For me, the dessert is the main event. The sweet finale of the feast. That divine promise of sugary pleasure that I look forward to as soon as I take my seat and peruse the menu. Don't get me wrong: I relish the bite-size flavours of a carefully executed starter and savour every mouthful of a delicious main course. But the dessert just has that je ne sais quoi. Whether it's a vibrant medley of seasonal fruits or luscious chocolate laced with a twist of alcohol, the sweetly seductive and deliciously indulgent fusion of flavour makes my taste buds sing.
When planning the wedding breakfast, couples deliberate - quite rightly - over matching the wine with the dishes to ensure the best possible balance of flavours. In most cases, however, there will be no carefully chosen beverage to complement the dessert course. As Nigel Ede from Experience Wine comments, "This, to me, is a real shame and, if you ever have a glass of red in your hand whilst being given a bowl of strawberries and ice cream at a dinner, you will find out why."
From liquors and fortified wines through to dessert wines, there's a world of delectable drinks that can really enhance the flavours of the dessert and bring the feast to a close in spectacular style. The basic rule for pairing drinks with sweeter foods is simple: "It is important that the drink is as sweet or slightly sweeter than the food," explains Nigel.
Dessert wines are often dismissed as too expensive or too sweet. However, as Nigel explains, this reveals a classic misunderstanding of their largely untapped pleasures: "Dessert wines are among the dormant delights of the wine trade. Yes, they can be expensive, but there are also some very exciting sweet wines at sensible prices. Ideally you will only be pouring a smaller glass of around 50ml, so you can expect 15 servings per bottle. I generally would not offer a top up, so with 120 guests you would expect to use eight bottles of 75cl wine."
As for the issue of sweetness, he responds, "Dessert wines are sweet, but vary enormously in levels of concentration, characters and sweetness. The Late Harvest Tokaji from Hungary is very gentle with fine citrusy aromas as well as a hint of orange peel. It is stunning with light desserts such as Midget Gem meringues and summer puddings." And for those with a super sweet tooth? "For something with a bit more sweetness and concentration, Trentham Noble Taminga from Australia is orange marmalade in a bottle with a touch of honey."
In most homes, you'll find a bottle of fortified wine accumulating dust on the back shelf of the drinks cabinet. But try supping it alongside a luscious creamy dessert and you'll probably find yourself drinking it more than once a year at its annual Christmas outing. "A chilled glass of Smith Woodhouse tawny port is a delight with crème brûlee and tawny ports pair well with custard based desserts," says Nigel.
And don't dismiss the delicious opportunities of liquors. "Liquors offer some exciting opportunities. We matched Lazzaroni Amaretto with the frangipane and peach squares," comments Nigel. "With liquors I recommend just offering a 25ml shot to accompany the dessert. This helps to keep costs down, but also avoids waste if guests are not too keen on certain flavours."
You might also wish to consider a quirky drink for a distinctive finale to the menu. "The Akashi Tai Shiraume Umeshu is pure heaven to the taste buds," says Nigel. "Effectively a plum-infused sake, this will certainly raise a few eyebrows and never fails to please on tastings. It's a great match for the plum tarte tatin."
As for the dessert itself, it can be notoriously difficult to decide what to go for. Fruit crumble or light, creamy mousse? Gooey chocolate or crumbly meringue? Tangy cheesecake or steamed pudding? Consider offering your guests a selection of miniature desserts, thereby allowing them to tuck into a medley of delicious flavours.
Feast your eyes on these seasonal dessert ideas - and their perfect liquid partners.
SEASONAL SUMMER FRUIT DESSERTS
Frangipane and peach squares
A Shot of Lazzaroni Amaretto
Midget Gems meringues with a raspberry and vanilla cream
Royal Tokaji Late Harvest Cuvee 2008
Individual cherry pies served with vanilla custard
Smith Woodhouse 10 yr Tawny Port (chilled)
Classic crème brûlee
Smith Woodhouse 10 yr Tawny Port (chilled)
Whole fresh strawberries dipped in a dark chocolate and chilli praline dust
Trentham Noble Taminga, Australia
Plum tarte tatin
Akashi-Tai Shiraume Umeshu
Summer pudding
Royal Tokaji Late Harvest Cuvee 2008
Individual dark chocolate and Cointreau mousse sat on an amoretti biscuit base, finished with an orange and mango coulis
A shot of Lazzaroni Amaretto
Gooseberry and white chocolate cheesecake tartlets
Brandied apricot and milk chocolate bread and butter pudding slices
Experience Wine
Old Bridge Street, Truro
01872 240058 www.experiencewine.co.uk
The Round Kitchen
07968 385392 / 07968 206116 www.theroundkitchen.com
words Rebecca Matthews
photography Simon Green
Copyright WED Magazine 2011
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