Chianti and Chocolate: An Argument For

Somewhere along the way, "red wine and chocolate" became a pairing people apologize for liking, as if it's a shortcut instead of a real choice. It isn't. Done right, Chianti and chocolate is a genuinely good match — you just have to pick the right chocolate, and stop assuming any bar off the shelf will do.

Why the standard advice gets it wrong

The usual warning is that tannic red wines clash with chocolate's sweetness, turning both bitter and metallic. That's true — for the wrong pairing. A big, tannic Chianti next to a sugary milk chocolate bar will fight, not complement. But that's a mismatch problem, not proof the combination fails on principle.

The version that actually works

The trick is matching intensity and sweetness level the same way you would with cheese. A Chianti's dried-cherry, slightly earthy character wants dark chocolate — 70% cacao or higher, where the bitterness of the chocolate meets the wine's tannins as an equal instead of getting steamrolled by sugar. The fruit in the wine picks up notes in the chocolate that a sweeter bar would just bury.

If you want the pairing to feel more composed than "wine, and also chocolate," add something in between: a piece of dark chocolate with sea salt, or one studded with dried cherries or orange peel — flavors that echo what's already happening in the glass instead of introducing something the wine has to work around.

What to skip

Milk chocolate, white chocolate, and anything heavily caramel-based tend to fight rather than flatter — too much sweetness against the wine's structure. Save those for a lighter, fruitier pour instead, and let a bolder Chianti spend its evening with something dark enough to meet it halfway.

Shop our Chianti DOCG and put the pairing to the test yourself.