Chocolate & Wine

Wein und Bitterschokolade

Silky finish, incomparable sweetness, fine spices - wine or chocolate? Both can be described very well with these enjoyable attributes. And because these flavor components not only harmonize very well with each other in terms of taste, but even enhance each other, the combination of chocolate and wine promises completely new pleasurable experiences - you will simply melt away!

Facts

  • 1544

    was the first time, when chocolate was drunk at the Spanish court

  • 7 Euro

    costs a kilogram of cocoa beans

  • 48 %

    cocoa mass is founded in dark chocolate

The Chocolate Side of Wine

For a long time, the combination of chocolate and wine was considered incompatible. Admittedly, harmonious combinations of dry, fresh white wine with the melting and sweetness of chocolate are rather rare. The troublemaker in this relationship is the acidity of the wine, which can be pointed and dissonant in such a pairing.

Real Seduction Artists
But the liaison of chocolate with the melting and lush power of a noble sweet wine such as a Beerenauslese or even a Trockenbeerenauslese is truly seductive. Red wines are also a welcome companion to chocolate. Basically, the sweeter the chocolate, the sweeter and milder the acidity of the wine should be, so that the delicate balance is maintained.

A little gourmet tip from chocolate maker Eberhard Schell: Initially, you should taste the wine on its own. Then melt the chocolate in your mouth and sip the wine again. And then: just enjoy! Another sip of wine enhances the taste experience.

Chocolate is looking for Wine

Milk chocolate impresses with its silky finish and mild sweetness. Milk chocolates with a cocoa content of 32 to 49 percent harmonize perfectly with strong white wines from the Pinot family, but also with Riesling. The wines should also have a melty, creaminess, a subtle acidity and fine fruit notes. Mild Auslesen made from Riesling or Pinot Gris grapes, for example, are a good match. When it comes to red wine, varieties such as Lemberger, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot or Cuvées, that are low in tannins but can have a light vanilla note, are suitable.

Dark chocolates with 55 to 75 percent cocoa are wonderfully combined with fruity wines that bring some residual sweetness. Even sweet wines and fruity red wines like to enter into a liaison with these semi-sweet dark chocolate types, especially if they contain fruit.

Lovers of dark bitter chocolate containing up to 85 percent cocoa, swear by the pairing with dense, expressive red wines with smooth, but clearly perceptible tannins: dry Dornfelder and Lemberger, aged in barrels or wooden barrels, result in a wonderful balance with bitter chocolate.

A "Dream Wedding in White" - comes to mind if you let white chocolate melt on your tongue together with a fine fruity Riesling ice wine. The harmonic play arises here through the sweetness and finesse in both the wine and the chocolate.

No Problem when Choosing a Partner

Regardless of whether the chocolate is whole milk, dark bitter or nut: an aromatic wine goes with almost every sort. Particularly harmonious are Traminer, Muskateller and Scheurebe.

Chocolate maker Eberhard Schell: "Aromatic varities such as Traminer, Muskateller and Scheurebe combined with the right chocolate, achieve the best possible taste."

Eberhard Schell, Schell Chocolate Manufacturer

 

How does the wine get a chocolate touch?

Like vanilla or tobacco aromas, chocolate notes are usually created by aging and maturing the wine in barrique barrels. Among other things, roasted aromas are responsible for this, which arise from the toasting of the wood and are reminiscent of roasted cocoa beans.

More recipe ideas

the classic with a difference Franconian cider soup

the classic with a difference

  • 500 ml Weißwein (Spätlese)
  • 500 ml Geflügelbrühe
  • 350 ml Sahne
  • 30 Gramm Zwiebeln
  • 30 Gramm Weißes vom Lauch
  • 30 Gramm Sellerie
  • 30 Gramm Karotten
  • 30 Gramm Butter
  • 180 Gramm Mehl
  • 2 Lorbeerblätter
  • 1 EL Butterschmalz
  • 4 Scheiben Weißbrot
  • Nach Belieben Zucker, Muskat, Zimt, Salz

Sauté the vegetables in butter until lightly browned, dust with flour and then add the vegetable stock, wine and 250 ml cream. Add the spices and simmer for approx. 15 minutes.

 

Remove the crusts from the slices of white bread and cut into 1 cm cubes. Fry in hot clarified butter until golden brown and season with cinnamon, whip the remaining cream until stiff.

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<p> Strain the soup and flavour with nutmeg and salt.

 

Pour into deep plates, garnish with whipped cream and the cinnamon crusts.

