8 great wine and other matches for Stollen

Although stollen is a little 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 . . .

But here are some other ideas, with additional contributions from my helpful followers on Twitter:

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. @sbonnerabv went as far as to specify an espresso with whipped cream and a shot of peach schnapps

Schnapps

In fact peach schapps was mentioned twice. I’m not sure I wouldn’t prefer an apple or pear-flavoured one or similar Alsace eau-de-vie (apples and pears and marzipan being a well-tried and tested flavour combination) but worth a try

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 suggested a vendange tardive gewurztraminer. And someone else eiswein though I'd find that a shade too sweet myself.

Dark rum

I really like this suggestion. 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 would 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.

* Easy enough to find in France but I have spotted it in Waitrose and Lidl.

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