Festive Hosting Series EP1: Can You Only Drink Sweet Wines with Dessert?

Wine pairing can be exciting. It can also be intimidating.  The simple fact that there are so many possibilities to match and complement flavours and textures in food and drink makes it a whirlwind of thoughts when planning the perfect party to host with your nearest and dearest. Sweet wines, in particular, are where we get asked more than any other wine style on how to compose the perfect pairing.

Traditionally, of course, many people associate sweet wines exclusively with dessert. While it’s true that most sweet wines will match a plethora of sweet treats, limiting them to the end of the meal is missing a huge opportunity to enjoy some of the most painstakingly produced wines in the world throughout the dinner card.

From savoury dishes to spicy fare, and even standing out on their own as aperitifs or digestifs, we’re going to explore the relationship between sweet wines and different flavours in food. We’ll debunk the myths, and delve into some of the lesser-known but classic pairings with a wide range of dishes.

Understanding Sweet Wines

When thinking about the pairings, it’s important to know what kind of sweet wine we’re dealing with.

Styles of sweet wines can be distinguished by 4 key factors:

• Grape varieties
• Region
• In the vineyard – How sweetness in grapes is accumulated
• In the winery – Production methods

The most common techniques for making sweet wine:

• Late Harvesting: Grapes are harvested later in the season when they are fully ripe or even overripe, concentrating the sugars. Often seen in the Loire Valley or Alsace.
• Noble Rot (Botrytis Cinerea): A beneficial mould that affects the grapes, reducing water content and concentrating sugars, commonly used in wines like Sauternes.
• Fortification: Adding spirits to wine during fermentation stops the process, leaving some natural sugars intact, as seen in Port.
• Ice Wine: Grapes are left on the vine well into the winter where they are frozen. Producers will separate the frozen water from the remaining concentrated grape juice and then ferment it. This is often seen in Canada and Germany.

The Golden Rules of Sweet Wine Pairing

It makes sense that many believe sweet wine is only for dessert. Sweet goes with sweet. We know that and it’s an easy choice for us to make. But with a few golden clues on how sweetness in wine can interact with a variety of flavours, you’ll soon see how versatile these beautiful wines are.

• Sweet wines can balance and contrast saltiness in food.
• The texture and sweetness can tame and complement spicy heat.
• The high, balancing acidity in sweet wines can complement rich, fatty flavours.
• The sucrose also creates a contrast with bitterness or acidity in food.

The Ultimate Sweet Wine Pairing Guide

1. Sweet Wines and Desserts

We don’t want to ignore the classic sweet wine and dessert pairings, so our first section of matching sweet wines is given over to some classic (and not-so-classic) dessert pairings:

#1 – Sauternes and Crème Brûlée: Sauternes is a luscious, sweet wine from Bordeaux that pairs beautifully with the caramelised sugar and creamy custard of crème brûlée.

Give a try! Sauternes and Jaffa Cakes…trust us!
Our Pick: Château Suduiraut 2004, Premier Cru Classé, Sauternes, Bordeaux

#2 – Moscato d’Asti and Fruit Tart: The light, bubbly sweetness of Moscato d’Asti makes it a great companion for fruit-based desserts, such as peach or berry tart.

Give a try! Moscato D’Asti and a good ol’ Victoria Sponge with your afternoon tea.

#3 – Port and Chocolate: The richness of a vintage Port, with its dark fruit flavours and full body, is the perfect match for a dark chocolate dessert. The tannins in Port can stand up to the intensity of the chocolate, while the wine’s sweetness balances the bitterness.

Give a try! If you’re feeling a tad profligate, use Vintage Port as a base for a fruit compote on pancakes.

Our Pick: Niepoort 20-year-old Tawny, Portugal

2. Sweet Wines and Savoury

For those of you quite new to the idea of sweet wine with savoury dishes, here are just a few of the truly great and classic combinations that have been discovered over the years.