  • Müller-Thurgau (trocken)
  • Silvaner (trocken)

with chanterelle and onion leek, served with potato and grilled cheese ragout in grilled tomato Chop of Hunsrück veal

with chanterelle and onion leek, served with potato and grilled cheese ragout in grilled tomato

  • 4 x 300 Gramm Kotelettes
  • 250 Gramm Pfifferlinge
  • 4 große Kartoffeln
  • 2 große Grilltomaten
  • 180 Gramm Flammkäse
  • 50 Gramm Knollensellerie
  • 200 ml Spätburgunder
  • 200 ml Sahne
  • 50 Gramm Butterschmalz
  • 2 EL Butter
  • 1 EL Rapsöl
  • 6 Stück Lauchzwiebeln
  • 1 kleine Knoblauchzehe
  • je 1 Zweig Thymian & Rosmarin
  • je 1 TL Majoran & Oregano
  • nach Belieben Salz & Pfeffer

Peel the potatoes, celery and garlic clove, crush the garlic and cut the potatoes and celery into small cubes. Heat the rapeseed oil in a pan, add the potato and celery cubes, sauté briefly and top up with ⅔ of the cream. Season with salt, pepper and the crushed garlic and leave to simmer for approx. 6 minutes. Add the oregano, marjoram,

add a little thyme and the diced flambé cheese and remove from the oven immediately.

 

Season the veal chops with pepper, fry in the pan in hot clarified butter for approx. 3 to 4 minutes on both sides and then cook in the oven at 160 degrees for 8 to 9 minutes. Then leave the meat to rest briefly.

 

Cut the grilled tomatoes in half, remove the skin, place on a baking tray and fill with the potato and flambé ragout. Place the baking tray in the oven with the chops for approx. 6 - 7 minutes. Add 1 tbsp of butter and the sprig of rosemary to the roasting mixture, deglaze with the Pinot Noir, reduce a little and refine with the remaining cream. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

 

Clean the chanterelles and spring onions. Wash the spring onions well, cut into 5 cm pieces, blanch briefly in salted water and rinse in ice water. Heat 1 tbsp butter in a pan, add the chanterelles and sauté for 2 - 3 minutes. Add the spring onions and the rest of the thyme and season with salt and pepper.

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  • Riesling (trocken)

with apples Pork medallions

with apples

  • 8 Stück Schweinemedaillons
  • 500 Gramm Bandnudeln
  • 2 große Äpfel
  • 200 ml Sahne
  • 10 Blättchen frischer Salbei
  • 4 Zweige frischer Thymian
  • nach Geschmack Zucker
  • 3 EL Calvados
  • 1 EL Öl
  • zum Abschmecken Salz & Pfeffer

Slightly pepper and salt the medallions on both sides. Pluck the thyme, cut the sage into fine strips and roll the medallions in the herbs. Fry the meat in a pan with a little oil on both sides, not too hot, until it starts to colour. Remove from the pan and place on a preheated tray in the oven at 100 °C until cooked through.

 

Cook the tagliatelle al dente and keep warm.

 

In the meantime, peel the apples and cut into slices approx. 1.5 cm wide. Reheat the meat pan and add the apple slices. After about half a minute, sprinkle 1 teaspoon of sugar over the apples and allow them to caramelise. After a minute, deglaze the apple slices with a generous dash of Calvados and flambé. Add the cream and flavour with salt and pepper.

 

Remove the fillet from the oven. Add the meat juices from the oven dish to the sauce and serve the fillets with the tagliatelle, apple slices and Calvados apple sauce.

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  • Riesling (trocken)

with pumpkin and white wine sauce Pasta with pumpkin and white wine sauce

with pumpkin and white wine sauce

  • 750 Gramm Butternut-Kürbis(se)
  • 3 kleine Zwiebeln
  • 2 Zehen Knoblauch
  • 1 Becher Crème fraîche
  • 250 ml trockener Weißwein
  • 500 ml Gemüsebrühe
  • 25 Gramm Parmesan oder ähnlicher Hartkäse
  • 400 Gramm Spaghetti oder andere Nudeln
  • nach Geschmack Salz, Pfeffer, Zucker
  • 4 EL Kürbiskerne, evtl. gehackt
  • nach Belieben Muskat, Thymian

Sauté the garlic and onions until translucent. Dice the butternut squash and add, season with pepper and sugar. When the cubes are still firm, pour in the white wine and vegetable stock. Continue cooking until the squash is firm to the bite.

 

In the meantime, cook and drain the pasta.

 

Add the thyme, nutmeg, salt and crème fraîche to the boiling pumpkin, bring to the boil and thicken. Stir in the parmesan and season to taste. You can also crush some diced pumpkin to make the sauce sweeter.

 

Arrange the pasta on plates and top with the pumpkin sauce.

Sprinkle with pumpkin seeds.

  • Scheurebe (trocken)