1.     When pairing wine with chocolate, the first and easiest rule is: sweetness counts. The wine should be as sweet or sweeter than the dish. If the dessert is sweeter, it makes the wine taste thin, sour and inadequate.

2.     The second major issue is texture. The denser and heavier the dessert, the more likely you are to need a wine with substantial weight. The added alcohol in a fortified wine like port, sherry, or fortified Muscat, is a marvelous armour that protects the wine and lets its qualities shine through.

3.     The third considerations are aroma and flavour. Sommeliers suggest pairing white port with white chocolate, tawny port with milk chocolate, and ruby port with dark chocolate. Darker and better quality chocolate demands better quality port.

POSTED: Saturday, November 17, 2007