Pairing Single Malt Whisky – Chocolate

It seems to be the case that there is much fun to be had by pairing foodstuffs with single malt whiskies.

Changed days in my book; it doesn’t seem too long ago when it was deemed a heinous crime to adulterate “uisge beatha” by adding, perish the thought – water.

Nowadays we are encouraged to experiment with different whiskies paired with different chocolates. Sure, there are a huge number of single malt whiskies out there – each with its own characteristics and personality. But what about different chocolates? I seem to remember when I was a wee boy that there was children’s chocolate (milk chocolate) and grown up’s chocolate (dark chocolate; yuck!). I don’t recall further segmentation.

How things appear to have changed in the chocolate world; some of the classifications for chocolate are as follows –

  • Bitter Chocolate
  • Black Chocolate
  • Semi Sweet Chocolate
  • Bitter Sweet Chocolate
  • Couverture Chocolate
  • Milk Chocolate
  • White Chocolate

To me; this seems a long way from munching on a Curly Wurly / Mars Bar / Marathon (now called Snickers!) and pairing these chocolates with a glug from a can of Coca Cola. Maybe as one gets older you are exposed to new experiences / traditions that have actually been around for years. Not so, I think, in the case of pairing whisky and chocolate.

So how does one pair these two? It’s up to individual taste; certainly, the experts have definitive pairings, but as far as I’m concerned, pair your favourite single malt whisky with your favourite chocolate (but not a chocolate “bar” like a Snickers”!) and take the experiment from there.

The recognised method is as follows;

  • First of all, take a good mouthful of your chosen single malt whisky. Let it explore your mouth for a good while to let the flavours break out.
  • Once the whisky is despatched, place  a piece of chocolate on the middle of your tongue. The chocolate will melt gently and harmonise the characteristics of the chocolate and whisky.
  • Towards the end of the melting process, sip a little of the whisky back over the chocolate (I know; don’t tell your mother you eat like this!). Doing this, you will experience further characteristics from the whisky.
  • The finish of the whisky will be different from normal (surprise!), adding to the sophistication and intrigue of the spirit.

Pairing Single Malt Whisky - Chocolate