CHOCOLATE is one of those tricky ingredients that will destroy most wines in one fell swoop. The luscious, rich confection smothers the taste-buds and coats the palate, making it hard for anything else to get through. This is particularly true with a delectable, decadent chocolate fudge cake.
However, all is not lost. As your intrepid wine-merchant, I always have a few tricks up my sleeve and in my wine racks.
Don’t be fooled into thinking that a dry, full-bodied red with chocolatey notes will work with the dish. This is usually not the case as these wines are better suited to rich stews or my favourite Mexican chilaquiles (traditionally a breakfast dish but can be served with wine at any point in the day … including breakfast).
You can experiment with Argentinian Malbecs or Californian Zinfandels with chocolate desserts, but the results will be hit and miss at best depending on the sweetness of the dish and the lushness of the wine.
Instead try a Muscat or a Tawny Port or even a sparkling Shiraz if you’re feeling particularly adventurous.
Here are a few suggestions for this weekend …
Campbells Rutherglen Muscat Non-vintage (Waitrose, £12.99 for a half-bottle). This unique wine is definitely one of the best matches for Shirley’s fudge cake. The late-harvest grapes are vinified and the resultant wine is then put into a solera system. This means that the bottle you end up taking home features wines from a number of different vintages. The process adds complexity and allows the winemaker to create a consistent style from year to year.
Graham’s “The Tawny” Tawny Port (M&S, £16 … although it is worth checking the price as you'll occasionally get an extra discount for buying two bottles. And trust me, you’ll want two bottles). The ports from the Graham’s estate tend to be sweeter than many of the other big names (such as Taylor's and Dow's), but this works in your favour with a chocolate-based dessert. “The Tawny” is also lovely with fruit cake, particularly as it has notes of dried fruit, cinnamon and orange peel in the glass. Or why not try a glass with a nice Cashel blue cheese.
Syn Rouge Non-vintage (Inverarity One to One, £12.49). This sparkling Coonawarra Shiraz is bound to delight and challenge your senses in equal portions. It’s lovely on its own as an aperitif, it works surprisingly well with turkey or duck, and it’s delightful with chocolate fudge cake. Go on, try a little Syn.
Pete Stewart is Glasgow director of Inverarity One to One, 185a Bath Street, Glasgow www.inverarity121.com
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