葡萄酒與巧克力在情人節要如何搭配

With the arrival of February comes a question as inevitable as long-stem roses, come-hither lingerie and ridiculously bad Valentine’s Day restaurant deals: What wine goes best with chocolate?

隨着2月的到來，有個問題像長莖玫瑰、誘人內衣以及情人節那天餐館的漫天要價一樣讓人無法迴避：什麼葡萄酒最搭巧克力？

I have done my curmudgeonly best to avoid ever having to answer this question seriously. The whole issue smacks too much of “sinful desserts,” “guilty pleasures” and all the other puritanical constructions that cause people to feel as if they are daring the moral authorities by risking a glass of wine on a weeknight. If drinking wine with chocolate qualifies as a naughty thrill, well, our perception of naughtiness seems appallingly limited.

我總是儘量避免嚴肅地回答這個問題。總的來說，這個問題會讓人產生“萬惡的甜品”和“充滿罪惡感的享受”之類想法，還有諸如此類清教徒式的道德感，感覺就像是在工作日的晚上喝一杯葡萄酒來挑戰道德權威。如果喝葡萄酒配巧克力就被認爲是放蕩的狂歡，呃，那麼我們對放蕩的看法也未免太狹隘了。

Yet, while I personally am not that interested in drinking wine with chocolate, the question of which combinations are best is a good one, with some excellent answers. It turns out that wine and chocolate can indeed make beautiful music together, though, as I discovered in a week of testing various pairings, they can also sound some discordant notes.

不過，雖然我個人對喝葡萄酒搭配巧克力不是那麼感興趣，但是什麼樣的組合最美妙是個很好的問題，能引出一些精彩的答案。事實證明，葡萄酒和巧克力搭配在一起的確能演繹出美妙的樂章，不過，在我嘗試不同組合的這一週裏，我發現它們也能碰撞出不和諧的音調。

The question hinges not simply on which wine to choose but on which chocolate you plan to eat. I experimented with various pure chocolate bars, ranging from milk chocolate (34 percent cacao) through dark chocolate (70 percent cacao) to very dark (85 percent cacao). I did not try filled or flavored bonbons, which no doubt would add different flavor dimensions and additional sweetness to the equation.

這個問題不僅在於你選擇哪種葡萄酒，而且在於你打算吃哪種巧克力。我嘗試了好幾種純巧克力——從牛奶巧克力（含34%可可）、黑巧克力（70%可可）到可可含量更高的巧克力（85%可可）。我沒有嘗試巧克力夾心或巧克力味糖果，那無疑會使味道層次更復雜，增加額外的甜度。

Like many people nowadays, I generally prefer the purer flavors of dark chocolate to milk chocolate. But counterintuitively, I found that the light sweetness of milk chocolate was more versatile with a wider range of wines than the darker chocolates, which have a distinct bitterness that, while welcome on its own, can clash with a wine that’s not equipped to handle it.

和如今的很多人一樣，相對於牛奶巧克力，我總的來說更喜歡黑巧克力更爲純粹的味道。不過出人意料的是，我發現牛奶巧克力淡淡的甜味比可可含量更高的黑巧克力更能與各種葡萄酒搭配。雖然黑巧克力獨特的苦味本身惹人喜愛，但是有些葡萄酒可能無法降服這種苦味，兩者無法協調。

Regardless of the chocolate itself, the wines that go with it best share two particular characteristics: They are intensely sweet, and they have good acidity, a quality that, despite the sweetness, lifts the wine and refreshes the palate, leaving you ready and eager to eat even more chocolate.

不管是哪種巧克力，與之最搭配的葡萄酒都有這兩個特點：一方面特別甜，一方面又有極好的酸度。雖然舌尖品嚐着甜味，但良好的酸度令酒味得以提升，讓你的味蕾爲之一振，讓你做好準備想要吃掉更多巧克力。

The wines most often associated with chocolate are port and Madeira. The two are frequently uttered in the same breath, yet I by far preferred Madeira with each type of chocolate. Madeira, from the Portuguese island of Madeira, can range from dry and light to rich and very sweet. The sweetest Madeiras, generally made from the malvasia candida grape and labeled “malmsey,” are what you want with chocolate. Bual Madeiras, which are slightly less sweet, were overwhelmed, but chocolate and malmsey indeed was a lovely match.

