Designed to create a unique flavour sensation – our Waterford Estate Wine and Chocolate Pairing is our most popular offering for a reason. Who doesn’t like wine and chocolate? 

FUN FACTS: 

The Tasting Room conducts on average 20 000 Wine and Chocolate tastings per year. 

Waterford Estate started the Wine and Chocolate Tasting in 2004 – it was the first winery in South Africa to offer this exclusive pairing. 

Chocolatier, Richard von Geusau crafted the cocoa tablets specifically to complement, balance and bring out the flavours of selected Waterford wines. The aromatic Waterford Kevin Arnold Shiraz is complemented by a decadent cinnamon-infused Masala Chai Dark Chocolate, while the savoury, well-structured Waterford Cabernet Sauvignon finds its perfect match in a Rock Salt Dark Chocolate. The fragrant Heatherleigh dessert wine is paired with a Rose Geranium Milk Chocolate, making for a seamless blend of floral, soft biscuit and fruit flavours. 

The chocolates are made using cacao butter and cacao mass as the main ingredients and are not made using vegetable fat or cocoa powder. The vegetable oil would coat your palate, and inhibit one’s ability to taste the intricacies in our wines. Whereas using authentic cacao the natural flavours and lower oil content in the chocolate will seamlessly mingle with the complex flavours in the wine allowing both to pair concurrently.

The similarities between the world of wine and that of chocolate begin at the molecular level. Chocolate, like wine, contains tannins that affect the taste and appreciation of chocolate, and which contains antioxidant that promotes good health. When it comes to pairing chocolate with tannin-rich wines, it’s important to choose a wine that has enough acidity and fruitiness to balance out the saltiness and sweetness in chocolate. For this reason, our Cabernet Sauvignon pairs well with the Rock Salt Dark Chocolate. The high tannins help cut through the richness of the chocolate and enhance flavour. 

To taste wine and chocolate together, start by taking a small sip of the wine and swishing it around in your mouth. Note the flavours and characteristics of the wine. Then, take a small bite of chocolate and allow it to melt on your tongue. Pay attention to how the chocolate flavour changes as it melts. Take another sip of wine and note how the flavours interact with the chocolate. 

The Waterford Kevin Arnold Shiraz and Von Geusau Masala Chai Dark Chocolate

The dark fruit and aromatic spices from the Shiraz are paired with the cinnamon, cardamon and cloves of the masala chai dark chocolate.

Masala Chai Chocolate Ingredients:

- Dark chocolate 65% cocoa with a selection of gentle chai spices – cinnamon, cardamon and cloves.
- Ingredients – Cocoa mass, sugar, cocoa butter, emulsifier, soya lecithin, natural vanilla and spices.
- Contains no milk.
- Allergens: Nuts - tree nuts are used in the same factory as these chocolates are made. Gluten free.
- Diabetics – These chocolates contain sugar.

Waterford Estate Cabernet Sauvignon and the Von Geusau Rock Salt Dark Chocolate

As with any meaty dish and a robust red wine, the salt in the dark chocolate pairs perfectly with the Cabernet Sauvignon and adds an additional smoothness to the red wine.

Rock Salt Chocolate Ingredients:

- Dark chocolate 70% cocoa with crystals of Khoisan sea salt.

- Ingredients - Cocoa mass, sugar, cocoa butter, emulsifier, soya lecithin, natural vanilla and salt crystals.

- Contains no milk.

- Allergens: Nuts - tree nuts are used in the same factory as these chocolates are made. Gluten free.

- Diabetics – These chocolates contain sugar.

 Heatherleigh dessert wine and Von Geusau Rose Geranium Milk Chocolate

Fragrant floral and fruit flavours of this deliciously sweet and fresh dessert wine are elevated by the smooth milk chocolate enriched by rose geranium oils.

Rose Geranium Chocolate Ingredients:

- Milk chocolate with Rose Geranium essential oil.

- Ingredients – Sugar, cocoa butter, milk powder, cocoa mass, emulsifier, soya lecithin, natural vanilla and rose geranium oil.

- Allergens: Nuts - tree nuts are used in the same factory as these chocolates are made. Gluten free.

- Diabetics – These chocolates contain sugar.

- The experience of a wine and chocolate tasting draws out the sensuous complexities of their flavours.

- It takes 400 cocoa beans to make around 500g of chocolate.

- To receive the same number of antioxidants from one glass of red wine, you would have to drink 20 glasses of apple juice.

- A farmer must wait around five years for a cocoa tree to produce its first beans.

- It can take a full three years to get from the initial planting of a brand-new grapevine through the first harvest, and the first vintage might not be bottled for another two years after that.

- Both cacao beans and grapes are fermented with the same type of yeast to produce the delicious chocolate and wine.

- Both chocolate and wine can affect serotonin levels in your brain, which can improve your mood and make you feel happier.

- The shape of a wine glass can affect the taste and aroma of the wine. For example, a wider bowl can enhance the aroma while a narrower rim can direct the wine to the front of the tongue for a sharper taste.

- Chocolate contains a compound called phenylethylamine, which triggers the release of endorphins and may improve mood.

- Drinking wine slowly allows you to fully appreciate its flavour, aroma, and complexity.