4 Wine and Chocolate Pairings

Dinner isn’t complete without something sweet at the end of the meal, especially when we are talking about chocolate! Pairing chocolate with the right glass of wine is a match made in heaven. For instance, combine chocolate ice cream and a fruity red wine to create a sweet blend that will have your taste buds dancing in your mouth. Thanks to our handy guide to wine and chocolate pairings, you can create the best combinations in no time at all.

The Sweetest Pairings

The trick is to choose a wine that’s sweeter than the dessert served. Dessert wines were made for just that! Sweet dessert wines pair best with chocolate and sweet dishes. These yummy, sweet wines combined with sweetened spirits like brandy boost the rich flavorings in chocolate.

Red Wine: If serving a red wine, go with a merlot. The flavors of merlot work well with the dessert, instead of competing with it.

White Wine: While white wines don’t always pair well with chocolate, late-harvest Rieslings do work. The fruity notes complement the flavors, especially when paired with a white chocolate dessert.

Find the best flavor combination by using these wine and chocolate combinations!

• Dark Chocolate- When pairing a dark chocolate dessert like our Mini Chocolate Strawberry Croissants with wine, go with Cabernet Sauvignon. This will bring out the natural cocoa flavors in the chocolate.
  

• Semi-Sweet Chocolate- A lot of desserts call for semi-sweet chocolate. Since the dessert is already sweet, you can completely satisfy your sweet tooth by pairing it with a dessert wine or try a Tawny port. These wines are slightly sweet, but not quite as sweet as a dessert wine. Try pairing this wine with one of our semi-sweet chocolate desserts like our Chocolate Raspberry Tart.
  

• Milk Chocolate- Since milk chocolate is a lot less bitter than other chocolates, you’ll want to pair it with a wine like a Sparking Moscato to balance out the sweet flavorings and bring out the creamier flavors. Pairing this wine with a dessert like our Strawberry Ice Cube Tray Bonbons will bring out the creamy and sweet notes found.
  

• White Chocolate- White chocolate is very sweet, so you need to balance it out with a rich and round bodied late-harvest Riesling. This will help bring out the nutty and buttery flavors in white chocolate desserts like our Ginger-Macadamia Nut Blondies with White Chocolate.
  

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What’s your favorite wine and chocolate pairing? Let us know in the comments below.