Whether or not you celebrate Valentine’s Day religiously with all the fixin’s of chocolate, flowers, and gifts, or you consider it a commercial holiday fabricated by greeting card companies, it’s a day to celebrate love in all its forms, and to uncork some of your best bottles with loved ones.
If you happen to be someone who was inexplicably showered with sweets this past weekend, A) You go, Glen Coco B) grab a bottle of red wine and have a mini tasting with your haul. Red wine and chocolate are like a happily married couple, complimenting each other in all the right ways to achieve a united and excellent end product; their differences are what make them complete together.
My favorites together are dark chocolate and medium bodied reds like Grenache or Syrah. However, I feel strongly that there are no definite pairings when it comes to wine and food and believe everyone should “Drink what you want,” as a cool wine chick I know would say.
The fun lies in experimentation. Do You, unapologetically. Sweeter wines like Sauterne, Riesling, and even Moscato are ideal matches for chocolate and candy. Laya is a Spanish red blend of Grenache and Monastrell under $10 that is very rich in red fruit flavors with a good body and structure that holds up to drinking with dark chocolate. Pairing this wine with chocolate reminds me of that scene from “Ratatouille” where Remy the rat experiences all the symphonies of changing flavors when mixing foods and textures.
Also this wine is the perfect accompaniment to the Punch Brothers new album, “The Phosphorescent Blues,” which has been playing on repeat in my headphones since I got my hands on it. – Jessica