Dessert Wines Aren’t Just for Dessert Anymore

Dessert wines have undeservedly earned a bad name among winos. Perhaps this is due to the syrupy, sugary nature of so many or maybe it is because of how we are drinking them. Where ever your opinion lay on the love-like-hate spectrum, I hope I can convince you to try them or further your exploration into this interesting category of wine. Here is your 101…

Port, Sherry, Madeiras are all fortified wines. This means that wine spirits (like a clear brandy) is added to still wine sometime during the wine making process. Sherries (Spain) can be made in a number of styles. The dessert ones are the Oloroso, Pedro Ximenez, and the Moscatel. All Ports could be considered dessert wines- they have substantial sugar and alcohol. Port can be a whole other newsletter, but you would generally look for a tawny or vintage port. The Madeiras (Portugal) are much like the Sherries- the older ones are going to be more dessert-like. Over the just over the Spanish border in France, in Banyuls a Grenache-based wine is made. In this category you would most like drink Port for dessert, because of its availability- whether that dessert is a sweet or a cheese. I’m of the opinion that the only wine that perfectly pairs with chocolate is Port and if you try Port and any blue cheese, it will change your culinary life. 

Ice Wines are wines that result from leaving grapes on the vine until long after the first freeze. They essentially become frozen raisins. In the parts of the world where they are made, the vintner harvests over and over again, picking the berries that have frozen and then coming through the vineyard again to pick the newly frozen and shriveled berries. You can imagine that this labor-intensive method and the fact that a frozen raisin has very little juice makes for quite an expensive wine. These are primarily made in Canada and in Germany, where you see Ice Wine or Eiswein on the label. There are some ice wines made elsewhere by artificially freezing the grapes- essentially putting them in the freezer, but I consider this cheating. Ice wines are amazing for their complexity and how well sugar is balanced with acidity. I like to have these with pasty forward desserts, especially when they also have fruit. But they also go well with soft cheeses- blues included. 

Late Harvest Wines- A late harvest wine is one that is harvested once it has started to shrivel, on its way to being a raisin. Any grape can be made into a late harvest- any white or red varietal. I’ve had some wonderful late harvest Zins from California. But the most famous of these are white- especially the Tokaj from Hungary made from grapes we’ve pretty much never heard of here. There is a lot of technical jargon I could through at you, but the best of these would be a Tokaj Aszú, which is made from grapes infected with the “noble rot” (Botrytis). The sweetness of the wine is measured by “Puttonyos”- a fun word to say. I’m hoarding one of these. Noble Rot also makes it way into Sauternes of Bordeaux. This wine is made of Semillion, with some support from Sauvignon Blanc. These wines are very sweet, but the acidity balances them out. They are pretty amazing all by themselves, but they are great with soft, pungent cheeses, almond, apricot or peach forward desserts. If you are willing, the great pairing here is with fois gras. 

Making Raisins- In Italy and in parts of the French Alps, dessert wines are made by laying ripe grapes out to dry. Depending on the local weather, this might mean they are laid in the sun, like raisins. In other climates, they are laid out on mats in the barn (well, probably a warehouse for some nowadays). It’s a romantic scene to picture grapes laying on those mats up in the mountains. The most famous of these in Vin Santo, originating from Tuscany, made of Trebbiano and Malvasia grapes. The traditional pairing here is almond or pistachio biscotti- you dip it in the wine. You can do this right here in the states, by picking up a bottle and grabbing that little box of biscotti they sell at Trader Joe’s. And, voilà, dessert is done!

There are many, many more wines in this broad category of wine, but that’s all I have room for this month. Since that most famous of sweet holidays is just around the corner, I’m hoping that this newsletter helps you plan the perfect finish to your day.