PairingWine.com | Pairing Wine with Chocolate

Pairing wine with chocolate seems to be an hard thing to do. However, when we pair wine with food, we are always creating a combinations of flavors. Whether you are pairing white chocolate or dark chocolate with wine, your goal is to create harmony between the flavors involved..

Let's outline a couple of basic rules:

It is important to always keep in mind that the wine should be at least as sweet as the chocolate you are eating. This simple rule will guarantee analogy. If you do not follow this simple rule, the taste may quickly become sour.
Another simple but essential rule is that the wine needs to have high acidity. It is the acidity that will create that contrast so important in food and wine pairings.

When pairing wines with chocolate, you want to match lighter flavored chocolate with lighter-bodied wines and stronger chocolate with more robust wines. Always remember, in the eventuality of tasting different types of chocolate, to begin with the white and lighter chocolate and end with a dark or bittersweet chocolate.

A good marriage between white chocolate and wine can be found: if the chocolate is not flavored you will choose a Moscato D'Asti wich is a very aromatic and fruity white wine, sometimes slightly effervescent or fully sparkling. In this combination you will experience the enanchement of chocolate's creaminess. Same thing if the chocolate is flavored with fruit (Orange, lemon, etc.): the ideal candidate would still be a Muscat that will pick up all fruity tones present.

With milk chocolate we have more choice. You want to pick among light to medium bodied wines: the best varietals are Riesling, Gewurztraminer, Brachetto D'Acqui. The Rieslings are best if Auslese, Beerenauslese or Trockenbeerenauslese. The higher level of fruit ripeness, generally means a sweeter wine.

If you are eating dark chocolate or bittersweet chocolate you can also drink a more structured wine. All the aforementioned wines will still work great, however an interesting choice would be among wines with a roasted or bitter flavor. The classic choice is between Cabernet Sauvignon and Zinfandel or even Shiraz.

Fortified or dessert wines are always good companions of chocolate: Port goes with every type of chocolate.

Banyuls is probably the best dessert wine to pair with milk or better dark chocolate. It is simply meant to be enjoyed with it.

WINE & CHOCOLATE PAIRING CHART