Pairing Wine and Chocolate
You love wine and you love chocolate.
But how do you pair one with the other?
1. Look for local wines and regional food from the same areas.
The wines we make are sourced from fruit grown in the Willamette and Rogue valleys. Local chocolates from these areas may be studded with marionberries, herbs, hazelnuts, smoked sea salt or even rose petals.
2. Get to know your wine.
“It’s important to find balance in the wine,” she said. “This includes aroma, taste, texture and overall impressions of the sip.” Consider the wine's look, smell and taste. Note your own personal discovery and flavors you identify on the palate.
“Think about your overall impression of the wine. Does it wrap you up in a warm blanket and make you feel cozy? Or does the wine poke at your and feel slightly sharp and rough?”
The host of our upcoming Wine & Chocolate Virtual Tasting, Willamette Valley Vineyards Winery Ambassador, Veronica Ball
3. Match “mirroring” flavors and try them.
“Mirroring flavors of the wine and food causes a perfect picture to form between the chocolate and wine, almost fusing the flavors together without one overpowering the other,” Veronica advised.
Consider a rich and spicy Cabernet Sauvignon paired with a bar of chili infused dark chocolate. Or white chocolate served with a chilled Rose.
Winery Ambassadors sample wine and chocolate at the Estate to find the best pairings.
4. Pair contrasting flavors and try those.
“A contrasting pairing is also fun because the food will make the wine possibly change and pop with new flavors, or the food will be elevated and change to contrast with the wine, but in a positive way,” Veronica said.
Perhaps that creamy milk chocolate will show off the brightness of a dry sparkling wine. Or a semi-sweet Riesling will deepen the flavors of a salty dark chocolate.
5. Some wines don’t need a pairing.
“Some wines do not need food in order to shine, but can simply be enjoyed on their own,” she suggested. “We don’t want to mess with the star of the show.”
Our Recommendations
Find inspiration in our Wine & Chocolate Collection that pairs our classic Oregon wine with local artisan chocolates. This collection is available for a limited time.
Shop Wine & Chocolate Collection
Veronica will lead us in a complimentary virtual tasting of this collection on Wednesday, February 9th at 4 pm. Order your Wine & Chocolate Collection by February 1st to receive it in time for the tasting.
Jan 28, 2022 at 10:59 AM
Permalink
Wishing You A Happy New Year
2021 | Year In Review
We know you have a lot of great choices when it comes to selecting wines, so we want to thank you for your support of Willamette Valley Vineyards. Your support enables us to continue our mission in telling the Oregon story through wine, while using sustainable growing and winemaking practices. We look forward to sharing new wines, locations and experiences with you in 2022 as we open our Domaine Willamette sparkling wine facility in the Dundee Hills and Tasting Room & Restaurants in Lake Oswego, on the Vancouver Waterfront and in Happy Valley. Wishing you and yours health and happiness in 2022.
March | Executive of the Year
Our Founder and CEO Jim Bernau is recognized as Portland Business Journal's 2021 Executive of the Year for finding innovative ways to lead the winery and care for each other, our community and environment.
March | Willamette's Women in Wine
In honor of International Women's Day on March 8th we celebrate our Willamette women in wine. In an industry that is still traditionally male dominated, we are honored to have 56% of our staff and 63% of our leadership team made up of passionate women dedicated to shaping the Oregon wine industry.
April | Bud Break in Estate Vineyard
Leading up to the appearance of first buds on the vines, our vineyard team prunes nearly 500 acres of vineyards, the most acres in our company's history. Meanwhile, planning begins at Jory Claim, our new estate vineyard in the Salem Hills, ready to be planted in 2022.
May | UV-C Robot Deployed
Using an autonomous robot to apply a special band of ultraviolet light treatment to the vines, Willamette is the first farmer to combat powdery mildew from damaging wine grapes by replacing the use of organic sulfur with sustainable UV-C light. We see this as a remarkable opportunity for our industry to grow high-quality wine grapes and do it in a very natural, sustainable way.
June | Northwest Heat Wave
Record-breaking high temperatures hit the Northwest, but our new berries on the vine are still small and hard — not plump and delicate like they are later in the growing season. The vines and grape clusters make it through with no stress or damage.
July | Preferred Stock Offering Provides Ownership Opportunity & Launches Expansion
We invite wine enthusiasts to become Owners through our Preferred Stock Offering and be part of Oregon wine history as we open Domaine Willamette in the Dundee Hills and four Tasting Room & Restaurants in the next two years. Locations include Lake Oswego, Vancouver Waterfront, Happy Valley and Bend.
July | Bravo's Top Chef Finale Airs
Bravo's Top Chef wraps up Season 18 with a finale filmed at our Estate in the Salem Hills, where the cast and crew toast the conclusion with glasses of our 2017 Bernau Estate Traditionnelle Champenoise Brut (Photo by David Moir/Bravo).
July | EU Grants Willamette Valley Geographic Protection
The Willamette Valley is given Protected Geographical Indication status and protection by the European Union, making it the second American wine producing region to attain PGI status. This status ensures the legal protection of Willamette Valley wines from counterfeit or imitation products and attaches a cache for EU retailers and consumers, who recognize it as a stamp of quality and assurance of provenance.
September | Harvest Starts
September | Meals for Frontline Workers
Salem Health ICU and Emergency Department staff members receive complimentary meals from Winery Chef DJ MacIntyre and his team in an effort to encourage those on the frontlines during the Covid-19 Delta variant surge.
October | Top Philanthropic Company
The Portland Business Journal ranks our winery as one of the top 10 philanthropic companies of our size for 2020. Our charity partners include Self Enhancement Inc., Oregon State University Foundation and Oregon Environmental Council.
October | Best Winery and Chef
Willamette Valley Vineyards and Chef DJ MacIntyre are named through the Statesman Journal's Best of Mid-Valley program as Best Winery and Best Chef for 2021.
November | Brooke Williamson Cooking Class
Brooke Williamson, a celebrated chef who won Bravo's Top Chef Season 14 and was a guest judge on Top Chef Season 18's finale filmed at the Estate, joins our Wine Club Members for a private virtual cooking class.
December | Blending Experience Opens
We debut our Pinot Noir Clonal Blending Experience, giving users the controls to be a winemaker, crafting and tasting custom blends with guidance from a Winery Ambassador. This unique system was invented by Research & Development Manager David Markel for Roth Barrel Room at the Estate.
December | Charitable Adventure to Find Golden Coins
Golden Coins are being found throughout the Northwest and in states across the country in bottles purchased directly from us, local grocers, wine shops and restaurants. Lucky winners of our 500 Golden Coins receive a $50 donation to their local food banks, a credit of $100 toward a wine experience at the Estate and entry into a drawing for a chance to win an Oregon wine country getaway for two.
Jan 6, 2022 at 9:47 AM
Permalink