Pairing Alcohol With Sweet Food? Here’s What To Remember
Planning a dinner that stretches all three courses, right up to dessert? Or a cocktail evening where sweet treats are part of your small bites menu? Bringing together spirits and cocktails with desserts can sometimes be a tricky affair for a home host doubling as gastronome and mixologist.
Here are some of the burning questions around pairing liquors and alcoholic blends with sweet foods – answered.
Can you really pair alcohol with sweet foods?
A very basic, yet imperative doubt, this one is easily answered. Yes, you can pair spirits with desserts or sweet treats. One of the reasons this combination works so well is because the textures and aromas of the liquors or cocktails cut through the richness of certain sweet treats to arrive at a fine flavour balance.
Certain cocktail blends or liquors also go well with the nuanced flavours in many desserts. For instance, the sweet notes in port wine become interesting flavour accents to the sweet and creamy notes of a sponge cake covered in buttercream frosting – making sweet foods and alcohol a well-suited pairing during the dessert course.
Is there any golden rule for pairing spirits with desserts?
Yes, one golden rule followed by many is to pair desserts with sweet-flavoured spirits such as specific fruity wines and liqueurs to prevent the tasting notes of the spirits from flattening out once brought together with the sweet treat. So too, with certain robust spirits like whiskies or rum – the golden rule is to pair them with appropriately rich and dense sweets which echo their pronounced flavour profiles.
What kind of spirits go well with dark chocolate desserts?
Taking cue from the golden rule, one of the spirits which works well with sweets like dark chocolate ganache is whisky. A quality 30 ml of Johnnie Walker Black Label or any other premium whisky of choice can be paired with this ganache topped off with whipped cream.
As well, dark chocolate truffles are excellent dessert pairings with a punch cocktail crafted using 30 ml good quality spiced rum. The richness of the chocolate cuts through the spicy, caramelised flavours of the rum and the acidity of the citrusy ingredients in the punch to deliver a balanced pairing.
Also Read: Dessert Drinks: Sweet Indian-Inspired Cocktails For Post-Brunch Time
What kind of sweets go well with gin?
Interestingly, the botanical elements in cocktails like a berry-infused gin and tonic crafted using 30 ml Tanqueray No. 10 Gin or any other premium gin of choice complement the similarly citrusy and tangy notes in desserts like a berry compote or a strawberry shortcake. Herbal nuances such as basil or rosemary garnishes in gin cocktails also bring a contrasting note into a dessert course featuring berry pies or fresh fruit parfaits.
Can vodka and desserts work well together?
Although vodka is a clear, versatile spirit that can embody a lot of different flavours, it tends to go well with desserts when it is infused with certain ingredients. For instance, an espresso martini cocktail made using 30 ml coffee-flavoured vodka pairs well with tiramisu or a mocha cake which resonates with the aromatic and earthy flavours of coffee present in the spirit.
A vodka cocktail blended using 30 ml Ketel One Premium Distilled Vodka or any other premium vodka of choice that is topped off with 60 ml Black Dog Soda or any other soda water of choice can be coupled with the fresh flavours of a fruity sorbet featuring sweet, tropical produce such as mangoes, lychees, raspberries and watermelons.
Which are some tequila cocktails that pair with sweet treats?
Tequila’s citrusy, sweet and mildly tart flavours make it an interesting pairing with desserts. Some tequila cocktails like a fresh mango margarita made using 30 ml Don Julio Blanco Tequila or any other premium tequila of choice compliments Asian-inspired desserts like coconut bundt cakes or coconut-milk pudding.
Tequila sour and a classic paloma are also among some of the tequila cocktails whose acidic, tangy and slightly sweet, fresh flavours go well with contrastingly spiced and creamy desserts like an orange basque cheesecake or apple crumble and spiced cinnamon ice cream.
Drink Responsibly. This communication is for audiences above the age of 25.
