I love wine! And I wish I knew more about it than “I like this one” and “that one has a lot of tannins”. Therefore, I’m beyond thrilled that I’ve found a small wine import company here in Copenhagen (O.M. Nielsen Vinimport) that regularly hosts wine tastings in Frederiksberg. I’ve written about my first tasting focusing the color of wine, and last week I attended a second one. When I read the announcement, I knew I had to go: a rosé wine and chocolate pairing! I love rosé wines, especially in the summer I find them so amazing and versatile, to fish, a light salad, or some pasta on the balcony - my choice is a crisp and chilled rosé. I have to admit that I know shockingly little about them, so I went in the hopes of learning more, and, of course, taste it in combination with chocolate!
The setup was to taste seven different rosés, three of them sparkling (a champagne, a prosecco and a crémant). To each of the wines, we were to taste a hand-picked and hand-made-for-the-occasion chocolate - some were plain, others were filled, all were delicious! They were made by Chokolade-Hex who really did work some magic! You can also find her on Facebook.
I won’t go through all the seven pairings, but will highlight some of my favorites!
On top of the list and at the start of the tasting stood the Champagne Brut Rosé, paired with a simple milk chocolate. I loved the champagne. It was so elegant and refined, and it was not as complex as some champagnes can tend to be. It had a lovely peach color and was very fresh and light.
The next one was the Prosecco Brut Rosé Spumante, which was as girly and soft pink as they come. Unlike a lot of my fellow tasters, I didn’t think it was spectacular in itself, but I really did like the pairing with white chocolate, it fit very well with the sweet, soft, girlish theme.
I realize I said I wouldn’t go through each wine in detail, but I need to name the third one as well - a Crémant de Bourgogne, paired with an exquisite white chocolate praline with Campari filling. To be honest, I don’t like Campari, and I am a bit on the fence about chocolates with liquor filling, because I often find the liquor to be completely overwhelming, so it almost feels like you’re taking a shot! But these ones were amazing. You could definitely taste the bitter notes of the Campari, but the white chocolate amazingly balanced this out with its sweetness. It complemented the Crémant very well.
Three of the “flat” rosé wines were from the same wine maker, called “Seduction”, “Sensation” and “Prestige”. My favorite was the one above, “Sensation”, which was paired with a lovely caramel-filled milk chocolate praline. On of the wines came with glass corks, which everybody was dying to get their hands on (I have two of those from other wines, they are SO practical to re-seal bottles when you put them in the fridge!).
My absolute favorite chocolate was a delicious white chocolate triangle filled with elderflower - in Denmark, there is just no getting around their beloved “hyldeblomst”, especially in the summer. It can be a bit too sweet for me sometimes, but in this case the sweetness was offset with some tangy lime, which worked amazingly well. We paired it with the “Prestige”, but to be fair, I could probably eat an entire case of those babies on their own!
The final wine was a complete eye-catcher, as it had a much deeper, almost red color, whereas all the previous ones had been soft peach/ rose/ pink colors. It was also the oldest one, a “Tavel” from 2010, and we fittingly paired it with a dark chocolate (50% cacao). It was quite spectacular, although not an everyday kind of wine. But if you want your guests to really remember an outstanding wine you served with dinner, this one is for you!
I find myself really enjoying these wine tasting events, and I’m already planning to go to the next one in 2 weeks! They have a number of events upcoming in June, including a Wine and Cheese Pairing and a Blind Tasting, so if you’re interested, check out their Facebook page. All tastings are held at Café Monellies in Frederiksberg and cost 250-300DKK.
(Note: I am not sponsored by O.M. Nielsen nor am I getting paid to attend the tastings or write about them. I pay for my attendance and what I write is my honest opinion. I did swipe one of the glass corks though.)