How to: Create a Romantic Dinner Date at Home
This Valentine’s Day may look a little different than those of previous years. If your favorite restaurants aren’t open for business, or if you just want to try something new, take this opportunity to create a special night with your partner or loved ones at home. Whether you want to prepare everything on your own to surprise your sweetheart or make it a joint effort for some extra quality time together, we’ve got some suggestions for making your Valentine’s Day, or any date night, one for the books.
Instead of planning your wine selections based on the foods you’ve chosen to prepare, it can sometimes be fun to start with the opposite approach. We’re going to take you beyond the obvious Valentine’s Day wine selections like Champagne and Rosé by introducing some more unexpected varietal alternatives— along with delicious foods to complement them to help you manifest a uniquely memorable, romantic evening.
To start: If you like Champagne, try Crémant.
Crémant is, like Champagne, a sparkling French wine made in the traditional double-fermentation method. Made across seven regions throughout France, Alsace being the most prolific, it can be produced using a wider variety of grapes than Champagne’s typical Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, and Pinot Meunier. Crémant is slightly less effervescent, giving it a more delicate, creamy (ahem, crémant) texture. It pairs beautifully with salty, fatty foods; we are in love with this Gruyere, Bacon, and Carmelized Onion dip from Garnish with Lemon, which offers a delicious way to start your evening and stands up well with the elegant effervescence and acidity of the wine. Ideally served with a fresh-made, warm baguette.
Image Source: Bon Appétit Magazine
Up next: If you like Pinot Noir, try Gamay.
Gamay is a light-bodied wine, a cousin to Pinot Noir, primarily grown in France’s Beaujolais region. Gamay typically boasts a fragrant bouquet of flowers and fruit, bright and tart on the palate, with gentle earthy notes. It’s an extremely versatile and food-friendly wine due to its high natural acidity. Gamay does well pairing with a wide range of main dishes, but we’d like to suggest this colorful roasted Chicken with Lemon and Spicy Green Onion dish from Bon Appétit. The salty, crackly roast chicken skin and savory pan juices are met well by the high, clarifying fruity notes of this beautifully understated wine.
Maybe you prefer something bolder: If you like Cabernet Sauvignon, try Aglianico.
Aglianico is a full-bodied Italian red wine known for rich and striking flavors of black fruit, leather, smoked meats, and coffee. The complexity and high tannins of Aglianico call for rich meats and sauces with a higher fat content to counterbalance the astringency of the wine. If you’re swinging for the fences, we suggest going all-in with this indulgent Steak Oskar from Saveur. The decadent richness of this special take on surf-and-turf is sure to leave a lasting impression.
For a Lingering Finish: If you like Port, try Madeira.
There’s no better way to finish up a long evening of indulgent wine and food than with a late-evening glass of Madeira (try V. Sattui’s, it’s stunning). Port and Madeira are both fortified with brandy, but Madeira undergoes an aging process that differs from any other wine in the world. It is intentionally exposed to heat, which results in a richness and complexity beyond that of most ports, evoking smoke, roasted nuts, caramel, and burnt sugar. While this alone would be satisfying, why not add a few bites of this decadent Bittersweet Chocolate and Almond Cake to solidify your place in the Valentine’s Day Hall of Fame?
Image Source: New York Times Cooking
No matter how, or even if, you celebrate Valentine’s Day, we hope you take some time in the coming weeks to indulge in something special that brings you pleasure. For us, delicious wine and food means self-care; whatever self-care is for you, embrace and enjoy it— if only for an evening. You deserve it.
