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No. Not that Weeknd. 

Posted on December 24, 2015 by lilliebette
No. Not that Weeknd. 

Happy Holidays! I hope your celebrations are merry. Maybe you have snow where you are but I certainly do not. Regardless of whether you have snow or not, I have a festive pairing that’ll have everyone decking the halls. 
The Wine: WKND, 2016 American Sparkling Wine, California    

The Candy: Oh Snap! Gummy Gingerbread Men. Paper Source.   

 
The Dream:  

Who doesn’t love a nice sparkling wine for the holidays? Very festive! Plus I imagine this dry wine would go well with the spicy gingerbread men. It was a bit of a gamble because I didn’t know how the gingerbread men would exactly taste. 

The Reality:

The wine has a citrus edge to it and it is delightfully bubbly! I absolutely recommend for the holiday season and for New Year’s Eve.   

The candy smells strongly of gingerbread and they are very chewy. In terms of flavor, it tastes mostly like vanilla. 

The vanilla and bubbles merge delightfully and do not overwhelm the senses. I might have to try more gummies with sparking wines because I love how they fizzle. I absolutely recommend this pairing! 

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You Spin Me Rind Round Baby Rind Roundf

Posted on July 21, 2015 by lilliebette
You Spin Me Rind Round Baby Rind Roundf

Hello! I am about to go on a well-earned vacation but before I do, I thought I would provide you some reading. Today I am following up on a promise I made a long time ago to my friend at Medieval Vegetarian. I am featuring a candy she made and brought to a casual holiday get together that somehow turned into a party. Quite a few months later, the candy is still amazing if not better. So no matter how this pairing goes, check out the recipe here.

In regards to our little wine give away, you all certainly acted quickly! There will be another one once I accrue some more giveaways. If you are interested in joining Club W before then, please leave a comment! Club W wines are often portrayed on this blog, just like they are today!

The Wine: Imperial Red Blend, Thracian Valley

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The Candy: Candied Orange Peels, by Medieval Vegetarian

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The Dream:

This candy has a very strong flavor since it is made directly from an orange peel. I needed a wine that could tango with this candy adequately without overpowering it. I thought a red blend was a safe bet since I was not sure what flavor notes would balance this unique candy best.

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Making Candied Orange Peels from Medieval Vegetarian

The Reality: 

The wine is tangy and sharp with very ripe blackberry and raspberry flavors. The rinds are bitter, sweet, chewy, and taste just as good as when I got them in December.

The rind enhances what I enjoy about the wine. The tangy sweet flavor of the fruit is brought to the front while the ripeness fades. The aftertaste of the rind and wine left a delightful dance of flavor on the tongue.

I hope you enjoy the rest of your July dear readers. I look forward to preparing a new pairing for you in the near future!

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When Life Gives You Lemonheads…Read for a Chance to Win!

Posted on June 21, 2015 by lilliebette
When Life Gives You Lemonheads…Read for a Chance to Win!

Hey friends! It has been over three months. Spring was a hectic time for me. I had a full course load, a full-time internship, and the rest of my life to keep going. I finished finals in May and had about 12 days off before starting summer semester. But soon I will be done and have a proper break! In the mean time, I am avoiding some work to bring you a brand new post!

I am featuring one of my favorite childhood candies today–lemonheads! I love anything lemon scented or flavored in the summer, don’t you?

The Wine: The Independent, Chenin Blanc, 2014

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The Candy: The Original Lemonhead

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The Dream:

I originally planned to pair this with a bottle of wine that had a distinct lemon flavor, but Sam drank it accidentally before I told him not to open it. It probably was too sour anyway. So I moved onto the other white I got with my Club W wine box and tried the Chenin Blanc. I thought I would buy a chardonnay, but the Chenin Blanc is sweeter and a more interesting pair.

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I Didn’t Know

The Reality:

The Chenin Blanc is very ripe and natural with a distinct sweetness. True to the theme of the post, each sip gets tangier.

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The Lemonheads are delicious but a little stale since I waited a long time to pair them. The pairing is ok but the result is overall bitter. But Sam really liked it, so you may want to give it a shot. The wine did not turn with the sharp and challenging candy. Lemon and all citrus is always a challenge!

Club W:

I am a member of Club W which is a wine subscription service. I am not working for them or receiving any benefits from them whatsoever.

Once in awhile they give me a number of boxes to give away. You sign up on the website and they will send you three wines in one box. Their wines are often featured on Uncorked Unwrapped–like today! You will have to pay shipping with the order but you can unsubscribe if you don’t want to continue receiving them. I will send the first three to fill out this contact form an email with information on how to get a box. This offer expires July 9, 2015.

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Malbec Mini-Mentos

Posted on February 17, 2015 by lilliebette

Happy Snow Day! Well, it is a snow day here anyway. If you are in Boston, every day is a snow day and for that I apologize. I have lived in both Wisconsin and Massachusetts so I know a thing or two about winter but…yikes! You certainly have it bad this year.

Yes, I did not do a post dedicated to Valentine’s Day. Sorry! I hope you could invent your own (if so, please tell me about them!). I hope your Valentine’s/Valentime’s/Galentine’s was delightful.

For Christmas, I received a lot of candy full of pairing potential. I feature one of those candies today!

The Wine: 2013 One from the Quiver from Club W

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The Candy: Mini Mentos Fruit Mix

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The Dream:

While I do have a strong Malbec preference, it is warranted. I think it is a great wine for pairing with candy and I always want to test its limits. I thought the rich and robust Malbec could potentially take on the more astringent flavors of the lemon candy. In addition, I imagined the Malbec would pair nicely with the strawberry mentos.

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The Reality:

The wine is tart, crisp and refreshing. It slides lightly off the tongue.

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Here are the rulings:

Lemon: The flavor is slightly thrown with the lemon. The result is a very fruity and tart mouth sensation. I would not necessarily call it a winning pair, but it is not bad.

Orange: This pair was fabulous–the wine and orange flavor combined to make a blood orange flavor. I loved it

Strawberry: I was disappointed in this pairing. It wasn’t horrible, but it also didn’t go anywhere for me.

I have a region-specific pairing coming up in the next few weeks, so keep checking in!

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