Happiness is a Truffle/Wine Pairing

I wish I could say that the animals have miracuously stopped acting like the pigs they are, but that is not the case.

Instead, I have just learned to live with it. I do plan on changing the cat litter yet again, as I'm not impressed with this pine shaving business. The walnut stuff was a bust, the corn stuff was the “Worst Cat Litter” ever, and I hate clay litter. I'm not sure what to try next.

I'm about to just throw potty pads everywhere and say, "Have at it."

This Sunday I spent two hours vacuuming, mopping the floors, sanitizing the litter boxes with bleach, and cleaning the bathroom.

It took Percy two seconds to track litter everywhere, and Puckett to promptly barf up her entire dinner. And not on the tile floor either. Nope, she managed to place it precisely on the shoe rug which I now have to wash.

I retired to the couch with wine and an episode of Fuller House.

I choose to focus on happier things than the perpetual grossness of my pets.

I have taken to spinning new truffle recipes and pairing them with wines. I've always had an interest in chocolate making and I've been told that my basic bittersweet truffles are better than Godiva.

I have always dreamed of opening a chocolate shop.

And and I'm always telling my friends who want to open an Etsy business or work on art or publish that novel (not me, someone else!), there is no time like the present. It will never be a good time to completely dismantle your life with a new business or idea. There is always something else going on, life will always get in the way.

So you might as well start now.

Yes, I realize I should take my own advice and finish that stupid novel.

I'm working on it,

Meanwhile I'm working on my other dream: Truffle making.

So far, I have branched out to three different flavors. My classic semisweet chocolate truffles, milk chocolate almond truffles, and what has now become my favorite: bittersweet chocolate truffles with a pinch of chili pepper.

Chocolate and chili pepper are the new “it thing” in chocolate and everyone is doing it. A lot of people don't like it, and to tell the truth, I don't like it much either. I discovered it's all in the moderation. I don't put so much into my truffles that one can actually feel the bite (though I can do that if that's your cup of tea). I put just enough that you get this zing and you wonder if I didn't put booze in the truffles.

I do that too.

But never mind what or how much, that's my secret.

Recently I started thinking, "Hmmmm, I wonder what would happen if I paired my truffles with wine?"

Well, let me tell you, it's a party in your mouth.

The classic semisweet truffles pair well with a Pinot Noir or a Petit Syrah (which happens to be my favorite wine next to Rioja, and it was the first wine I ever took a chance on). But truth be told, the semisweet truffles will pair well with anything. They need no dressing up or down, and for traditionalists, they are the best truffles out there. The bolder, darker reds, ones with more tannins, might overpower them, so I like them best with the Dark Horse Pinot Noir which is light, slightly fruity, and like silk going down.

The milk chocolate truffles do best with a white wine. The one I tried was a Semillon, which is a dryer white wine, not as much a favorite of mine as a Viognier, but still quite tasty. I'm not into sweeter wines like Moscato or Resilings. Even Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc can be too sweet, though I'll drink Sauvignons in a pinch. The Semillon is perfect, and it complements the sweetness of the milk chocolate exceptionally well. I added amaretto to the ganache and rolled the things in almond flour, giving them a very mild nutty flavor. Milk chocolate will pair well with Chardonnay or Reisling if sweeter is your bag, and if you like your wines sweet. However, if you like your wines sweet, but your chocolate a little more bitter, the classic semisweet truffle will work too.

I tried the bittersweet truffle with a pinch of chili pepper with several wines. Bittersweet chocolate is a bit harder to work with than semisweet chocolate. It's stiffer and doesn't form as well, so the truffles looked angular and craggy rather than smooth balls like the milk and the semisweet. I also added a splash of Godiva chocolate liquer that played off the chili pepper, creating a dark devil of a truffle that I actually liked better than my classic truffles.

I paired the bittersweet truffle first with the Semillon, and while they pair well as the truffles are not very sweet and the Semillon is a crisp, dry wine, I was not in love with the pairing. I tried the Pinot next and while it worked, the marriage was a little boring, like a comfortable old pair of sweats. I then tried it with my favorite Rioja Bordon. A bold, dark, acidic wine, the Rioja complemented well, but what worked best was a Zinfandel. The flavor of the Zin finished the richness of the truffle so well, I ate two or three. Maybe four.

I'm not enough of a wine nerd to be able to tell too much difference between a Rioja and a Zin. Much as I can tell, the Rioja is oaky while the Zin is zesty, almost peppery. 

I think that's why the Zin worked so well with the bittersweet truffles. The pepperiness of the wine complements the tiny pinch of chili pepper in the super dark chocolate and I made myself sick on the richness of both.

It was a happy sick.

I have several other recipes in mind to try, but one I'm struggling with is the white chocolate truffle. I've made two batches of white chocolate ganache and made a mess of both of them. The first was too soft and I could not form it into anything. I ended up with white cow patties spread out on the cookie sheet. The second batch I left in the refrigerator too long. It got too hard, and when I tried to warm it up a little to soften it, I ended up with a browned, vanilla-smelling mess in the saucepan.

Turns out I can do anything with cocoa-ed chocolate. When it comes to white, it's a little trickier. The magic is all in the cocoa, I suppose.

I shall not be deterred however. I promised a friend a root beer float flavored truffle, and I have an idea of how to make it work. I just need to perfect the white chocolate ganache. The flavorings are no problem.

I highly suspect that a basic white chocolate truffle will pair well with a Moscato or Chardonnay. A root beer float truffle? Well, I don't know. I'm thinking a Gewurztraminer. Or, if we're really getting wild, a Petit Syrah as they can have notes of licorice.

I can't wait to find out.