What to Drink with Easter Sweet Treats?
Always go as sweet or sweeter on the booze front...
Pairing sweet puds and chocolate with booze can be a minefield as the wrong combo can leave both feeling flat. The trick is finding drinks that are as sweeter or sweeter than your snacks and desserts. This way, you end up with a match made in Easter treat heaven and not metallic, sugary hell! Here are some classic combos for the long weekend:
Hot Cross Buns x Trappist Beers!
Try: Westmalle Trappist Extra Beer, 330ml £2.92 Asda
Ease gently into your boozy Easter treats with a hot cross bun and a dark, Trappist beer. This rich and malty, spicy little tipple will make the cinnamon in the bun ping and the bubbles will refresh the palate - especially if you’ve added a decent slab of salted butter.
Mini Eggs x Moscato
Try: I Heart Asti, £6.25 Morrisons
These simple, tiny treats are all about crunchy vanilla sugar and milk chocolate, so you’ll need something that matches the light weight but with enough sweetness to stand up to them. A frothy Moscato d’Asti is ideal with its low ABV and notes of apricot and pear.
Roast or Barbecued Lamb x Rioja Style red
Try: Monte Plogar Gran Reserva, Lidl in store
The classic roast lamb wine pairing is an earthy, spiced red Rioja with some age on it. This ‘other’ Spanish tipple from Lidl however, gives you all the tang, spice and leathery goodness of a great Rioja for a fraction of the price. It looks very smart too. Fabulous bang for buck!
Milk & Dark Chocolate Egg X Fortified Red Wine
Try: M&S Special Reserve Ruby Port Decanter 20cl, £6 M&S
Chances are, there will be some egg nibbling going on over the Easter break, so how about the ultimate, catch-all wine for chocolate? Ruby Port – a fortified, sweet red wine with concentrated, dark berries will have you covered, whether the egg is milk, dark or white.
Simnel Cake X Amaretto
Try: Amaretto Veroni Classic Almond Flavour, 50cl, £6.48, Asda
One of the best things about Simnel cake is the marzipan - and it’s also the bit you need to watch out for with a drinks pairing. Enter Asda’s own Amaretto! This boozy, almond-scented sweet treat will raise your Easter pudding game to a whole new level. Wow!
Easter Ham X Fruity Rosé
Try: Toro Loco Rosé Superior, £5.49 Aldi in store
Roast ham loves crunchy, light red wines or wonderfully fruity rosés and Toro Loco’s Spanish Pink is a perfect pairing. Made from the up-and-coming Bobal grape, it’s all about juicy raspberry and spicy strawberry fruit with enough tanginess to keep everything fresh. A classic combo!
Spiced Easter Bread x Citrussy Sippers
Try: Limoncello Spritz, 75cl £4.49 Aldi
Easter bread is usually lightly sweet, fairly buttery and citrusy thanks to the addition of orange or lemon peel - and this fun new tipple from Aldi will bring the party to your pairing. Think sweet Tokaji or Sauterns but for something fresher, a zesty, limoncello spritz will make the candied lemon peel sing, freshened up with a cool, frothy fizz.
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