Chocolate & Wine: Not always a good match
Valentines Day is right around the corner and there is usually a large amount of chocolate exchanged in the name of love.
Wine and Chocolate seem like such a natural couple. Like Bogey & Bacall, Tracy & Hepburn, and Marge & Homer, we naturally assume that wine and chocolate are perfect matches. But, this couple is more like Al & Peggy Bundy -- they mostly don't match, but when conditions are right, there is a warming sense of chemistry. That is to say that because of the chemistry of chocolate and the chemistry of wine there are going to be some qualities of each that clash, mute, or become more pronounced. The trick to matching wine & chocolate is to find those couples that enhance the great qualities of each without showing the bad. Isn't that the trick with us, too?
I can easily say that most of my customers and friends drink red wine. Red wine usually contains a fair to heavy amount of tannin. Tannins are astringent, bitter plant polyphenols that either bind and precipitate or shrink proteins. Tannins come from the skins of the grapes as well as the barrels in which wines age. They are a desirable component in wine because of their antioxidant nature. That is, the tannins help to protect the wine from spoiling due to its interaction with oxygen. Tannins also play an important role in the mouthfeel of a wine. They provide that drying sensation on the insides of your cheeks and gums. Technically, that drying feeling is a result of the tannins in the wine attaching to saliva proteins in your mouth.
Tannins are not really found in white wines because the skins do not macerate (or soak) with the juice at all. Red wine becomes red in color and bold in flavor because of the maceration with the skins. The tannins are a chemical component of making red wine.
Guess what? Chocolate also contains tannin.
I'm going to make this really easy: If the wine you are drinking is making your mouth dry, and the food you are eating is making your mouth dry, then what is the overall sensation during this experience? Your mouth is really dry! Put another way, what's the best way to counter a dry wine? Match it with something that's refreshing, or in the case of tannin, match it with something with a lot of protein which will lighten the load your saliva plays in the tannin exchange. That's why big dry reds like Cabernet Sauvignon match so very perfectly with a big old steak.
There's another way to get some refreshment from the drying effects of tannin in chocolate: Pick a red wine with a higher level of acid. The acid will promote saliva creation and will match and overpower the amount of tannin in your mouth. Italian wines are extremely high in acid (think Sangiovese from Tuscany).
Alright Mr. Science, then what are the best matches for wine & chocolate?
The universal match is Champagne. The high acid and effervescence will be a refreshing counter to the dry chocolate. The bubbles will also keep your palate clean -- leaving you to truly experience the layers of flavor in the chocolate. Port wines are also great matches for chocolate. The flavors of dried fruit, caramel, and fig, coupled with the syrupy mouthfeel make for a great interaction with chocolate. These are your best bets to match with plain chocolate.
If you're trying to match chocolate to a specific wine, try to find a truffle or infused chocolate that matches flavors in both. Those ubiquitous chocolate covered cherries would match very well with everything from a Sonoma Pinot Noir to a Napa Merlot. How about a truffle filled with passion fruit? Why not try a New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc. How about chocolate infused with ancho chile? Fire up a big old glass of Malbec from Argentina.
Matching wine with food is really all about the pleasant commonalities of flavors or interesting contrasts. It's just the same with wine & chocolate.
You can find some great matches. You'll also encounter some bad combinations. Now, you have a little background that can help you. As always, the only way to know is to try it and see if the result is what you hoped for. If not, keep trying! There's plenty of chocolate in the sea!
Wine and Chocolate seem like such a natural couple. Like Bogey & Bacall, Tracy & Hepburn, and Marge & Homer, we naturally assume that wine and chocolate are perfect matches. But, this couple is more like Al & Peggy Bundy -- they mostly don't match, but when conditions are right, there is a warming sense of chemistry. That is to say that because of the chemistry of chocolate and the chemistry of wine there are going to be some qualities of each that clash, mute, or become more pronounced. The trick to matching wine & chocolate is to find those couples that enhance the great qualities of each without showing the bad. Isn't that the trick with us, too?
I can easily say that most of my customers and friends drink red wine. Red wine usually contains a fair to heavy amount of tannin. Tannins are astringent, bitter plant polyphenols that either bind and precipitate or shrink proteins. Tannins come from the skins of the grapes as well as the barrels in which wines age. They are a desirable component in wine because of their antioxidant nature. That is, the tannins help to protect the wine from spoiling due to its interaction with oxygen. Tannins also play an important role in the mouthfeel of a wine. They provide that drying sensation on the insides of your cheeks and gums. Technically, that drying feeling is a result of the tannins in the wine attaching to saliva proteins in your mouth.
Tannins are not really found in white wines because the skins do not macerate (or soak) with the juice at all. Red wine becomes red in color and bold in flavor because of the maceration with the skins. The tannins are a chemical component of making red wine.
Guess what? Chocolate also contains tannin.
I'm going to make this really easy: If the wine you are drinking is making your mouth dry, and the food you are eating is making your mouth dry, then what is the overall sensation during this experience? Your mouth is really dry! Put another way, what's the best way to counter a dry wine? Match it with something that's refreshing, or in the case of tannin, match it with something with a lot of protein which will lighten the load your saliva plays in the tannin exchange. That's why big dry reds like Cabernet Sauvignon match so very perfectly with a big old steak.
There's another way to get some refreshment from the drying effects of tannin in chocolate: Pick a red wine with a higher level of acid. The acid will promote saliva creation and will match and overpower the amount of tannin in your mouth. Italian wines are extremely high in acid (think Sangiovese from Tuscany).
Alright Mr. Science, then what are the best matches for wine & chocolate?
The universal match is Champagne. The high acid and effervescence will be a refreshing counter to the dry chocolate. The bubbles will also keep your palate clean -- leaving you to truly experience the layers of flavor in the chocolate. Port wines are also great matches for chocolate. The flavors of dried fruit, caramel, and fig, coupled with the syrupy mouthfeel make for a great interaction with chocolate. These are your best bets to match with plain chocolate.
If you're trying to match chocolate to a specific wine, try to find a truffle or infused chocolate that matches flavors in both. Those ubiquitous chocolate covered cherries would match very well with everything from a Sonoma Pinot Noir to a Napa Merlot. How about a truffle filled with passion fruit? Why not try a New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc. How about chocolate infused with ancho chile? Fire up a big old glass of Malbec from Argentina.
Matching wine with food is really all about the pleasant commonalities of flavors or interesting contrasts. It's just the same with wine & chocolate.
You can find some great matches. You'll also encounter some bad combinations. Now, you have a little background that can help you. As always, the only way to know is to try it and see if the result is what you hoped for. If not, keep trying! There's plenty of chocolate in the sea!
posted by The Cask Room, Mike Kallay at
10:58 AM
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