Dessert & Wine Pairings
We normally think about wine pairings with savory foods, but wine goes well with dessert too. In this post I’ll walk you through four types of sweet wine and what desserts they go best with. As a bonus, I’ve included links to recipes from some of my favorite food bloggers, so you have everything you need to plan a delicious pairing. Enjoy!
Oh, one quick note, these wines are sweeter and have a higher alcohol content than regular table wine. As such, you’ll serve a smaller pour of them, about 3 ounces. Of course, you may find some so good you want more than 3 ounces. No judgement here as I can easily drink a double serving of Sauternes, simply be aware that the combination of higher sugar and higher alcohol can go to your head, so make sure you drink water too.
Sauternes
Wine Profile
I’m going to step back for a moment here. Sauternes is a specific ‘noble rot’ wine that only comes from Bordeaux, like Champagne is a specific sparkling wine that only comes from Champagne. They make noble rot wine in many places, so let’s start with the general information on this wine then jump back into what makes Sauternes so special.
As the name implies, noble rot wine is wine where the grapes have rotted first. I realize that sounds awful, but it is a very good thing. When you allow grapes to hang on the vine late into the season the botrytis fungus attacks them, puncturing tiny holes in the skin and dehydrating the grapes, which concentrates the sugar. The result is shriveled grapes that look unattractive but create a delicious sweet wine. As you’ve probably guessed this was discovered by accident, but was quickly done on purpose.
The resulting wine is a beautiful gold color with a thicker viscosity than table wine. The flavor is much more than just sweet; it is nuanced with great depth. The initial notes taste of honey and stone fruit, and then you begin to sense deeper, richer flavors like honeysuckle and baking spices.
Now, back to Sauternes specifically, Sauternes is the original noble rot wine. It and its cousin Barsac are the white wines of Bordeaux and are a fantastic complement to Bordeaux’s famed red wines. The main grape is Sémillon which provides the depth of flavor. Then a bit of Sauvignon Blanc adds acidity and balances the wine. The result is a wonderfully complex wine that can age for decades and is delicious with a host of sweet and savory foods, or on its own.
Suggested Wines
- Carmes de Rieussec Sauternes 2015 (Binny’s Price: $15.99 for 375mL): This is what I purchased for my tasting. It wasn’t terribly expensive, and it was delicious. You should be able to find something similar in your local wine store, even if you can’t find this exact wine.
- If you do want to go all in and have the gold standard, aim for Chateau d’Yquem. My local Binny’s currently has the 2013 for $195 for 375mL. I can guarantee it will be good, but you can find a lot of great options for $35 and under, so I’d stay there unless it is a very special occasion.
- Hermann J Wiemer Riesling Noble Select (Winery Price: $95 for 375mL, Current Vintage: 2014): You’ve got me, this isn’t a Sauternes, but it is a great example of a Riesling noble rot wine. I promise you’ll enjoy this.
How Long It Lasts Open
There’s some debate here. In my opinion, you can keep a young bottle in the fridge (preferably vacuum sealed) for about a month. Others will argue the flavor begins to degrade after a week. I haven’t found this to be the case. (You will want to enjoy an older bottle faster.) The good news is most bottles are 375mL, which can easily be enjoyed among a party of 8, or a party of 2 over 4 nights…
How To Pair It
Because Sauternes is such a sweet wine, I like to find less sweet desserts to pair it with. One of my favorite pairings is shortbread, which is a buttery, lightly sweet cookie. The fat from the butter plays well with the acidity in the wine. To up this fat and acid play, you can even make lemon shortbread cookies. The extra acidity from the lemon then brings out the honeyed notes in the wine. The recipe pictured above is Lemon Lavender Shortbread Cookies from the Love & Lemons Everyday cookbook. You can find her Lemon Thyme Shortbread Cookies recipe here. These would work wonderfully with Sauternes too, and would have a nice savory note. Or you can simply sub the thyme for 1 tsp lavender and enjoy the pairing I had.
Other traditional pairings are cheesecake (any kind but chocolate), almond tarts, lemon tarts, meringues and custards. I also enjoy it with carrot cake. Here’s a few options to try it with:
- Double Layer Carrot Cake from Willowcrest Lane – This is a nice, well-balanced pairing.
- Salted Caramel Cheesecake Bars from Handle the Heat – Doesn’t this pairing just sound like it will work? Sweet golden wine with creamy cheesecake drizzled in caramel sauce. I’m getting hungry…
- Lemon Ricotta Cheesecake Cupcakes from Baker by Nature – I couldn’t resist one more cheesecake option for you here.
- Lemon Poppyseed Cake with Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting from Frosting and Fettuccine – This is a pairing I can’t wait to try. Like with the lemon shortbread example, the lemon here will be a nice balance to the rich Sauternes. Meanwhile the richness of the cream cheese frosting will be a nice balance to the acidity in the wine.
If you do want a savory option, it is perfect with foie gras.
