November 23rd, 2006 Dessert Wines' Winter Flavors

Think back to how miserable we were on August 7 this year, and this cool weather seems like a welcome respite from that astounding heat we had only a few months ago. As inviting as the cooler weather is, we seek warmth nonetheless. More robust meals, more warming wines, and heftier desserts become tempting.

Fall fruits are in, from apples to pears and quince. Fresh figs are gone, but dried ones are here. We think about fruit cakes, with their dried fruits and citroen. Pumpkin appears not just in pies, but in breads and cakes. Think about doing a jelly roll-style pumpkin cake rolled with a ginger spiced crème anglaise. And, ah, chocolate and cheeses. Back on August 7, the sweetest thing you wanted was a cooling sorbet. Now, you crave richer, denser desserts, and with them the higher alcohol, fortified wines.

Fortified wines do well with all sorts of desserts, as you can see from this line-up. "Fortified" means neutral grape spirits were used to stop fermentation, leaving residual sugar and alcohol pretty high. Alcohol will run in the double digits, up to about 20%, for just about anything in this category. But when these wines are done right, you don't feel the heat.

Tawny Ports (except colheitas, which are vintage-dated tawnies) and Sherries plus many Australian and South African "stickies" are made in the solera system. This term means the winemaker blends back through many years of wines to achieve a specific style. If a solera is, say 50 years old, that means the oldest wine in the line-up is 50 years old, and as it is used, it is replaced with younger wine. But the blend goes back that far. A 10-, 20- or 40-year-old Tawny Port will contain wine that averages that number of years, with some older and some younger. These are aged in wood, and like Oloroso or Cream Sherries, typically reveal an amber color, or at least amber-edged ruby color. Their cost goes up as the age of the wine in the blend goes up.

Red wine grapes may be fortified in the same way to yield what the French call "vin doux naturel," such as Banyuls or sweet Rasteau. These also are great with heftier desserts, especially those with chocolate or dried dark fruits.

And although we didn't include one, don't overlook Madeiras, which originated on the Portuguese island of Madeira, discovered in the early 15th century. A Malmsey (English for Malvasia) Madeira or a Bual would be fabulous with many of the desserts included in this experiment.

For more inspiration as to desserts that would pair well with these wines, check out the delightful book The Wine Lover's Dessert Cookbook, by Mary Cech and Jennie Schacht (Chronicle Press, 2005), which divides desserts into seasonally appropriate chapters. Those chapters entitled, "Dried Fruits," "Caramel, Honey & Spice," "Nuts," and "Chocolate" will supply much of the season's inspiration. Wine pairings are spot on, it seems to me.

Following along those ideas, I found these matches worked well with a wide range of the most popular sweet conclusions. Serve all moderately cool, about 60 degrees, to enhance fruit and suppress their substantial alcohol, which means you also keep the servings to about 2-3 ounces. Use short tulip-shaped glasses filled just halfway, and you'll keep things in good spirits.

Hope your turkeys were fat and sweet.


Jane Garvey

Food Pairings: Most versatile of all, perhaps: Milk chocolate with hazelnuts or almonds; pecan pie; anything with figs; moist spice cake; plain carrot cake; ginger crème brülée; fruit cake; panforte or any similar plain cake studded with dried fruits; pound cake, pumpkin pie or cheesecake, or pumpkin roll with crème anglaise; chocolate-dipped orange slices

Price: $18 (375ml)
Wholesaler: Empire Distributing

Food Pairings: Dark chocolate plain or with red fruits, especially raspberry; Linzertorte (red raspberries) or Linzzer cookies with a red raspberry center; plain pound cake; plain cheesecake (pour some over it); dark chocolate cake or bar with ancho chili powder; drizzle over vanilla ice cream.

Price: $18 (500ml)
Wholesaler: Empire Distributing

Food Pairings: Nut-centered milk chocolate; ginger crème brülée; pumpkin pudding; apple tart with almonds; spiced glazed nuts; moist spice cake; fruit cake; steamed dried fruit puddings; ripe triple cream cheeses, such as Délice de Bourgogne or Explorateur.

Price: $15
Wholesaler: Big Boat Wine Co.

Food Pairings: Aged Manchego cheese with toasted or Marcona almonds (from Spain) and membrillo (quince paste); pumpkin pie; carrot raisin cake; milk chocolate with nuts; spiced steamed puddings; golden fruit cake; simple cookies; almond cream cake; plain pound cake; apple almond tarts; apple strudel; pecan pie; almond fig cake; tiramisù

Price: $19
Wholesaler: Empire Distributing

Millennium Dolç 2004
Terra Alta, Spain

Score: 95 Points

Tasting Notes: Full-bodied sweet red wine; deep inky dark purple. Sweet aromas of dark fruits, some sense of dried dark fruits, with sweet (but not excessively sweet) dark fruit flavors, especially plums and blackberries. Beautifully integrated, balanced, with easy tannins. Grape type: Garnatxa negre (Grenache noir). In French oak 8 months. Alcohol: 15%; just 6 grams per liter residual sugar. Moderate acidity, less than 6%. Serve moderately cool, about 60 degrees, in a small tulip-shaped glass

Food Pairings: Dark chocolate with nuts; chocolate layer cake with ancho chile powder (from Metrotainment Bakery); dark spice cake; German chocolate cake; dark fruit cake; anything with dried figs; pecan pie; creamy blue cheeses (such as Gorgonzola Dolce or Cambozola).

Price: $44 (375ml)
Wholesaler: Bacco Fine Wine

Rozès Late Bottle Vintage (LBV) Port 1994
Duoro, Portugal

Score: 98 Points

Tasting Notes: Full-bodied sweet dessert wine; ruby amber color. Rich spicy (cinnamon/nutmeg) and toffee aromas and flavors, with nuances of mocha and coffee, Silky texture, with well-balanced fruit and acidity. Long finish. Positively sensual. Grape types: Touriga Nacional; Touriga Franca, Tinta Roriz (a/k/a Tempranillo); Tinta Cão, Tinta Barroca. In French oak 2 years. Stand upright 48 hours, then decant 2-3 hours before serving moderately cool, about 60 degrees, in short tulip-shaped glasses. Great value! 1994 was an excellent year for Port.

Food Pairings: Milk chocolate with nuts; tiramisù;' pastry with dried figs; Stilton with walnuts; pecan pie or other nut-based pastries; fruit cake, spice cake or pound cake; panforte; bread pudding with caramel sauce and nuts; flan or crème caramel; firm aged cheeses

Price: $31
Wholesaler: Quality Wine & Spirits