#1 – Duck liver pate and Sauternes: This is a world-famous pairing for a reason. The buttery richness of duck liver is beautifully counterbalanced by the acidity and sweetness of Sauternes. The wine’s notes of apricot, honey, and tropical fruit cut through the fat, creating a perfect contrast.

Our Pick: Château Suduiraut 2005, Premier Cru Classé, Sauternes, Bordeaux

#2 – Blue Cheese and Port: The saltiness and strong flavour of blue cheese is balanced by the sweetness and richness of Port. This combination works especially well as an end-of-meal cheese course but can also be a savoury snack.

Our Pick: Niepoort LBV Port 2019 

#3 – Sweet Aromatic Wine with Spicy Asian Cuisine: A slightly sweet or off-dry aromatic wine, such as Gewurztraminer, Riesling or Pinot Gris, is a fantastic match for spicy foods like Thai or Indian cuisine. The sweetness in the wine cools the heat of dishes with chillies, while its acidity keeps the pairing from becoming cloying. Try it with dishes like Pad Thai, spicy curry, or Szechuan chicken.

Our Pick: Justin Boxler, Gewurztraminer, Lieu-Dit Pfoeller, Alsace

#4 – Honeyed Goat Cheese and Late Harvest Wines: Pairing sweet wine with tangy cheese is another great match. Goat cheese has an inherent acidity that cuts through the sweetness in Late Harvest Wines. Adding a bit of honey to the goat cheese and serving it with toasted bread or crackers amplifies the pairing, creating a delightful balance of tangy, sweet, and creamy.

Our Pick: Jean-Luc Mouillard, Straw Wine, Jura, France

3. Sweet Wines as Aperitifs and Digestifs

Sweet wines can be enjoyed on their own, either as an aperitif to start a meal or as a digestif to finish it.

#1 – Aperitif: A good quality sweet wine always comes with a rather high acidity level to balance the sweetness. Hence, a glass of sweet wine can be served as an aperitif to “wake up” and stimulate your palate. Light, sweet wines like Moscato d’Asti or a chilled late-harvest Riesling can be an excellent way to kick off a meal.

Our Pick: HJ Weimer, Riesling Late Harvest, Finger Lakes, New York, USA

#2 – Digestif: On the other hand, richer sweet wines like Port or Sherry are often served at the end of the meal to help with digestion.

Our Pick – Niepoort Colheita 2007

4. Sweet Wine with Everyday Dishes

It doesn’t have to be about waiting for fancy dinner parties before you crack open your bottles of sweet wines. If you like them, then there is a whole host of great food pairings throughout the week to take advantage of:

#1 – Pizza and Sweet Reds: Sweet reds, with their combo of acidity, residual sugar and tannin pair wonderfully with the richness of cheese and tomato base.

Our Pick: Viña Los Valles, Romasanta, Sweet Grenache, Rioja

#2 – Fried Chicken and Off-Dry Sparkling Wine: We know what you’re thinking, we’ve just added a few quid to your bargain bucket night, but go with it! The mild sweetness of an off-dry sparkling wine cuts through the salty, crispy skin of fried chicken, creating a balanced and unexpected pairing.

Our Pick: Molmenti & Celot, Prosecco Extra Dry

Experiment and Find What You Like

As with so much in life, wine pairing is subjective. The ONLY way to really discover your favourite pairings is to experiment. While there are guidelines that suggest which wines go best with certain foods, don’t be afraid to try unconventional combinations. Sparkling sweet wines and salty popcorn, why not?! Late harvest whites and fish finger sarnies? Give it a try! There’s a lot of fun to be had with sweet wines!

Next in our Festive Hosting Series: How to Pair Wine with Spices?

This Blog post is written by Mike Turner
Freelance wine writer, presenter and judge

Mike is a regular contributor for The Buyer magazine and is a certified educator and ambassador for Bordeaux, Rioja, Ribera Del Duero, Barolo and Barbaresco, running trade and consumer events across the UK from his base in the East Midlands.