This Valentine’s Day instead of buying a heart shaped box of chocolate and bottle of generic wine, consider pairing a fine selection of chocolates from Fannie May with the perfect wine selection to impress your sweetheart.
Some say it can’t be done, pairing wine with chocolate however they are natural companions. Both have complex flavors and notes, both have similar components and nuances in common. If you have the right wine to complement the right chocolate it can be a match made in heaven!
Pairing wine and chocolate is not a straightforward pairing. It will take a bit of experimenting to find the best wine and chocolate combinations. Remember your palate impressions may be very different from those you are tasting and testing with. For some they prefer the wine to be as sweet as the chocolate, for others this causes the chocolate to take on a distinct sour note.
When pairing wines with chocolate, your best bet is to match lighter, more elegant flavored chocolates with lighter-bodied wines; likewise, the stronger the chocolate, the more full-bodied the wine should be.
White Chocolates & Wine
Consider pairing the new FM Artisan by Norman Love flavors Lemonade (a perfect blend of freshly-squeezed lemonade and creamy vanilla ganache, covered in Swiss white chocolate) or Vanilla cake (pieces of buttery vanilla birthday cake mixed with white chocolate and cream, enrobed in pure Swiss white chocolate) with a Moscato d'Asti, Sherry, or Orange Muscat.
White chocolate tends to be more mellow and buttery in flavor, making it an ideal candidate pairing with the fruity notes from sherry, dessert wines, and sweet wines.
Milk Chocolate & Wine
It is said that you should pair lighter chocolates with lighter wines; darker chocolates with full-bodied wines. Consider pairing Mays milk chocolate creams (chocolate buttercream center coated in milk chocolate) with a Pinot Noir, lighter bodied, Merlot, Muscats, or Riesling. These wines compliment and tend to hold up well to milk chocolate varieties.
Dark Chocolate & Wine
Dark or bittersweet chocolates need a wine that offers a roasted, slightly robust flavor itself, with perhaps a hint of its own chocolate notes. For dark chocolate enthusiasts, Fannie May suggests their Vanilla Buttercream with Dark Chocolate (vanilla buttercreams boast smooth, sweet vanilla cream centers smothered in luscious dark chocolate), Mays dark chocolate creams, or Hazelnut Dark Chocolate Clusters.
These selects pair well with Cabernet Sauvignon and Zinfandels which have a history of perfecting the dark chocolate match, resulting in an unparalleled tasting combination. Also consider a Pinot Noir or a Merlot to handle dark chocolate around the 55% cocoa mark.
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