Desserts

Most Americans don’t have much experience with dessert wines and therefore are missing a treat. Dessert wines can add a sublime note to the end of a meal. In pairing dessert wines and desserts, there is one critical guideline: The level of sweetness in the wine must exceed the perceived level of sweetness in the dessert, or the wine will taste sour. This can be a little tricky as we all have different thresholds for sweetness.

If someone suggests a flute of Champagne or sparkling wine with dessert, remember that while sparkling wine can be both a light and special climax to a meal, all too often it’s a dry one at brut level, as opposed to an extra dry or demi-sec style, both sweeter and designed with desserts in mind. Unless your dessert isn’t at all sweet, a brut style wine will taste sour and harsh.