Demi-Sec Sparkling Wine
Wine Profile
By now you know I have a great love for sparkling wine, and that includes demi-sec sparkling wine, which has a balance of sweetness, bubbles and acidity. It is less sweet than Sauternes but no less enjoyable with dessert. The flavors vary by producer and region of the world, but typical profiles include lychee, citrus, and stone fruits. You may also notice a creaminess and toasted or brioche flavors, especially if you go with an older bottle.
Suggested Wines
- Gruet Demi-Sec (Binny’s Price: $15): At such a reasonable price point this wine is a no-brainer.
- Graham Beck Bliss Demi-Sec (Binny’s Price: $20): Still a reasonable price point, though may be a little harder to find than the Gruet.
- If you’re willing to spend a bit more, give the Taittinger Demi-Sec a try.
How Long It Lasts Open
Unfortunately, this is one you’ll want to enjoy quickly because even with a champagne stopper you won’t be able to keep the bubbles for more than a few days. The good news is, this has the same ABV as regular sparkling wine, so you can feel free to take a regular size pour. (You are still getting more sugar than regular wine, so my advice to make sure you drink enough water holds.)
How To Pair It
Again here I would advise against pairing with anything too sweet. In this case it is because you don’t want a too sweet food to make the wine taste bitter, which can happen. Try it with chocolate cake, almond tarts, madeleines, and ginger cookies. I also love it with strawberry desserts. As you may know, strawberries and sparkling wine are a traditional pairing. I find that strawberries and demi-sec sparkling wine work even better for my palate.
A few options:
- Chocolate Covered Strawberry Tart from Miss Allie’s Kitchen – Strawberries plus chocolate plus demi-sec sparkling wine, what could be better?
- Easy Crème Brûlée from Live Well Bake Often – The richness and creaminess of the crème plus the caramelized layer on top is delicious with these bubbles. (Also try with tawny port.)
- Classic French Madeleines from Baker by Nature – A simple madeleine shines against the effervescence of the wine.
- Fresh Strawberry Sheet Cake from Butternut Bakery – Yep, more strawberries, I told you I love this pairing.
Tawny Port
Wine Profile
I’ll do a deep dive on port soon, so I’ll keep it high level here, but want to make sure you have the basics. Port is a sweet, fortified wine that only comes from the Douro Valley of Portugal. (The wines were shipped down the Douro River to the city of Porto for ageing, hence the name Port. The wines aged in Porto due to the mild coastal climate, which was important in the days before air conditioning.)
There are multiple styles of port, but the two most common styles are tawny and ruby. Tawny port is tawny-colored and known for caramel, raisin and nutty notes. Ruby port is ruby-colored and is known for red fruit notes. (More on ruby port in the next section.)
Tawny port spends years in oak, where over time its color fades from the red of the grapes to the tawny shade we all associate with it. This ageing process is also where the port gains its distinctive flavors. Most tawny port you’ll find is designated by age, either 10, 20, 30 or 40 years, with the price increasing with each age tier. These year designations represent the average age of the wine used in the blend. As the port ages it takes on more and more of the distinct flavors associated with tawny port. 30- and 40-year tawnies especially take on deep and beautiful nutty notes.
Suggested Wines
My recommendations are for 10-year tawnies, as those are the most wallet-friendly. However, these port houses make older options, so feel free to ‘age-up’ if you want a real treat.
- I went with Graham’s ($35 at Binny’s and Trader Joe’s) since I know it is a port house I like. You should give a few a try and see what your favorite is.
- Other good options in a similar price range include: Taylor Fladgate, Fonseca, Dow’s, and Sandeman.
How Long It Lasts Open
Tawny port lasts for about a month, which is good because it usually comes in 750mL bottles and that is quite a bit of port to consume in one sitting, unless you have a big group. Store it in a cool dark place and use a vacuum preserver to remove the air if you have one.
How To Pair It
Tawny port pairs wonderfully with a range of desserts. Give it a try with cheese (especially blue cheese), dried fruit, chocolate, tiramisu, pecan pie or apple pie. I decided to enjoy it with Seriously Fudgy Homemade Brownies from Sally’s Baking Addiction, and the pairing was delicious. The deep fudgy brownies brought out the caramel and nutty notes in the port to perfection.
Here’s a few other options to try:
- Brownie Cheesecake Bites from Miss Allie’s Kitchen – These take the fudgy brownie example above to the next level with the addition of creamy cheesecake. The richness the cheesecake adds will round out the flavors in the tawny even further.
- Chocolate Chip Cookies from Baker by Nature – Sometimes there’s nothing better than a chocolate chip cookie. The perfect chocolatey, buttery balance of this cookie will enhance the caramel notes in the tawny port.
- Chocolate Peanut Butter Macarons from Broma Bakery – This one may seem counterintuitive since tawny port already has nutty notes, but just try it.
- Banana Walnut Cake from Handle the Heat – Banana baked goods are usually relegated to the morning hours, but give this recipe a try with your evening port, you won’t be disappointed.
- Pear Cake with Crumb Topping from Frosting and Fettuccine – Delicious pear, nutty tawny port, what more can I say?
