. Desserts are no different. This is a wine that only expert winemakers are capable of creating. A delicate fresh fruit flan or lemon meringue tart needs a citrusy sweet wine with a touch of tang. By investing in the right bottles and finding wines that complement the flavors of each dessert, you’ll end all of your holiday parties on a high note this year. Adding in the extra alcohol can be done either during the fermentation or after the wine is done fermenting. Advice from Decanter contributor Fiona Beckett on pairing wine with chocolate desserts Three main things to consider: The type of chocolate – white and milk chocolate being generally easier to match than dark; Is the dish hot or cold – cold is more wine-friendly ; What other ingredients are on the plate? These bottles are in the $30 range, and have loads of cooked fruit flavors — cherry pie, cooked raspberries, coffee, and cocoa in a bottle. Instead, sweet dessert wines such as Asti Spumante and Brachetto d’Acqui are delicious sparkling dessert wines that work well with a medley of different desserts. March 06, 2019. Tell us about your favorite dessert and wine pairing. Riesling Pinot Blanc grapes make honeyed, succulent wines with high voltage acidity to match fruit. Balance subtle sweetness with decadently fruity notes. The truth, however, is that a great number of amazing oaked Chardonnays exist in the world, and their versatility is one of their greatest strengths. The high concentration of alcohol deactivates the yeast in the wine which leaves you with just sweet flavors. This means that all the sugar in the ripe grapes has been completely converted to alcohol, and you do not taste any sweetness on the wine’s finish. When you have dark chocolate within a dessert, such as cake or cheesecake, it’s possible to have enough fat and starch in the dessert to counteract the bitterness in both chocolate and wine. The most-demanded dessert ingredient of all! As long as you ensure that each of the wines you pick falls on the sweeter side of the spectrum and matches the flavors and colors of your desserts, you’ll end up with a delicious and creative dessert wine pairing. Wine pairings for dessert recipes, including raspberry jam bomboloni and a fizzy sparkling red wine. If you love really bitter chocolate – like 85% – (chances are you drink black coffee and Negronis!) Kate Neumann describes this cool, delicate dessert as having "the qualities of custard without the egginess. Don’t be fooled into thinking sweet means cheap – many wines in this spectrum offer a gorgeous balancing act of fruit sweetness and refreshing acidity. Tawny ports, sweet Madeira, raisiny Pedro Ximenez sherries are all perfect choices. The wine must have as much (or more) sweetness as the food, Match the weight of the sweet wine you want to serve with the dessert, Mirror or contrast the flavours and texture. Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Cabernet Sauvignon are examples of dry wines. To begin with, forget what you think you know about dessert wines because what’s available has changed drastically in recent years, and is no longer your granny’s “Port” wine syrup or cream Sherry. So, take a look at these 7 amazing dessert and wine pairings and get ready to turn on the romance! They usually pair well with desserts made with fruits such as nectarines, peaches or apples. Oaked Chardonnay: The creamy addition of oak to the bracing flavors of apple, pear, and lemon peel is quite polarizing for many modern drinkers who may have had one too many butter bombs to appreciate this style.