The Whisky Foundation Guide to Pairing up your Whisky and Chocolate.

Chocolate-lovers of the world unite, for today is International Chocolate Day, a day to celebrate everything that is great and glorious about chocolate.

(Fun fact, this year it’ll be the 467th anniversary of the year that chocolate was introduced to Europe.)

Now, while we love chocolate here at Whisky Foundation, there’s something that’s even better: whisky and chocolate.

(Although, let’s be honest, what in life isn’t improved with the addition of whisky?)

Sadly though, it’s not as easy as just grabbing your favourite chocolate and washing it down with a big swig of your favourite whisky.

There’s lots of things to consider when you’re pairing whisky and chocolate. For starters, you’ve got to think of the peatiness of the whisky, the age, the smokiness, the barrel it was finished in, the proof and the grain. After that, you’ve got to weigh up the type of chocolate, the bitterness of the chocolate and the cacao content to see if it matches up with the whisky.

To put it mildly, it’s on a par with alchemy.

But, taking our inspiration from Mary the Jewess (remember her?), we’ve dug deep and worked out the perfect whiskies to go with your favourite chocolate.

Let’s begin.

How to pair your favourite whisky and chocolate

Before we start giving you our choice pairings, we thought we’d explain a bit of the technique behind pairing the whisky and chocolate. (Because, let’s be honest, it’s a good excuse to eat more chocolate and drink more whisky in the name of experimentation.)

Step One: Take your favourite whisky and – even if you know it like the back of your hand – nose it, taste it and move it around your mouth. Notice the different notes and flavours.

Step Two: Swallow the whisky and wait a good few seconds. Pay attention to the finish.

Step Three: Grab a small piece of chocolate, put it in your mouth and let it melt on your tongue. You want to be paying attention to the mix of the melting chocolate and the whisky finish.

Step Four: As the chocolate is melting, wash it from your tongue with a small sip of whisky.

Step Five: Wait for the magic (or the opposite of magic – Mugglery? – if you’ve picked a dud combination) to happen. Swallow and pay attention to the finish again, notice how they’re different. Is it in a good way?

Step Six: Grab a new whisky or a new chocolate and try again. (Don’t take it too seriously though. After all, whisky and chocolate are supposed to be treats, not chores!)

Pro Tip: It’s a good idea to try your chocolates beforehand, too. Pay attention to the cacao content and the quality of the chocolate and the bitterness – once you’ve tried a few whisky and chocolate combinations, these notes will be handy for finding that ultimate combination.

An Alternative Method: Some people have a different way of combining whisky and chocolate. Rather than as a combination – whisky, chocolate, whisky – they use the chocolate to ‘cut’ their palate. The thinking behind this is that the chocolate lessens the effect of the alcohol in the same way a drop of water would, allowing you to detect the more subtle notes of the whisky.

However, why not try both methods and see what works for you?

Treat yourself to a bit more whisky and a bit more chocolate and say that it’s in the name of science.

A few whisky and chocolate pairings to get you started:

The Rough and Ready:

This one is for the people that can’t get their hands on any decent chocolate. If you’re in this boat, raid your sweet cupboard (or nearest convenience store) and grab yourself some milk chocolate that’s packed full of nuts (or, at the very least, nutty flavours).

Chocolate: your favourite nutty milk chocolate (Fruit and Nut, Picnic or Snickers, etc…)

Whisky: A middle-of-the-road bourbon (or rye)

We know, it’s blasphemy to even include a whisky that isn’t an independent bottling on a site that’s dedicated to independent bottling, but hear us out.

Would you head to McDonalds, order a Big Mac and then wash it down with a bottle of Bollinger? Probably not.

The same logic applies here – save your independent bottlings for the good chocolate.

But it’s not just an economic decision. The sweetness of bourbon’s vanilla and caramel notes matches up nicely with the nutty sweetness of the milk chocolate for a satisfying – if not particularly complex – treat.

However, if you’re absolutely sold on the idea of drinking an IB with your Picnic bar, we’d suggest the Caol Ila 10 Year (Gordon & Macphail, 2015). It was aged in a bourbon cask for 13 years for an American twist, so it should do the trick.

The Intermediate:

If you’ve got a bit of time to prepare for your whisky and chocolate session, then this is the combo for you.

Chocolate: Get your hands on a fruity, 70% dark chocolate. Keep your eye out for particularly fruity chocolates, perhaps with citrus notes.

Whisky: A Talisker 10-Year (or another coastal single malt)

What you’re after here is the seamless blending of the Talisker’s trademark wildness – the pepper, the chilli, the coastal hit – and the fruity notes of the chocolate, which combine to blunt the edges of the Talisker for a smooth finish.

The Ultimate:

If you’ve got plenty of time to get yourself all set up for your whisky and chocolate marathon, then this is the pairing for you. (Beware, you’re not going to be able to try this just once.)

Chocolate: We’re getting specific on this one (as you’ve got time to prepare): Mast Brother’s Almond 70% dark chocolate. (You can thank us later.)

Whisky: Your peaty single malt of choice (if you feel like really treating yourself, may we recommend this 25-Year-Old Lagavulin?)

Oh yes. This is what whisky and chocolate combinations are all about.

You’d be forgiven for assuming that the Lagavulin is going to march in, push the chocolate to one side and continue to smack you with huge hits of peat and smoke, as per usual.

But you’d be wrong.

The Lagavulin is still going to get a good few peaty swings in (otherwise, why bother with a Lagavulin at all?), but the fruity notes and almonds in the chocolate are going to soften them, so you’re left with a smoother, delicate smokiness that’s balanced out by the chocolate’s sweetness, as well as tiny hints of the Lagavulin’s briney, saltiness.

It’s really quite something.

Fancy giving it a go? If you do, why not snap a quick photo and tag us on social media. We’d love to see your attempts.

Until next time, slainte.