Thrillist – 8 Wine and Chocolate Pairs for Valentine’s Day

What’s better than wine and chocolate for Valentine’s Day? Brook Sager, contributing writer for Thrillist has featured an exquisite Rioja wine in her list of perfect pairings!

 
“Wine and chocolate already have powerful appeal on an individual basis, but put them together and you’re in for one indulgent pairing. But it’s not as simple as grabbing a pretty-labeled bottle off the shelf and blindly shoving chocolate kisses in your mouth.“ Pairing wine with sweets can be a challenge,” says Jeff Porter, certified sommelier and host of the upcoming video series Sip Trip. First off, there’s a bunch of sugar everywhere. Secondly, everyone’s go-to match of big Cabernets and chocolate is actually kind of a miss, since the wine’s bitter tannins tend to suffocate the chocolate.“ When pairing desserts, I try to keep the sweetness levels somewhat in line,” Porter says, “but more so, I look for flavors that work together. I think of all the awesome candy bars I’ve had as a kid and try to recreate some of those flavor synergies with wine and chocolate.” Take a Snickers bar with its nuts, caramel, and chocolate—you might look for a wine with nuttiness and caramel notes to complement the chocolate. Like goes with like. With Valentine’s Day looming, we’ve got you covered with eight swoon-worthy wine and chocolate pairings to try (plus one bonus beer pairing).”