Wine and Chocolate (Cheese?) Pairing #2

 Wine Lab Wine and Chocolate Flight

223 Gilbert St, Blacksburg, VA 24060

Wine and Chocolate Pairings Overview:

1. Wine: Dry Creek Zinfandel 2019, California
1. Chocolate: Fossa Honey Orchid Tea Milk Chocolate
2. Wine: Blandy's Sercial Madeira 5 year vintage, Spain
1. Chocolate: Zokoko Milk Chocolate with Coffee Chocolate
3. Wine: Dow's Ruby Port, Spain
1. Chocolate: Cacaosuyu Piura 70%

Dry Creek Zinfandel 2019

California, USA

Blend: 81% Zinfandel, 19% Petite Sirah

Price: $26.99

"The 2019 Zinfandel Heritage Vines showed beautifully, with a pure, up-front, silky and textured style as well as classic plum and berry fruits, notes of incense, pepper, and orange blossom, supple tannins, and a great finish. Drink this charming, pleasure-bent beauty over the coming 5-7 years." - Jeb Dunnuck on Wine.com

Specific flavors, aromas, and grape varietal characteristics from Wine Folly:

Primary Flavors:

    Zinfandel: Blackberry, Strawberry, Peach Preserves, Cinnamon, Sweet Tobacco (189 pg)

    Petite Sirah: Sugar Plum, Blueberry, Dark Chocolate, Black Pepper, Black Tea

My Review:

Aroma: fruit forward, red fruits, cherry, raspberry.

Taste: it has a woody after taste, and dark cherry.

Chocolate: fossa honey orchid tea.

Tastes like tea, almost like matcha .

Flavor with pairing: Pronounces the sweet honey flavors of the chocolate and is supported by that woody fruity flavors of the wine. Makes the wine smoother. 

There are medium tannins.

Blandy's Sercial Madeira 

Aged 5 years, fortified wine

Spain 

Price: $29.99

"Deep bright gold color, fresh with dry fruit, wood and citrus flavors with a fresh and nutty persistent finish" -Béla GAJDOS on Vivino

Specific flavors, aromas, and grape varietal characteristics from Wine Folly:

Madeira: Burnt Caramel, Walnut Oil, Peach, Hazelnut, Orange Peel (124 pg)

My Review:

Aroma: It has a vanilla, and molasses smell, like brown sugar almost. Smells like baking supplies.

Taste: It is super sweet and sugary, caramelized flavor, tastes hints of molasses. It is smooth going down, and feels very warm.

Chocolate: Zokoko milk chocolate with coffee chocolate.

Chocolate tastes like sweet espresso beans.

Flavor with pairing: The chocolate creates this very balanced flavor between the sweetness of the wine and the bitterness of the coffee. The combination is very good and is something I could keep eating. 

There were no tannins that I could pick out in this wine.

Dow's Ruby Port

Spain 

Price: $16.99

"This port is a good option if you are looking for a fruity port that isn’t heavy. It’s lighter on the tongue with a burst of raspberry flavors." - Betty Notto on Vivino

Specific flavors, aromas, and grape varietal characteristics from Wine Folly:

Touriga Nacional: Violet, Blueberry, Plum, Mint, Wet Slate (178 pg)

My Review:

Aroma: Rich molasses and dark fruit scents.

Taste: Very sweet, warm and smooth feeling, very sweet molasses flavor. 

Chocolate: Cacaosuyu Piura 70% Peruvian Dark chocolate.

Chocolate tastes bitter and it coats the mouth with this flavor.

Pairing flavor: Balances out the sweetness of the wine and the dark chocolate. The bitterness of the chocolate makes the very syrupy sweet flavor of the port go down better and it brings out more of the fruity and molasses flavors.

There were no tannins that I could pick out in this wine.