Pairings | Beerenauslese riesling
8 great wine and other matches for Stollen
Although stollen is a bit lighter than the classic British Christmas baking some of the pairings I suggested with mince pies (like sweet sherry and tawny port) will work too . . .
As you no doubt know it’s a delicious yeasted German fruit bread, lightly spiced, filled with marzipan and dredged with icing sugar.
It’s the kind of thing you’d most likely have mid-afternoon or as a mid-morning snack so the most likely accompaniment would be coffee or tea. That said if you’ve got some in the house and are disinclined to make a pud you could have it after dinner with a glass of sweet wines.
Here are 8 ideas that appeal to me.
Coffee
So obvious, perhaps that it doesn’t need saying but the great German tradition of kaffee und kuchen points to coffee with stollen rather than tea.
Schnapps
Of all the fruit-flavoured schnapps I’d favour an apple or pear-flavoured one or similar Alsace eau-de-vie, apples and pears and almonds being a well-tried and tested flavour combination
Spätlese, auslese or beerenauslese riesling
Germans make some great sweet wines with lovely acidity that would be a real treat with this festive bake. The Wine Society suggests a vendange tardive gewurztraminer.
Dark rum
I like this idea more than malt whisky. It should work beautifully given the vanilla and brown sugar notes in many rums
Pineau de Charentes
An interesting suggestion from contributor Lucy Bridgers - this blend of grape must and cognac is normally drunk as an aperitif but would work really well with stollen. As would . . .
Cognac and other oak-aged brandies such as armagnac or Spanish brandy
Stollen recipes like this one often have a touch of brandy though a large cognac might possibly not be appropriate at tea-time ;-)
Marsala dolce
Less common than sweet sherry or madeira but I think rather well suited to pairing with marzipan and dried fruits. As is malaga.
Amaretto
Possibly an overkill on the almond front but if you like the taste of marzipan you may enjoy this extra level in your drink. I’d serve it well chilled or on the rocks, though.
Champagne, prosecco or sekt
It’s often forgotten that champagne is sweetened with a sugar solution called a dosage so although it might strike you as dry there’s a residual sweetness that makes it compatible with cake. And stollen isn’t that sweet. Sekt would of course be the more authentic choice but it’s hard to find a good one in the UK. And prosecco works well with panettone so should with stollen too.
Photo © Olga Bombologna at shutterstock.com
The 4 best wine pairings for a classic Pancake Day pancake
If you live in the UK and are enjoying pancakes this week it’s most likely the classic kind, simply topped with lemon juice and a sprinkling of crunchy sugar. But what to drink with them?
A combination of sweet and sour is never that easy to handle in wine terms. The sweetness can make accompanying whites (I doubt if we're even thinking of reds here) taste thin and tart.
So a sweet wine I reckon and, even better, a sparkling one . . .
* Moscato has to be the number one candidate. Widely available, off-dry to sweet (like Asti), low in alcohol, it’s just perfect with a sugar and lemon pancake. Authentic Moscato d’Asti is the tops if you can lay your hands on one.
* Prosecco would be my next choice. Most have a touch of sweetness, some (usually the cheaper ones) more than others. Check the back label.
* If you want something a bit more offbeat and have a good wine merchant nearby see if they have a Clairette de Die a delicious fragrant sparkling wine from the Rhône.
* or for a sweet wine I’d go for a late harvest or Beerenauslese riesling. Rieslings have a high level of acidity that can cope with the lemon juice - better than sweet wines like Sauternes or late harvest Sauvignons whose citrussy flavours will be wiped out by the lemon on the pancakes.
* A good cup of tea. Probably the most likely option if you’re making them for the kids, if truth be told. And better with this type of pancake than coffee (think tea and lemon).
For wine pairings with other types of pancakes see here.
Photo © robynmac - Fotolia.com
What’s the best wine to pair with lemon tart (aka tarte au citron)?
The classic tarte au citron is tricky with wine, particularly if it’s home made. And the sharper and more lemony (and delicious) it is, the harder it is to find a good match.
Basically what they tend to do is wipe the citrus flavours - and the sweetness - out of any accompanying dessert wine leaving them tasting thin and sharp. The only really successful match I’ve found is a sweet wine that has a lot of acidity like a German beerenauslese Riesling or other very sweet late harvest Riesling served really cold. (Trockenbeerenauslese and Eiswein or icewine could also work for you but I find they bump up the sweetness too much.
I also had success with a beerenauslese Chardonnay from Austria which was a bit of a surprise. Sweet chardonnay wouldn’t have occurred to me if I hadn’t tried it.
There is a trick you could pull. Serve the tart with a good dollop of cream (what a hardship!) and you’ll find it will kick other wines into touch. Late Harvest Sauvignons or Sauvignon/Semillon blends from the Australian Riverlands or Chile would be my preferred option.
They also go well with shop-bought lemon tarts and the slightly less intensely lemony lemon meringue pie.
Picture by Pixel-Shot at shutterstock.com
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