最常與巧克力聯繫起來的葡萄酒是波特(port)和馬德拉(Madeira)。這兩種葡萄酒經常被同時提起，但是到目前爲止，我更喜歡用馬德拉來搭配各種巧克力。馬德拉葡萄酒產自葡萄牙的馬德拉島，包括幹型、清淡型、濃郁型和極甜型。最甜的馬德拉葡萄酒通常是用瑪爾維薩白葡萄做成的，被稱爲“瑪爾維薩甜酒”(malmsey)，用它來搭配巧克力最合適。布阿爾馬德拉葡萄酒(Bual Madeiras)的甜度略爲遜色，會被巧克力的甜味淹沒，但是巧克力和馬姆齊的確是迷人的組合。

Blandy’s 5-Year malmsey, a wine aged a minimum of five years, is a good entry-level Madeira and costs about $20 to $25. Even better is Blandy’s 15-Year Madeira, for $35 to $40, which had a beautifully bright, refreshing flavor that was superb with chocolate. Best of all would be vintage malmsey, or one of my favorites, New York Malmsey Special Reserve, a bottling from the Rare Wine Company made in the style of Madeiras from the 18th and 19th centuries. It was almost kaleidoscopic in its complexity yet remained deliciously refreshing. It can be found for around $60.

布蘭迪葡萄酒莊(Blandy’s)的五年瑪爾維薩（至少存放了五年時間）是很好的入門級馬德拉，售價約爲20至25美元。更好一點的是布蘭迪的15年馬德拉，售價爲35至40美元，它有一種明快清新的迷人滋味，與巧克力搭配起來極爲美妙。最好的是陳年瑪爾維薩，或者我最喜歡的紐約瑪爾維薩特藏(New York Malmsey Special Reserve)，後者是稀有葡萄酒公司(Rare Wine Company)按照18至19世紀的馬德拉風格釀造的。它的味道如同萬花筒般豐富多彩，但仍保持着清新的口感，價格約爲60美元。

By comparison, port in general lacks that same refreshing element with chocolate. Save the powerful vintage ports for walnuts and Stilton. I prefer tawny ports, particular 20-year-olds, which have achieved a mellow nuttiness from long barrel-aging sometimes referred to as “rancio,” yet are still lively enough to dance compatibly with dark chocolate. Taylor, Cockburn and Sandeman are reliable labels and will generally cost $40 to $50. Young ruby ports, like Graham’s Six Grapes, are decent alternatives for $15 to $20.

相比之下，波特葡萄酒總的來說缺乏與巧克力搭配所需的這種清新之感。還是把上好的陳年波特酒用來搭配核桃和斯蒂爾頓奶酪(Stilton)吧。我更喜歡黃褐色波特葡萄酒，特別是20年醇的，它長時間儲存在木桶中，醞釀出一種柔和的口感，有時被稱爲“陳釀”(rancio)，不過仍然足夠活躍，能與黑巧克力和諧共舞。泰勒(Taylor)、科伯恩(Cockburn)和桑德曼(Sandeman)這些品牌值得信賴，通常售價爲40至50美元。酒齡短的深紅色葡萄酒是很好的替代品，比如格雷厄姆的“六個葡萄”(Graham’s Six Grapes)品牌，售價爲15至30美元。

Both Madeira and port are fortified wines, meaning the sweet versions have had neutral spirits added to the wine in mid-fermentation, which stops the process before all the sugar in the grape juice has been converted into alcohol. I tried a number of other fortified wines, too. A PX sherry, made of the pedro ximénez grape, was so insistently sweet and syrupy as to be almost undrinkable. I would rather pour this style over ice cream than pair it with chocolate.

馬德拉和波特都是甜度強化葡萄酒，意思是在發酵過程的中間階段，在葡萄酒中加入中性烈酒，這會阻止葡萄汁中的所有糖分轉化爲酒精。我也嘗試過其他幾種強化葡萄酒。PX品牌有一種雪利酒是用帕德羅西門內葡萄(Pedro Ximénez)釀造的，它太甜了，像糖漿一樣，幾乎難以下嚥。我更願意把這種酒倒在冰激凌上，而不是和巧克力搭配。

But two other, lesser known fortified wines, Maury and Banyuls, were great. These wines, both from Roussillon in the south of France, are called vins doux naturels, though paradoxically they are indeed fortified. They are also rare, and many winemakers in Roussillon, as in the Douro, where port is produced, have turned to making still wines as public tastes have changed. But you can still find occasional bottles of Maury and Banyuls, made largely with the grenache grape.

