PAIRING DESSERTS AND WINE

CHEESECAKE, FRUIT PIES, AND BANANA SPLITS -- GOT WINE?

Pairing desserts and wine will make your evening a success. One of the long-standing rules is to pair sweets with sweet. As a rule of thumb, a wine should be sweeter than the dessert it accompanies. Sparkling wine OR liqueurs are also a good match with sweet desserts

When pairing desserts and wine the same rules apply as when pairing food and wine. Match the flavors in both the dessert and the wine. Here is a little tip.

BALANCE IS KEY Acidity and Sugar levels must be balanced in both the food and wine. If not balanced, the very sweet dessert will make the wine seem more tannic, less sweet and more acidic. Work with both the aromas and flavors of the wine to get a great match for pairing desserts.

DESSERT THEME PARTY

Dessert can be the favorite part of the meal, and the best part of the party. When you're dining at one of your favorite restaurants don't you look at the dessert menu before before ordering the main course? Oh, sure you do! That way you can order an entré that is lighter so you can enjoy that delicious dessert.

Or maybe you really just need an excuse to enjoy dessert. Do you feel guilty splurging on a piece of chocolate cheesecake? Invite your friends and family for a dessert and wine tasting at home. This is, by far, the best theme party, get together, or wine tasting you could ever imagine. And you won't feel guilty having one extra slice of cheesecake.

If you want to surprise your guests with home-made goodies, here are some easy dessert recipes that you can prepare for your dessert and wine pairing party.

COMFORT FOOD SWEETS

Pairing desserts and wine is what you want to do with some of your favorite comfort food desserts. What can be more comforting than chocolate, ice cream and cheesecake. Add an old fashioned fruit pie and you'll be set.

The next best thing is to serve great wine. Here are pairing suggestions for some of your favorite desserts.

Fruit Desserts and Ice Cream

Gewürztraminer is a wine you should have on hand to pair with your fruit desserts. It has a firm acidity to balance the sugars in the fruit of the desserts.

Gewürztraminers can be either sweet or dry, so you can really decide for yourself how sweet you would like your wine. It is a delicious varietal and with aromas of mango, passion fruit, lychee nuts and nectarines it makes a great wine when pairing desserts.

Ice Cream has too much fat and because it is frozen it can numb your palate. This is a double whammy which can make pairing a wine with ice cream a bit of a challenge. Do try a Pedro Ximinez Sherry. You can either sip it or pour it on top of your ice cream dessert -- or both!

Cheesecake

A rich wine like a Sauternes from France, a Gewürztraminer, or Riesling from Alsace are 3 wines that just may have the ability to match up with the richness of cheesecake.

A Moscato d'Asti is a light sparkling white wine that is considered a dessert wine. Its sweetness accentuates the flavor of a chocolate cheesecake with fruit accents such as raspberry, strawberry or blueberry. Moscato d'Asti is one wine to have in your cellar especially around the holidays or whenever you know you will be having a party.

Pair a dessert wine with a fruity sweetness to match the sweetness of the dessert, and with acidity to contrast and enhance the the flavors of the cheesecake.

If you really don't want to go with a sweet wine, do try a rosé wine or even a light floral red wine such as a Beaujolais with flavors of strawberry and/or raspberry.

Coffee and Dessert

Serve a delicious cappuccino and other specialty coffees with your desserts. Here is a site I recommend CoffeeSnoop.com where you will find a recipe for cappuccino and ideas to help you serve delicious coffee with your desserts.

Serve Dessert First and "Taste Wine and Enjoy!"

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