Ruby Port
Wine Profile
Unlike tawny port, ruby port (as a whole) is meant to be enjoyed young and is more wallet friendly. There are a few quick distinctions worth knowing between the different kinds of ruby port. Your basic ruby port is aged in barrels for three years and brought to market ready to drink as soon as you buy it. At the opposite end of the spectrum is Vintage port. It also only sees barrel time for three years but then it is laid down to age in the bottle for 20 to 40 years. And, of course, it is from a specific year. Not every year is a vintage year because they want to make sure they are bottling the best of the best. This is where you can expect to spend the big dollars.
Perhaps sensing the desire for a happy-medium between these endpoints, the port houses produce Late Bottled Vintage (LBV) Port. It is also of a single vintage, but it follows a different path. It is aged in barrels for four to six years and is then bottled and immediately ready for consumption. As such, it has the quality of a vintage port but not the price tag. LBV port will cost about the same (or a little less) than a 10-year tawny. It has the red fruit notes of a basic ruby port, but has greater depth of flavor from the extra time in barrel and, as such, is your best value in the ruby port space. (So that’s where I’ll focus my recommendations and my pairings.)
Suggested Wines
- I visited Churchill’s in Porto so was excited with I saw their 2013 LBV at Binny’s for $28. Their distribution is not as good, so I’ll give you a few other labels to look for, but get this one if you come across it.
- You can also try: Taylor Fladgate, Warre’s, Dow’s and Niepoort.
How Long It Lasts Open
Ruby port lasts almost as long as tawny port. Store it in a cool place, your refrigerator works great, and use a vacuum sealer if you have it. It should last you about three weeks.
How To Pair It
I’ve pictured it with a lovely board featuring Stilton (blue cheese), pecans, dried figs and dried apricots – all lovely flavors to pair with the red/black fruit notes and oak notes. You could easily replace the Stilton with any kind of blue cheese or other strong cheese, the funkier the better.
If you want to stay in the more traditional dessert space, LBV is great with chocolate, caramel and berry desserts. A few fun options to try:
- Raspberry Rose Chocolate Cupcakes from Broma Bakery – Chocolate, check. Raspberry, check. Delicious with LBV, check.
- Chocolate Fudge from Live Well Bake Often – Rich fudge plus beautiful fruit notes equals a delicious match.
- Chocolate Brownie Cookies from Frosting and Fettucine – I think this one is self-explanatory. (Note that I did try the Seriously Fudgy Homemade Brownies with the LBV. The pairing worked, I simply liked the paring with the tawny port better. Feel free to do your own experimenting and let me know what match you like best.)
- Chocolate Strawberry Hi-Hat Cupcakes from Butternut Bakery – Another perfect chocolate and berry match for LBV.
Wine and Chocolate
As a final note, let me briefly touch on wine and chocolate pairings. I find that a good deal of the conventional pairing wisdom doesn’t work for my palate, so I wanted to do a little research while I had a smattering of dessert wines on hand and open at the same time.
I purchased four bars from Endangered Species Chocolate, all of which were delicious. (I’d never purchased the brand before but fell in love with the labels in store, so I’m happy they turned out to be good.) I then roped the hubby into tasting through each chocolate with the Sauternes, tawny port and ruby port we had open. We also happened to have a pinot noir and sparkling rose open, so we tried those for good measure. I know, I give the hubby really onerous tasks…
The biggest surprise for me was the Sauternes. I’d never had it with chocolate until ‘researching’ this post, and that was clearly a mistake on my part. It was absolutely delightful with the Hazelnut Toffee and Dark Chocolate Bar.
The Caramel Sea Salt + Dark Chocolate went perfectly with the LBV Port. It was an explosion of flavors where every flavor complemented the rest. I’m sure this would work without the sea salt, but it was so good this way.
The Tawny went well with every option, but we liked it best with the straight up Bold + Silky Dark Chocolate. This is a traditional pairing and my taste buds can see why. The nuttiness of the port and the depth of pure cocoa flavor in the chocolate were fantastic together.
The hardest pairing was the Smooth + Creamy Milk Chocolate. I’ve always struggled with milk chocolate and wine. Others would tell me to try port, pinot noir, merlot or sweet sparkling wine. The port mostly worked but it was so much better with the dark chocolate. The pinot noir did not work at all. The milk and sugar in the chocolate made the pinot noir taste bitter and acidic. This is when I pulled out the sparkling rose and thought maybe because it goes with everything else (even steak!). It sort of worked. The milk chocolate did bring out the berry notes, which was nice, but it also brought out the acidity too much. So what was a girl to do? Well, I decided to cheat just a bit. I reached for the cognac, which is made from grapes, but is distilled, which gives it a higher alcohol content than even dessert wines. And it worked flawlessly with the milk chocolate. The best news about my ‘cheating’? You don’t have to worry about cognac going bad (thanks to that extra alcohol) so you can enjoy cognac and milk chocolate any time.
I hope I’ve inspired you with a new pairing to try. If you do give any of these a try let me know how it goes in the comments!