What are the best food pairings with Vin Santo wine?
The classic pairing for Vin Santo is hard cantucci biscuits, dipped into the wine at the end of a meal. People also suggest blue cheese, rich pate, nut cakes such as panforte and walnut tart, and chocolate, but those are suggestions, not tested rules.
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In this article
What goes with Vin Santo?
Vin Santo, or holy wine, is a Tuscan wine that is usually sweet and traditionally served at the end of a meal, almost always with hard cantucci biscuits.
What is Vin Santo?
Wine Spectator lists Vin Santo among wines made from dried grapes, a method it says goes back thousands of years in Mediterranean vineyards. Drying concentrates the sugar, which is why the wine is usually sweet.
The classic: cantucci
Dip the biscuits into the wine. This softens the hard almond cookies, and it is the most traditional way to enjoy it.
Why it works
Vin Santo is left undisturbed for several years in small barrels, which gives it a slight rancio (oxidised) character. A food and wine guide says this gives the wine balance and bite, so it is not sickly sweet.
Other ideas people suggest
The guide says Vin Santo would partner many other foods. It tags blue cheese and Gorgonzola, foie gras and duck liver pate, panforte, fruit cake, chestnut cake, pecan pie, walnut tart, chocolate and mince pies. Treat these as starting points, because the page does not discuss each one.
How to serve it
- Use small glasses; it is usually sweet and a wine for the end of the meal.
- Serve after the main course, with biscuits, cheese or dessert.
- Follow the producer’s advice on serving temperature, which the guide does not give.
Common mistake
Pairing with a dessert far sweeter than the wine, which is general wine-matching advice, not from the guide.
Vin Santo styles vary, so check the label and producer. Matching is personal.
People also ask
What do you eat with Vin Santo?
Traditionally cantucci biscuits, dipped in the wine. Blue cheese, pate, nut cakes and chocolate are common suggestions.
Is Vin Santo very sweet?
It is usually sweet, but its rancio, slightly oxidised character gives balance and bite. Styles vary, so check the label.
Can I drink Vin Santo with cheese?
Blue cheese and Gorgonzola are suggested matches, but the guide does not discuss them in detail.
Sources
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