但是另外兩種不太出名的強化葡萄酒也很棒：莫里(Maury)和巴紐爾斯(Banyuls)。這兩種葡萄酒都產自法國南部的魯西永區，被稱爲天然甜酒，實際上它們也是強化型的。它們非常罕見，因爲隨着公衆口味的改變，魯西永的很多酒莊轉而釀造無氣泡葡萄酒，波特葡萄酒的產地杜羅河谷也是如此。但是你偶爾仍能找到莫里和巴紐爾斯葡萄酒，大多是用歌海娜葡萄(grenache)釀造的。

A 2013 Banyuls “Rimage” from Domaine la Tour Vieille, around $30, was sweet with plenty of primary fruit flavors. It went just fine with the chocolate but will be even better after a few years of aging tempers the somewhat raw flavor of the alcohol.

拉圖爾維埃耶葡萄園(Domaine la Tour Vieille)2013年釀造的巴紐爾斯Rimage葡萄酒售價在30美元左右，它很甜，而且含有很多基礎水果的味道。它和巧克力搭配也挺好，但是如果能多放幾年，讓酒精的嗆口滋味變得柔和一點，會更好。

I happened to have a rare bottle of older Maury, a 1965 from La Coume du Roy, which I opened last week to try with chocolate. I will report that this was a profound wine, sweet, nutlike and burnished, yet with bright, intriguing flavors that ricocheted through the mouth. It was surprisingly similar to the New York Malmsey Madeira, delicious in every way and especially with chocolate. You may not find a Maury this old, but I saw 1998 and 2001 Coume du Roys selling for around $40.

我碰巧有一瓶罕見的莫里陳釀，它是皇谷御釀酒莊(La Coume du Roy)1965年釀造的。上週我把它打開，嘗試和巧克力搭配。這種葡萄酒口感醇厚，很甜，有果仁味，明亮，同時又有歡快、誘人的滋味在口中迴盪。令人意外的是，它與紐約瑪爾維薩馬德拉葡萄酒很相似，從各個方面講都很美味，特別是與巧克力搭配。你可能找不到年份如此久遠的莫里酒，但我見過1998年和2001年產的皇谷御釀葡萄酒，售價在40美元左右。

While fortified wines in general may be the best choices for chocolate, I did find one sensational option among unfortified sweet wines: Tokaji Aszu from Hungary. These wines, made with grapes that have been inflicted with botrytis, the famous noble rot, are both fiercely sweet and wonderfully acidic, with flavors of orange and apricot that meld gorgeously with chocolate.

雖然強化葡萄酒總體來說可能最適合與巧克力搭配，但我的確在非強化甜葡萄酒中找到了一個很好的選擇：匈牙利的託卡伊·阿蘇(Tokaji Aszu)葡萄酒。這種葡萄酒是用感染了葡萄孢菌（著名貴腐菌）的葡萄釀造的，具有強烈的甜味和美妙的酸味，還有橙子和杏的味道，它和巧克力的味道融合在一起好極了。

I tried a 2003 5 Puttonyos from Royal Tokaji, which had turned a dark amber in the bottle. Yet in the glass it was bright and lovely, thoroughly refreshing and a joyous match with each style of chocolate. And unlike the fortified wines, which ranged from 15 to 20 percent alcohol, it was about 10 percent. Wines like these, from slightly more recent vintages, run $40 to $50 a bottle.

我還嘗試了皇家託卡伊(Royal Tokaji)的2003年5 Puttonyos（Puttonyo是當地採集葡萄的容器，用以表示甜度等級——譯註）葡萄酒，它在酒瓶中會變成深琥珀色。但是盛在玻璃杯中卻顯得明亮秀麗，它的清新口感與每種巧克力搭配都令人愉悅。強化葡萄酒的度數通常爲15%至20%，而這種葡萄酒的度數約爲10%。類似的這種年份較近的葡萄酒售價爲40至50美元。

No doubt other wines can work with chocolate, too. I’ve heard good things about Barolo Chinato, a fortified, sweet and herbal digestif made from Barolo. Some people like Amarone or powerful zinfandels, wines that are richly fruity and maybe not quite dry. Personally, I will stick with Madeira, which has the additional benefit of being virtually indestructible even after a bottle is opened. That way, if you don’t finish the bottle on Valentine’s Day, you’ll have the answer to the perennial question waiting for you next year.

不必懷疑其他葡萄酒也能和巧克力搭配。我聽人讚美過巴羅洛Chinato葡萄酒，它是產自巴羅洛地區的強化、甜味、草本餐後酒。還有些人喜歡阿馬羅內(Amarone)或濃郁的仙粉黛葡萄酒(zinfandel)，這兩種酒具有濃郁的水果味，可能不是很乾。我個人還是鍾愛馬德拉，它的另一個好處是，即使在開瓶之後，依然能保持原味。這樣的話，就算情人節那天你沒喝完那瓶酒，明年你也能回答那個永恆的問題了。