Hallowine Pairings
If you enjoy gummy bears, jelly beans, or Sour Patch Kids, these are the wines you need. I’ve been daydreaming about snacking on Lemonheads along with a little Yuzu sake.
If you are a lover of the delightfully chalky rolls of Smarties, I recommend that you crunch away on some with a glass of Icewine. The grapes for Icewine must reach incredibly low temperatures at harvest (we’re talking 18F). Grapes are then pressed when nearly frozen so that only sugar and acidity are extracted. Prices for Icewine (Eiswein in Germany) tend to be quite lofty because the wine requires far more grapes because yields are so low. But when you find a good one, like the Inniskillin, you’ll never turn back.
If you find some sour gummy worms within reach this season, you must take home a bottle of the Hakutsuru Plum Wine. Equally sweet and sour, you’ll find that tangier sweets are going to be perfect with it.
Region: Kinki
Country: Japan
PEACH
ALL the peaches. Put together your favorite food salad, or better yet, some sour peach rings and treat yourself. Tangy and full of flirty bubbles.
YUZU
Everyone needs more yuzu in their life. This sake is just fun. It’s tart, refreshing, and just a little floral. Drink on its own or find your way to some sorbetto, raspberry is ideal!
Region: Niagara Peninsula VQA -
Country: Canada
Grape: Vidal Blanc
Brilliant acidity, and a veritable fruit salad. Ripe mango, orange blossom, & white nectarines. So sharp, so clean.
Region: Kobe, Hyogo
Country: Japan
Raw Ingredient: Plums
Sweet and sour goodness. Barely ripe red plum, pineapple, & candied lime peel. With acidity like cut glass, this wine is absolutely unforgettable.
Chocolate is delicious. If your sweet tooth steers you towards chocolate, any one of these decadent pairings are perfect for you. The Graham’s 30yr deserves a Twix. With notes of brown butter and toffee, this Port is going to sing with rich, chocolaty treats. If you only get down with dark chocolate, the Bigarò from Elio Perrone is what you should reach for. Bursting with notes of wild strawberries, blood oranges, and raspberries, this effervescent blend of Brachetto and Moscato will happily dance alongside the sweet bitterness of your cocoa-filled sweets. Try to fish out the dark chocolate Hershey’s or Ghirardelli squares for this one.
While I do think the Five Farms Irish Cream would pair beautifully with a couple of Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, I’m offering this pairing up as an honorable mention for those of you escorting kiddos around on Halloween. If you’re taking your tiny tots out to trick-or-treat, you might snag a few Five Farms 50mls to add to your hot cocoa or PSL. Just saying…
Region: Porto DO - Douro
Country: Portugal
Grapes: Touriga Nacional, Touriga Franca, & Tinta Roriz
Acacia honey, caramelized peaches, brown butter, and beautifully lifted acidity.
Region: Piedmont
Country: Italy
Grapes: Brachetto, Moscato
Barely there bubbles, strawberry Fruit Roll Ups, and tart raspberries. This is one of our most popular dessert wines because it goes with everything!
Region: County Cork
Country: Ireland
The Irish cream used for this comes from happy Irish cows. The final product yields notes of maple, creme caramel, and Tahitian vanilla. Add some to your next latte.
Tootsie pops, candy corn, caramel chews, Snickers. If this is the junk food you crave, these wines belong on your grocery list. Oh, those yellow-wrapped Charleston Chews would be good too…
A Caramel Apple Pops would be so fun with a glass of the Vietti Moscato along with it. Freshly sliced Fuji apples and white peach notes make this wine too easy to drink.
If you were ever bummed out as a kid when you eventually reached the Werther’s Original phase of your Halloween haul, as an adult, you should embrace grandma’s favorite hard candy. The gingery, pineapple notes of the Molino Real Mountain Blanco will only make that butterscotch goodness sweeter.
Region: Sauternes AOC - Graves, Bordeaux
Country: France
Grapes: Sémillon, Sauvignon Blanc
Golden honey, apricots, & orange blossom. This is your everyday Sauternes (does such a thing really exist?). The Sémillon here makes this wine shine. Fierce acidity and candied lemon set this wine apart.
Region: Moscato d'Asti DOCG - Piedmont
Country: Italy
Grapes: Moscato
Light and spritzy. This Moscato is chock full of Pink Lady apples and Anjou pears. Find the nearest pound cake and go to town.
Region: Sierras de Málaga DO - Andalucía
Country: Spain
Grape: Moscatel
Sunshine in a bottle. Delicate orange peel, sumptuous acidity. Each mouthful takes you further outside your body.
