The Best Wines To Pair With Dark Chocolate

Chocolate and wine are an iconic duo everyone wants to pair together, but the result isn't always flawless. There are endless types of wine on the market and various styles of chocolate with unique flavor profiles. Matching just the right bottle to a complementary piece (okay, bar) of chocolate isn't as easy as picking your two favorites. While there's something to be said about savoring what you like, even if it isn't technically an ideal pairing, it's also nice to have some guidance to enhance the combination.

As a certified specialist of wine, a lot of the knowledge I've gained is quite niche, but the practical applications shine when pairing food and wine. Desserts (like chocolate) can be harder to match if you opt for the same bottle you paired with your main dish. Typically, you'll want to make sure the wine is sweeter than what you're eating to prevent it from tasting overly acidic. However, that's not the only factor to consider. Other elements like complementary and contrasting flavors play a role, as does the intensity of the food and wine.

If you're looking to delight your senses with wine and dark chocolate (50% cocoa solids and above), you've come to the right place. I've assembled a selection of options for your next wine and chocolate-fueled experience.

Port is a classic combination with chocolate, and it's not uncommon to purchase chocolate cups to fill with the fortified wine. Plus, port pairs well with cheeses and other desserts, making it an excellent option post-meal. The two main styles, tawny and ruby, both pair well with chocolate, and you'll want to curate your choice based on the chocolate in question and your preference. Ruby is a great place for port newbies to start, with its pleasantly palatable nature and notes of red fruits and spices. Meanwhile, tawny port features dried fruit and nutty notes on the palate.

There are plenty of port producers, but an icon in the industry is Taylor Fladgate. The winery's fine ruby port is smooth on the palate and brimming with a fruity character from notes of berries and black fruits. To add depth to the combo, sip a glass of ruby port alongside a rich dark chocolate ganache truffle. Tawny port is less fruit-forward, with a luscious mouthfeel highlighted with nuttiness and notes of toffee, making it an excellent match for dark chocolate-covered almonds.

Malbec wines often have chocolatey aromas and a plush mouthfeel, which sets them ahead when it comes to dark chocolate pairings. While the grape variety originally comes from Cahors, France, where it's known as Côt, you'll want to reach for a bottle from a warmer region, namely Argentina. This type of climate encourages the grapes to ripen fully, bringing out jammier dark fruit aromas rather than a more austere style which could clash with dark chocolate.

Mascota Vineyards is a prime producer in Argentina, and its Unánime line features a range of top-quality bottles made with fruit from the Uco Valley in the province of Mendoza. The malbec wine offers bold fruit notes of plums and cherries alongside a sweeter aroma of toasted coconut. If you want to get serious about your dark chocolate pairing, choose options that describe cacao beans featuring fruity acidic notes, as they will make a complementary pairing for the malbec.

Pairing wine with dark chocolate is all about bold flavors, so it's no surprise that zinfandel is a suitable candidate for the task. With its hearty dark fruit aromas, notes of vanilla, and spiced nature, it tends to go well with your favorite cocoa-based treat. Sometimes it features a hint of smokiness on the palate, which helps it stand up to darker chocolates with a higher percentage of cocoa solids. Plus, the notes of spice make it a great match for dark chocolate bars infused with chili peppers.

Prima Materia's zinfandel actually contains some primitivo, too. Both zinfandel and primitivo are clones of the same Croatian grape. Primitivo is common in Southern Italy, but this California producer likes to incorporate it into blends alongside zinfandel to bring out the nuances. Expect notes of red fruits, pepper, smoke, and tea leaves on the palate, with gentle tannins and a full body. A bit of residual sugar helps match the dark chocolate for a harmonious duo in the mouth. Once you've confirmed your love for the combo, visit the Lodi region during its annual Wine & Chocolate festival to hone in on your favorites.

With its fruity nature and hints of chocolate aromas, merlot is another contender when you're looking for a bottle to pair with a decadent box of dark chocolates. As one of the most planted grapes in the world, it's made in a wide range of styles, from earthier, higher tannin profiles to smooth and luscious fruit-forward renditions.

