Some wines don’t pair well with desserts. If you select the right combination, a good pairing will enhance the wine and dessert flavors. Matching these flavors and notes is the key to taking your dessert game to a new level.
When choosing the right wine for dessert, you don’t have to stick with just dessert wines. Varieties like Riesling, Merlot, Pinot Noir, Moscato, and Cabernet are great choices. Be mindful of the color of the wine compared to your dessert; you can eliminate most wines that are significantly different colors than the dessert. Here are some of our pairing recommendations for desserts at The Venetian.
New York Style Cheesecake
For our New York Style Cheesecake, we recommend Moscato, which goes well with nearly any cheesecake flavor and toppings. This white wine is famous for its sweet peach, orange, and nectarine flavors. Like Moscato, Sherry is made from white grapes and goes very well with sweet desserts. It has a rich mahogany color and a smooth velvety texture that helps a slice of cheesecake go down well. Many bottles of Sherry wine also tend to have a salty taste which pairs perfectly with cheesecakes with fruit toppings.
Fresh Cannoli
When indulging in fresh cannolis, it is critical to pair it with a sweet wine. The bitterness in red wine can clash with the sweetness of cannolis. The citrus notes and dry aromatics of white wine can also confuse your palate. They produce a wide array of sweet wines in Sicily called Vini Passiti/Vino Passito. These are the best to pair with fresh cannolis if you want something that will complement the flavors.
Chocolate or Carrot Cake
Some red wines have great hints of chocolate, which will be evident when paired with a rich chocolate cake. Syrah, Cabernet, and Grenache are some of the best wines with chocolate cake. Sherry is an excellent choice when indulging in carrot cake. Because sherry is slightly sweet and has a dry finish, it will pair nicely with a carrot cake.
Gelato and Sorbet
Almost any sorbet tastes excellent with any bubbly, semi-sweet dessert wine. Pour Moscato over sorbet for a refreshing sorbet float! Opt for an off-dry riesling to pair with gelato. Riesling is characterized by the aromas of white peaches, apricots, and nectarine. Chardonnay is also a great option to pair with gelato and sorbet – the butterier, the better. The ice cream’s rich, nutty, toasty flavors mimic the aromas of chardonnay.
Visit Us To Try These Pairings.
If you are looking for a delicious dessert with the perfect wine pairing, come to The Venetian in Weymouth, MA! We have plenty of red and white wine options – sold by bottle or glass – not to mention our delicious Italian cuisine. Visit us today, make reservations online, or order takeout today.