Wine & Chocolate at Cowes Fringe
Here's what we tasted...
This weekend saw the third Cowes Fringe Festival go off with a bang and I was lucky enough to be invited to run two tasting events, one on wine and fragrance pairings (you can see what we tried here) and the other, an ultimate wine and chocolate pairing session. I wrote earlier about some classic, general pairings and rules of thumb on a different piece over here but here’s what we tasted below with chocolates by Rococo, which are all available at Jack Thompson on Cowes High Street.
Cabernet Sauvignon X Dark Chocolate
Why it works: You can just about get away with pairing dry red wines with very dark chocolate as there’s very little sugar and fat in the chocolate. Cabernet, with its bolder tooth drying tannins, works nicely with the high acidity and astringency in dark chocolate and if you add a touch of sea salt, it brings out the fruit in the wine. Cabernet also often has minty or eucalyptus note, especially when from Australia, so that was enhanced when we tried it with the mint too. Both cracking pairings.
Cape Mentelle ‘Marri’ Cabernet Sauvignon, £18.25 Ocado
Rococo Dark Chocolate Thins with Sea Salt, £18.95
Rococo Dark Chocolate Thins with Sea Salt, £18.95
Amarone X Rose Milk Chocolate
Why it works: Firstly, you’ll either love rose chocolate or you will seriously dislike it. If you fall in the latter camp, then look away now! Amarone is made by the appassimento method which makes it full-bodied and richer than other styles of dry red wine with notes of cherry and cocoa powder. With the rose chocolate, the floral notes are enhanced and the cherry in the wine really sings. The higher alcohol (around 15%)also feels dialled down too. The dark chocolate with sea salt also really brought out the ripe red fruit and chocolate flavours in the wine. Both are fab!
Amarone Valpolicella DOCG, £14.99 Aldi
Rococo Rose Milk Chocolate Thins, £18.95
Moscato & Tokaji X White Chocolate
Why it works: We all know that white chocolate isn’t technically chocolate as there’s no cacao BUT it’s still creamy, rich and delicious. You’ll definitely need sweetness here so a frothy, low alcohol Asti Spumante (moscato grape) served super cold balances up the fatty cocoa butter and cleanses the palate while moderating the sweetness of the wine. For a more opulent and seriously decadent pairing, Hungary’s famous sweet Tokaji Aszu wines give unctuous, orange peel and honey complexity to the pairing with the high acidity keeping it all fresh
Moscato Spumante Asti, £4.69 Aldi
Royal Tokaji Aszu 5 Puttonyos, £30 Majestic
Rococo White Chocolate and Cardamom Truffles, £29.95
Tokaji & XO Cognac X Dark Orange Chocolate Thins
Why it works: Any kind of sweet wine or spirit with a hint of orange peel will be a glorious match for orange chocolate, whether its dark or milk. Here, the high acidity in the Tokaji combined with it’s incredible sweetness and layers of complex flavours stood up to the creamy nature of the chocolate and made the citrus zing! Another totally indulgent pairing was the XO Delamain Cognac. ‘XO’ stands for Extra Old and this spirit has seen many years ageing in French oak before release giving it a dark auburn colour with complex notes of incense spice, orange citrus and a salty, mineral seam. This works as the high alcohol cleans the palate perfectly and those notes of bitter citrus peel, fudge and spice really harmonise with the fresh orange aroma in the chocolate.
Royal Tokaji Aszu 5 Puttonyos, £30 Majestic
Delamain Pale & Dry XO Cognac, £79.99 (50ml) Virgin Wines
Rococo Dark Orange Chocolate Thins, £18.95
Madeira & Vin de Constance X Salted Caramel Truffles
Why it works: Fortified wine Madeira is a glorious catch-all for many kinds of chocolate from dry and dark to flavoured and sweet. With it’s tangy, salted caramel and hazelnut skin notes coupled with its famously high, refreshing acidity and sweetness makes the salted caramel flavours in the chocolates pop. For a very different combination, the renowned, unctuously sweet white wine Vin de Constance offers a more citrussy vibe with its notes of bitter lemon peel and orange. Served well chilled it’s a clean and lighter pairing. This is an iconic, historic wine from the renowned Klein Constantia estate in Constanta, South Africa as is made with Muscat de Frontignan. See more about Vin de Constance here.
Klein Constantia Vin de Constance £75 Fortnum & Mason
H&H Madeira Full Rich Doce, £12.50 (50cl) Majestic
Rococo Salted Caramel Truffles, £18.95