Vinsobres with wild boar stew and chestnut polenta

You’d expect a Southern Rhône red to go with wild boar but in fact it was the chestnut polenta that made the match with this former Côtes du Rhône ‘cru’ so successful

The dish was cooked as part of a five course tasting menu by Matt Williamson formerly of Flinty Red in Bristol at an inaugural event for wefifo in Bristol. (Wefifo is like a foodie equivalent of Airbnb where hosts cook for paying guests.)

The wines were chosen by local wine importer Nick Brookes of Vine Trail and the dish was paired with a 2012 Vinsobres ‘Emile’ from a biodynamic estate called Domaine de la Pequelette. It was a typically southern Rhone blend of 75% Grenache, 10% Mourvèdre, 10% Syrah and 5% Carignan from low-yielding old vines - full-bodied, deep and savoury.

I think it was the grenache in particular that chimed in with the rich meat and sweet, chestnutty polenta. I’d definitely thinking about pairing grenache with chestnut again.

Chocolate and almond cake with auslese riesling

I’ve never been wholly convinced that sweet white wines go with dark chocolate but have had to modify that view after a surprisingly successful pairing at my friends' this weekend.

The wine was a Prinz von Hessen Johannisberger Klaus Auslese Riesling from the warm 2005 vintage but still only 9% - far too light you’d think to go with a rich dark flourless chocolate and almond cake. But strangely it worked due mainly, I think, to the exotic passionfruit and dried mango notes in the 11 year old wine.

Passionfruit, of course, goes pretty well with white chocolate, I just hadn’t expected it to work as well with a dark chocolate dessert though the fact it contained 4 tbsp of rum (yes, four!) may have given it a tropical fruit character for the wine to latch onto.

I still think a lighter, less intense late harvest riesling would have struggled but it’s certainly worth experimenting with ones from a hot vintage.

Unfortunately I can’t find the wine currently on sale in the UK but you can obviously try similar wines.

The recipe - which is not difficult and absolutely delicious - is Claudia Roden’s and is available here.

Three things you need to think about when pairing wine with chocolate

Fideos negros con calamaritos with alioli and Rueda

I’ve never been a huge fan of Rueda, a sauvignon-style wine from the north of Spain, but seem to have been drinking it non-stop since I arrived in Malaga.

Maybe because it goes so well with the local seafood but I think they go for a fresher less pungent style here than back in the UK

This was one of the best pairings with one of my favourite dishes of the trip at Taverna Uvedoble: Fideos negros or fried squid ink noodles with baby squid and a good dollop of alioli (garlic mayo). It was SO good we went back for it a second time.

The Rueda acted with the pasta like a sharp squeeze of lemon, balancing the dark saline flavour of the noodles and the punchy alioli. A really good restaurant and a great combination

Spaghetti and meatballs and Nerello Mascalese

Spaghetti and meatballs is a really rich pasta dish you need to wash down with a refreshing red - preferably Italian.

In my broader post on meatballs I recommend a Sicilian red and found it again hit the spot at a preview for a new Italian restaurant Bosco in my neighbourhood this weekend.

It was a simple, young (2015) Nerello Mascalese (the name of the grape) from Cantine Paolini which despite its modest 12% cut through the rich tomato sauce perfectly and was great value at £5 a glass. You can buy it locally in Bristol from Corks of Cotham for £8.49 and from Bottle Apostle in London for £8.10 a bottle.

Although I didn’t drink it right through the meal - I confess I kicked off with a negroni! - it would also have paired well with the salume (cured meats) and cheese.

The best wine pairings with meatballs