Introduction Do you want to seduce someone this Valentine’s Day? Forget the lingerie, lipstick and silk-tie handcuffs – just share a glass or two of wine with your amour. Just in time for V Day, I’m going to share with you my favourite wines for seduction, including some melt-in-your-mouth pairings with chocolate. Highlights Why do almost 60% of women prefer wine over candy for V Day? Why has Champagne, in particular, has long been the drink of romance Why is Pinot Noir called the “heartbreak grape”? How can you avoid ruining your wine with chocolate? Is chocolate an aphrodisiac […]
Chocolate & Wine
Wine + Chocolate Killer Combos: Valentine’s Day Video
In our second video chat above, Master Chocolatier Derrick Tu Tan Pho reveals more of his secrets for pairing wine and chocolate, especially for Valentine’s Day. He’s also designed some lovely chocolate creations, and suggests rosemary-infused chocolate with habanero sea salt as an aprodisiac that pairs amazingly well with prosciutto and cheese (and a bear skin rug in front of a blazing fireplace) … What are your tips on pairing solid chocolate with wine? How about chocolate with raspberry or blackberry filling? How about Valentine’s Day? Anything special for the chocolate versus chocolate we enjoy at other times […]
Video: Valentine’s Day Wine and Chocolate Pairings
In the video chat above, Master Chocolatier Derrick Tu Tan Pho shares his tips for pairing wine and chocolate for Valentine’s Day and any other time of the year when you want to indulge. He knows his sweet stuff having won gold at the Culinary Olympics in the categories of sugar, chocolate, wedding cakes and dessert presentation. How did you train for the culinary Olympics? Your secrets to making great chocolate? What is the strangest chocolate sculpture you’ve created? Tell me about some of your specialized tools for making chocolate: induction burners, ganache frames, guitars, robot-coupes, heat guns and […]
Chocolate and Wine Pairings that will Surprise (and Seduce) Your Valentine
We paired wine and chocolate for Valentine’s Day the Sunday Sipper Club! You can watch our Live Video Wine Tasting above — click on the arrow to play. Join is for our next tasting this Sunday at 6 pm eastern right here: www.nataliemaclean.com/live Sip with you soon! In this second Facebook Live Video Wine Tasting above, we also chat about pairing wine with chocolate for Valentine’s Day. We’re joined by guest winemaker, David Guimaraen of Fonseca to help us get ready for the big day, as well by guests from Chocolaterie Bernard Callebaut. If you’d like to read 140 comments […]
Mrs. Beachley’s Mulled Wine: A Heart-Warming Holiday Drink
Sponsored Post While Mulled Wine is known by many names and enjoyed the world over–the Swedes call it Glogg; the Chileans Candola and the Dutch Bisschopswijn–this heart and tummy-warming beverage is best known for its British heritage. Mrs. Beachley’s Mulled Wine pays homage to the 1861 classic “Beeton’s Book of Household Management“, the go-to manual for how to run a home in Victorian England. In that book and in the 150 years since its publication, a wealth of usage occasions and mulled wine pairing ideas, have emerged. Whether you enjoy Mrs. Beachley’s out of a thermos at the outdoor rink […]
Wine and Truffle Pairing: Wild Mushroom Matches for Wine
By Priya and Alex What could be better than truffles? Not the chocolate kind (although those are pretty fantastic too!) but the really decadent kind that are hunted in forests by dogs! Most of us have probably owned truffle oil or truffled salt but how many of us have experienced authentic truffle products direct from a family who hunts them? We’d guess not many! It’s no surprise then, that we were so excited to meet the Truffle Lady aka Wanda Srdoc of www.whitetruffles.ca. Truffles are her specialty and have been central to her family in Istria, Croatia since the early […]
Chocolate and Wine Pairings for Valentine’s Day
In this short video, we pair wine and chocolate for Valentine’s Day … and every day in the year. Who needs a special occasion? You can find more tips on pairing chocolate and wine here. Explore delicious new matches that will surprise you with their flavour combinations. Here are my favourite wines for chocolate in stores now. This video is part of an ongoing wine series with Canadian Press and is posted with permission.
Pairing Wine with Chocolate: Follow Your Nose
By Jessica Nagy Pairing wine with chocolate is about more than just rich desserts and powerful Ports or Amarones; it’s a subtle art that can have a big impact on the entire meal if done well. I recently spoke with Sommelier Rebecca Meïr-Liebman about how she takes on this challenge in a series of Sweet & Savoury chocolate-inspired dinners that she hosts with her husband, Chef Eyal Liebman, in Toronto. The next dinner will take place November 8 with all proceeds going to support Second Harvest. “I start by choosing the winery,” says Rebecca. In this case, it’s Niagara’s Henry […]
Wine and Truffles in Italy: Chef Massimo Capra
In the video above, Chef Massimo Capra talks about his most memorable wine during a truffle dinner on a hillside in Italy. He also talks about the Grand Cru Culinary Wine Festival and a special wine on auction, Tignanello. You can watch part one of our wine chat here. Antinori 2009 Tignanello Massimo has chosen to taste one of the wines that will be featured at the Grand Cru Festival Auction this year: Tignanello is produced exclusively from the vineyard of the same name, a parcel of some 140 acres (57 hectares) at 1150-1325 feet (350-400 meters) […]
Red Wine and Cupcake Pairings: Red Velvet and Chocolate Guinness Meet Their Match
In our second video, we chat about pairing red wines with cupcakes: think red velvet, chocolate chocolate and chocolate Guinness (Belgian dark chocolate dipped in Guinness beer). Even lighter and drier red wines, such as pinot noir, have a place beside cupcakes. Discover some great combinations with the owners of Ottawa’s Cupcake Lounge. You can also watch part one of our chat where we pair carrot, butterscotch bourbon and maple cinnamon cupcakes with white wines and sparkling wines. The research never ends ;) Natalie: We are back with Claudia Arizmendi and Bill McGuiness, owners of Ottawa’s Cupcake Lounge. We are […]
