chocolate pairings
Divine, Cheese, and Wine!
January 4, 2016
A friend of mine, Amanda, recently moved into new a home. “I’ll bring the wine and cheese”, says my friend Kathy. “I’ll bring the chocolate”, I say, “Why don’t we pair the chocolate with the wine and see what happens?”
They agreed to the plan, but confessed to not having much experience consuming the two at the same time. However, being lovers of both chocolate and wine, they couldn’t see a downside. This would be an opportunity to eat, drink wine, and experiment – a few of our favorite activities!
Beer and Chocolate Pairings
June 8, 2015
Beer and Chocolate Pairings? What - you may ask? Yes, I am telling you that beer and chocolate can make a great pairing duo. This is not a conclusion I came easily to, but after a few samples and hits of the flavor wheel, I was convinced. Craft beer and chocolate can make great companions!
The Versatility of Chocolate
October 3, 2014
I’ve been eating a different chocolate each day for more than eight years. I love the unadulterated flavor notes in a well-made single origin chocolate bar. However, I’ve also come to admire the amazing versatility of cacao after blending different chocolates with fruits, nuts, spices, beverages and savory items over time.
What makes good flavor blends in food? Fresh ingredients, and a skillful mix of the five basic tastes--salty, sweet, bitter, sour, umami (meaty, savory)--are two considerations. And these do apply to chocolate as well.
BitterSweet: Beer+Chocolate
October 4, 2011
As you may have read in the earlier blog posts, one of the things that makes a chocolate and beer tasting great is the fact that it is unusual, yet it works! Even people who say they don’t like beer, often do like chocolate so everyone can enjoy the event.
Last week’s Craft:Beer+Food event was a huge hit, the pairings were sublime. If you weren’t able to attend, fret not, as a sequel to this delightful affair is anticipated. After Craft:Beer+Food comes the next big thing, BitterSweet:Beer+Chocolate. It is a non-profit happening that enables local breweries to showcase their beers along with the remarkable chocolates of Seattle’s own Theo Chocolate.
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Chocolate and Wine Pairing
September 29, 2011
Although wine is pleasurable all its own, most people pair it with an array of different foods as it magnifies the tastes of those food. But did you know that wine and chocolate make a good pair? When the combination is created correctly, it gives a divine blast of taste in the mouth.
First and foremost, you need to make an appropriate choice of chocolate. Grabbing any chocolate bar available won't be enough as they don't hold distinctive flavors. Gourmet chocolates are your best bet, be it dark, white, or milk chocolate.
With regard to the wine you’ll be pairing the chocolate with, you need to find one that is at least as sweet as the chocolate, maybe even slightly sweeter. One of the main rules in pairing them is that the distance between wine and chocolate sweetness should always be short because if the wine isn't sweet enough, the sour notes of wine will make it appear hollow, which makes it a horrible combination.
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Chocolate Categories and Pairings
August 30, 2011
Over the last couple of centuries, the cacao bean been has been used in many different ways such as medicine, as money, etc. But today, we eat it almost exclusively for pleasure.
There are different varieties of cacao beans and it has been said that each strain has been significantly changed due to its tree’s ability to naturally cross-pollinate, not to mention all the intended hybridization of the cacao bean for the past centuries.
Cacao beans go through a lot of processing to produce the chocolate we all love. They are harvested, fermented, dried, roasted, and ground to make chocolate liquor, which is then further processed into cocoa solids and cocoa butter.
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A Refreshing, Summer Pairing
July 18, 2011
Like most people, I crave a sweet treat at the end of a meal. In the summer, when food is generally on the lighter side, I like something sweet but not TOO sweet.
After you‘ve eaten your grilled chicken breasts and pasta salad, try this pairing between Ghirardelli LUXE MILK™ Toffee and Round Hill Chardonnay.
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Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins
May 18, 2011
Breakfast is considered to be the most important meal of the day. This is the best time to eat larger portions of food because you will be able to make use of the calories for energy all throughout the day.
You can easily buy muffins on the shelves of your local bakery or grocery. However, nothing beats homemade muffins.
With a few enhancements, such as simply adding fruit toppings like banana, you are on your way to giving yourself a healthy and delicious delight. Banana is one of the most popular fruits to combine with chocolate. It simply gives you a fruity taste with a twist of chocolate goodness!
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Chocolate Tasting Interview
February 10, 2011
A few weeks ago I was interviewed for an article with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel newspaper. That article appeared in the print version yesterday and online the day before.
There's some great information about tasting chocolate as well as pairing chocolate and wine. Click this link for the full chocolate and wine article.
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Chocolate and Cheese Pairings
February 3, 2011
I found a great article from the California Milk Advisory Board (CMAB) offering guidelines for chocolate and cheese pairings.
With all my pairings, I consider matching flavor profiles from the chocolate’s perspective...
Since dark chocolates offer a complex set of flavors, it makes sense that the best matches would be complex, aged cheeses.
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