To pair with dark chocolate, you'll want to avoid high-tannin merlots which will only bring out the bitterness in the cocoa, instead reaching for options with dark fruits, vanilla, and baking spices on the palate. For this reason, you'll have better luck choosing a merlot wine produced in a warmer region and pairing it with dark chocolate with 50% to 60% cocoa solids, or even a truffle or bar with dark chocolate and hazelnut ganache.

Highway 12 Vineyards and Winery in Sonoma makes a merlot that features dark fruit notes in every sip alongside hints of mocha, vanilla, and tea. It goes down smoothly paired with a dark chocolate bar or cookie with hearty chocolate chunks.

If you're not accustomed to drinking dessert wines, this is the perfect occasion to seek out a bottle for your chocolate pairing. One of the common issues when serving table wine with desserts is the wine ends up tasting overly acidic due to a mismatch with the sweetness of the food. By choosing a definitively sweeter wine, you'll have one less factor to consider.

Banyuls is a lesser-known fortified dessert wine from Roussillon in Southern France that can be made with local white or red grapes. The latter features primarily grenache grapes, as well as other varieties like syrah, carignan, and cinsault. Aromas of stewed fruits and spices are prominent, which make an excellent counterpart for dark chocolate.

Taste the harmony with a bottle of Domaine La Tour Vieille Banyuls Reserva. Sweet notes of caramel and dried fruits linger on the palate, offering a pleasant contrast to the bitter notes in dark chocolate. Play up the complementary flavors with a bar featuring caramel, nuts, or bits of dried fruit.

Dessert wines abound in popular wine regions, and Recioto is produced in Valpolicella, Italy. Here, the local red varieties used to make Valpolicella and Amarone wines show up in a different light. The sweet wine is made with raisined (dried) grapes, which produce a deeply concentrated taste (as well as sugar and alcohol levels). The intense flavors make this wine a great match for the boldness of dark chocolate, as it complements the rich character with neither overwhelming the other.

Try a bottle of Recioto della Valpolicella by Musella Winery, which follows a biodynamic approach to viticulture. Aromas of cherries and dry herbs are present alongside notes of dried fruit and spice, bringing warmth to every sip. The sweetness is well-balanced on the palate, adding complexity and richness that pairs with your dark chocolate treat of choice without being cloying. Whether you're opting for a simple bar or a flourless dark chocolate cake, Recioto is an excellent match.

It's impossible to talk about dessert wines without mentioning Sauternes. Made in the Bordeaux region of the same name, the sweet white wine is primarily made with sauvignon blanc and sémillon grapes. But not just any grapes — due to the climatic conditions, these have been afflicted (in the best possible way) by a type of fungus called botrytis cinerea, more aptly referred to as noble rot.

Thankfully, the name indicates that the fungal activity is more than desirable, as it extracts liquid and concentrates the sugars in the pulp. Additionally, it introduces notes of honey, caramel, dried fruits, and nuts that mingle with the aromas of the grape varieties. Due to the significant loss in volume, Sauternes wines are pricey but well worth it.

Their luscious nature makes them a delightful contrast to bolder dark chocolates with bitter notes, ensuring this duo is well-balanced. While you can spend a pretty penny on a bottle of Sauternes (which is commonly sold in a 375-milliliter format), Château Haut-Mayne produces an affordable option, with notes of dried apricot and honey on the palate, highlighted by a gentle acidity.

Sherry comes in a multitude of styles, from lighter salty variations to more complex nutty, caramelized ones. Pedro Ximénez (aka PX) sherry fits into the latter category, with its rich, sweet aromas and notes of dried fruit. Made primarily with grapes of the same name, which are sun-dried or picked extra ripe, this fortified wine is an excellent pairing with dessert. Pour it straight over a scoop of vanilla ice cream to enhance the simple treat, or serve it as a worthy match for a decadent piece of dark chocolate.

Boasting notes of caramel and molasses, the intensely sweet drink makes a suitable counterpart for an unctuous piece of dark chocolate, balancing the bitterness. Pick up a bottle of Valdespino El Candado PX Sherry for a smooth option with a complex and velvety character. Amidst the tasting notes, you'll pick out hints of chocolate and coffee, adding to its appeal as a sidekick for dark chocolate.

