Indeed, Valentine's Day is here and as we all know, it’s an absolutely WONDERFUL time to “celebrate love.”
So what better way to immerse ourselves in the rosiest time of year than with a little indulgence in moderately priced Zeus Juice alongside halfway decent “chocolate?”
DID YOU KNOW… In the Middle Ages, wine became associated with the feast of Saint Valentine, celebrated on February 14th, and it was believed that drinking wine on this day would bring good luck and happiness in love. This tradition endured over the centuries, and by the 18th century, wine had become an integral part of Valentine’s Day celebrations.
Now you’ll probably see a lot of wines being marketed at your local watering stores as the perfect bottles for Valentines day. For the most part, these are going to be your sparklings, your rosés, or (drum roll, please) YOUR SPARKLING ROSÉS. For obvious reasons, like sparkling is considered celebratory and associated with romance, and rosé is pink (THE VERY COLOR OF VALENTINES DAY).
BUT DON’T GET IT TWISTED — You need not limit yourself with these wines for an evening of “romance” with your loved ones. The goal should be to pick a wine that pairs so well with the Valentine’s day treats you’re noshing that you’d swear it was meant to be.
Even if your wine and cheap Russel Stover chocolate box pairing doesn’t sing like it was struck with cupid’s bow, you’ll want to make sure the two don’t clash. Well fear not, we’re here to help.
Today we’ve chosen wines from an array of categories and tasted them alongside a spread of V-day treats to track down some inspired pairings for you to mimic and say you thought of first.
But first, let’s grease the ole gizzard by touching on some basic principles of pairing.
PAIRING BASICS
First and foremost let’s get this little tidbit out of the way — taste is subjective and although we here at Tannic Panic represent the paragon of good taste, everyone’s preferences are of course individual. Hell, there are places in the world where people line up to eat the rotting heads of fish or paper bags filled maggot infested cheese. TO EACH THEIR OWN.
But there are some great nuggets of directional wisdom you can use that will prove invaluable when seeking out the pairings that will change your life.
The “logic” revolves around finding the right balance of flavors and structural components to enhance the tasting experience. This balance is achieved by matching the intensity and characteristics of both the wine and the “tasty morsel” you’re pairing it with. By doing so, each can “express their unique qualities” (LIKE TODAY’S YOUTH) without overpowering the others, ultimately elevating the pairing experience.
Understanding a little bit of the “pseudo science” behind fat, acid, sugar, and other elements as they pertain to our flavor perception can greatly inform our chocolate and wine pairing “selections.” Let’s talk briefly about “the big 3” players in the pairing scene: acid, sugar and fat:
Fat: Fat plays a crucial role in the texture and mouthfeel of foods and can enhance the “body” and “fruitiness” of wines. The creamy, smooth sensation of fat on the palate acts like a “flavor glue” (THE STICKY KIND), enhancing other flavors and allowing them to “linger longer” in the mouth. When paired with wine, fat can accentuate the perception of sweetness or fruitiness, enriching the overall flavor profile.
Acid: Acidity, on the other hand, provides a sharp, tangy taste sensation that can “cut through” fatty richness. In wine, acidity not only adds complexity but also stimulates saliva production, enhancing the perception of other flavors. By balancing out sweetness and providing contrast, acidity often plays a key role in creating a harmonious pairing.
Sugar: And let's not forget about sugar (remember her?). In case you didn’t already know this, sweetness is one of the primary tastes detected by our “taste buds,” enhancing the palatability of foods and wines alike. Sugar can balance out sharp acidity and tannic bitterness, creating a more enjoyable tasting experience. When paired with fat, sugar can contribute to a desirable sensation of creaminess and richness, while also providing contrast to acidity in wines. High sugar foods may increase perceived bitterness in wines, so the conventional logic is to try to reserve the sweetest foods for sweeter wines (BUT WE SHANT FALL VICTIM TO THE FALLACY THAT THIS IS ALWAYS TRUE).
Without further ado, let’s move on to some wines recs and a Valentine’s Day treat we suggest you pair with!
…AND NOW FOR THE WINE & PAIRINGS
ROSÉ
Rosé is more or less the color of love (OR SO WE’VE BEEN TOLD). Often sporting fruit forward flavor profiles, these wines can prove incredibly complementary to those V-Day treats with a little fruity flare. Chocolate covered strawberries anyone?
Profile: Peaches and cream, strawberry, orange peel
Palate: dry, medium+ acid, medium body, medium+ finish
Varietal: 100% Dolcetto
Beautifully creamy, fruit-driven profile.
SUGGESTED PAIRING: CHOCOLATE COVERED STRAWBERRIES
WHY: The pairing improves the experience on both ends of the equation! The sweetness of the chocolate covered strawberries is balanced by the acidity in the wine, and the creaminess of the chocolate is complimented by the creaminess of the wine. Bonus points for the matched strawberry flavors in the wine make for a harmonious flavor bonanza.
