Rethinking Food & Drink Matching

One of the easiest way of increasing spend on spirits, sweet wines and digestifs is matching them to your dessert menu. Why not add a suggested drink for every dish on the menu? Here are a few ideas to get you started:

• Cognac & Armagnac – Brilliant with chocolate or dried fruit desserts
• Calvados – Apple brandy from Normandy; perfect with orchard fruits
• Grappa – Usually served with coffee or just on its own
• Whisky, Whiskey & Bourbon – A huge range of styles. Try peaty Islay malts with dark chocolate and American Bourbons with vanilla or caramel based desserts
• Rum – Aged styles are fantastic with tropical fruits such as pineapple or mango. Not forgetting a classic Rum Baba.
• Port, Madeira and Sherry – Great with cheese or try sweet PX sherry poured over ice cream
• Liqueurs – Try matching the flavour to the main ingredient in a dessert eg Frangelico with hazelnut praline
• Sauternes and other botrytised sweet wines – try including a savoury element in the dessert such as Poached Pears with Roquefort