Pinot noir is endlessly versatile, both in its flavor profile and the multitude of food pairing possibilities. While Burgundy pinot is revered by oenophiles as the top stuff out there, skip the rare high-end bottles and look toward New World regions like New Zealand and California for a fruit-forward version that will pair seamlessly with dark chocolate. With berry, cherry, and plum notes mingling with spices on the palate, these styles make a great companion for dark chocolate.

Lighter-bodied pinots offer a suitable match for semisweet dark chocolate, whereas fuller-bodied styles can hold up to darker chocolate or options with other ingredients mixed in. Pair your next chocolatey treat with a bottle of Fire Road pinot noir from the Marlborough region on New Zealand's South Island. With concentrated dark cherry and spice aromas and notes of toasted oak, it's a delightful complement to a rich piece of dark chocolate.

Sicily is home to plenty of indigenous varieties, including Nero d'Avola, a red grape with dark fruit, tobacco, licorice, and spice aromas. While it pairs well with meaty mains and hearty flavors, the fruit ripens extensively in the Sicilian sun, producing a bold, complex taste that fares just as well alongside a piece of dark chocolate. Due to the natural sugars that develop in the fruit as it ripens, Nero d'Avola features a full body and elegant tannins, providing a balanced contrast to the bitter cocoa notes in your favorite dark chocolate.

Try Tenuta Regaleali's Nero d'Avola for a sophisticated take on the Sicilian grape. With notes of dark fruits, spice, chocolate, and leather on the palate, the concentrated aromas and fuller body stand up to the intensity of chocolates with high levels of cocoa solids. Even better — pair it with a bar studded with dried raspberries or cherries for a deliciously nuanced match.

You'll want to tread lightly when pairing dark chocolate with cabernet sauvignon to prevent the tannic wine from bringing out too much bitterness in the cocoa. Your best bet will be to choose a bottle from a warm climate wine region, such as California, Australia, South Africa, or Chile, which receives plenty of sun to ripen the fruit fully. Additionally, wines with minimal oak aging will feature more fruit and less tannin on the palate, offering a more seamless pairing.

With its bold dark fruit, pepper, tobacco, and leather aromas, cabernet's prominent structure and full body stand up to dark chocolate's weightier notes. Pick up a bottle of Roman Ceremony cabernet sauvignon by Railsback Frères, a winery based in California's Santa Ynez Valley. The ripe grapes and neutral aging barrels bring out juicy dark fruit notes with hints of chocolate, mint, and peppercorns. This refreshing cabernet offers plenty of balance to pair with a dark chocolate dessert.

Some white wines can get lost when paired with bold dark chocolate, but gewürztraminer manages to assert itself. The white grape is heavily aromatic, and it gets its name from its spiced profile. With typical tasting notes featuring hints of lychee, rose, orange blossom, ginger, and Turkish delight, you're halfway to dessert when you take in the nose. Additionally, gewürztraminer is full-bodied and offers some weight in each sip, ensuring it is on par with a rich piece of bittersweet chocolate.

Wines made with gewürztraminer range from dry to sweet, with the latter making an easier pairing with desserts. Try a bottle of Pfeffingen gewürztraminer spätlese, made with grapes that are harvested late in the season, for greater ripeness and higher sugar levels. Rich notes of rose and honeydew melon round out this sweet sipper that you'll want alongside a piece of dark chocolate. Its sweet aromatic nature makes gewürztraminer a popular pairing with spicy dishes — follow suit by accompanying it with cayenne-infused dark chocolate.

Shiraz is the same grape as syrah, but for your chocolate pairing purposes, you'll want to stick to bottles labeled with the former. Typically used for wines made in Australia and other warmer climate New World wine regions, shiraz implies a bolder style of wine with jammier dark fruit flavors and notes of mixed spices, toasted oak, black pepper, and chocolate. These notable aromas complement a bittersweet dark chocolate as well as options with add-ins like nuts, coconut, or dried fruits.

Fowles Wine's Farm to Table shiraz offers a full body on the palate with a richly structured mouthfeel that pairs well with the concentrated taste of cocoa. Dark berry, plum, and black currant aromas mingle with spicy notes in this multifaceted wine. Pair it with a dark chocolate that contains 50% to 70% cocoa solids for a well-balanced duo you'll want to keep on hand to satiate your sweet tooth whenever desire strikes.