SPARKLING
Sparkling wines are a Swiss-army knife when it comes to pairing. This is good news, because they’re some of the most popular wines to drink on celebratory occasions. They tend to be high in acidity, and relatively neutral in flavor, two characteristics that lend themselves to pairing with a wide array of foods.
Profile: White peach, strawberry, orange zest, blossom, grapefruit, bakers yeast
Palate: Dry, medium body, high acidity, medium finish
Blend: 50% Pinot Noir, 30% Chardonnay, 20% Gamay, 100% good time
Crisp, refreshing fruit-forward style of sparkling rosé. Not too much complexity in this wine, but nevertheless it’s “easy to drink.” Most of you would find this style sufficiently quaffable for the momentous V-Day occasion. “chocolate”.
SUGGESTED PAIRING: WHITE CHOCOLATE TRUFFLE
WHY: When paired with the white chocolate, the “mouthfeel” of the wine improves immensely and the wine takes on a creamier texture on the palate without overpowering the buttery, rich flavors of the albino “chocolate”
BOLD DRY REDS
This may SHATTER YOUR ENTIRE WORLD VIEW, but you don’t need to limit yourself to the classic sparkling/rosé pairings when sipping for love. Big boi reds can pair beautifully with V-Day treats in a variety of ways. In true Tannic Panic form, we’ve dug in deep on the reds today, and picked a few different styles to showcase for you.
Profile: Black plum, raspberry, blackberry, slate, violets, black pepper, leather, vanilla and chocolate (surprise, surprise).
Palate: Dry, full body, medium+ acidity, medium+ tannin, long finish (a little bit of “heat” on the finish due to the high ABV)
Varietal: 100% Tempranillo
SUGGESTED PAIRING: DARK CHOCOLATE TRUFFLE
WHY: No doubt this wine is delicious on its own, except the 15% ABV makes itself “seen” on the finish. The dark chocolate pairing increases the perceived richness and body, lengthens the already pretty long finish and removes any sense of “heat” from the alcohol.
Profile: Blackberry, raspberry and blueberry jam, black pepper, vanilla, chocolate fudge, toast, clove.
Palate: Dry, full body, medium acidity, medium tannin, medium finish.
Blend: 85% Petite Sirah, 15% Petit Verdot
Despite the “cute little name”, this wine is anything but “petit”. This is designed for fruit bomb purists (UNLIKE ME!). That being said, this is well made for the style. You just need to know what you’re “signing up for”
SUGGESTED PAIRING: MILK CHOCOLATE TRUFFLE
WHY: The pairing with milk chocolate makes the oak spice flavors more prominent, increases the length of the finish and helps to balance out the “blitzkrieg” of RIPE fruit flavors that dominate this wine when gulped on its own.
Palate: Dry, full body, high acidity, high tannin, long finish, high alcohol (a bit hot!)
Varietal: 100% Corvina
Concentrated flavors with lots of desiccated fruit and toasted/roasted coffee & chocolate flavors. If you don’t like a little tertiary action, than standalone, this may not seem like the pick for you (especially at the generally higher price point). But when paired, this wine really shines.
SUGGESTED PAIRING: HAZELNUT DARK CHOCOLATE TRUFFLE
WHY: The richness of the dark chocolate completely obscures the heat from the alcohol, and the flavors of the chocolate in the wine are enhanced. Hazelnut adds layers of flavor with each mouthful, the nuttiness working beautifully in concert with the flavor profile of the Amarone. And critically, the level of sweetness in the truffle was not too high, which meant that perceived bitterness in the wine was not woefully amplified (as is a risk when pairing sweets with Amarone).
FORTIFIED/SWEET REDS
For this category, we went with a Tawny Port (HOW COULD WE NOT?)
Port wines, which are sweet and feature rich flavor profiles, are often enjoyed as a sippable dessert on their own. Paired properly, however, magical things can happen.
Profile: Cola, walnut, dried fig, maple syrup, molasses
Palate: Sweet, full body, medium acidity, medium tannin, long finish
Super concentrated flavors, lots of oxidized characteristics. Nice on its own, but with the pairings we found, this one really came to life.
SUGGESTED PAIRINGS: DARK CHOCOLATE TRUFFLE or DARK CHOCOLATE FUDGE
WHY: The rich chocolate perfectly balances with the sweetness of the port, lifting the bitterness from the chocolate and coming together to create a new profile that is livelier, showcasing interesting nutty notes and completely containing any overly oxidative notes from the port. Among the most transformative pairings of the spread.
At the “end of the day”, the “rules” for pairing wine and food (including chocolate) are just general guidelines based solely on our IMMUTABLE KNOWLEDGE on this critically important topic. Individual sensitivities to tastes such as bitterness and sweetness are highly variable, so the “rules” for wine and food pairing are not a one size fits all algorithm. What we’re basically trying to tell you is take our incomprehensibly correct opinion on this critically important topic with an enormously umami grain of salt (THE GOOD KIND).
GO ON, ‘GIT PAIRING!
We do this all for you, sweet, sweet readers. We love you so much, it’s nuts.
Until next time — HAPPY DRINKING, LOVEBIRDS.
Cheers!
Isaac & Zach
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