What could be better than a sunny day in Melbourne? Attending the Wine and Chocolate Festival at the Seaworks Maritime Precinct in Williamstown, of course.
My plus one and I were so excited to head to the festival. What better way to start the weekend than indulging in wine and chocolate. It was not too long before the wine and chocolate were calling us over, enticing us to try them. We decided to jump straight in and try some of the combinations on offer.
We indulged in:
- Beniaka Imperial sweet potato amber ale with a sweet soft centred caramel chocolate.
- 2015 Scotchman’s late harvest Riesling citrus paired with a mouth-watering chocolate truffle.
- Single malt whiskey paired with a crunchy soft centred whisky filled ganache.
- Steenbrugge Wit-Blanche Belgium beer with an bitter orange soft chocolate.
Now, if the chocolatier is right (I wish I knew a chocolatier was a real job before now), the pairing of wine and chocolate is an art form. Apparently the golden rule to matching wine and chocolate is matching the sweetness from one to the bitterness of the other — a complement to the other. There is also a technique to sampling: sip wine, eat chocolate. Repeat until both are finished. The hardest part of this is not to eat all the chocolate at once.
Our afternoon was swept up with a masterclass by wine commentator Robert Hicks, who featured a delicious range of pairings to indulge in and provided more info about the subtlety of chocolate and wine unions.
With 13 wineries at the festival, we kicked back the afternoon with some more wine while listening to the music of Jazzobell Deux-London Connection quartet and their relaxing jazz music. For those who wanted something more upbeat, the best of DJ Mimi was playing outside in the gorgeous Melbourne sun.
I will definitely be keeping my eye out for the Wine and Chocolate festival in 2017.
-Angela
Angela Hogan, lover of all things chocolate and life.
Visit the Wine and Chocolate festival website to keep up-to-date on their next event.
