A Drink With Meghan…Featuring Halloween Candy!

BY MEGHAN FITZGERALD

The sun might have set on summer, but that doesn’t mean it’s time to button up the year along with your boat and coat. The cooler days, changing leaves, and ever-present scent of pumpkin spice simply mean that Fall has officially arrived, and you don’t have to be a kid to know what that means.

Even if the buildings and lots left vacant most of the year weren’t suddenly transformed into spaces of macabre magic and wicked whimsy all over town, that first day of Fall screams that the countdown to Halloween has begun. If perhaps you were raised as I was, hardly a Fall Day passes before the decorations are up, the scary and/or festive movies are on, and the October 31st strategizing commences.

What costume should I wear?

What party should I attend?

What dish should I bring?

These are all common questions those of us nostalgic for, but beyond, our days of trick-or-treating ask before we set out on Halloween to paint the town orange. Not so commonly addressed, even by those of us wild for wine and crazy for candy, is the question of which wine will pair best with which candy. Bricks of solid chocolate, as well as chocolate-covered fruits and nuts, are often paired with wine, solo and as part of an edible ensemble, so why is it that wine pairing practices aren’t more popular on Halloween?

As is the case with many things, perhaps it really does come down to location, location, location…the location in this case being where to start. How about we start with something so quintessentially Halloween, it is rarely seen beyond the confines of the season?

I am speaking, of course, of candy corn.

Love it or hate it, candy corn is a Halloween tradition, boasting festive colors, a waxy texture, and a triangular shape reminiscent of the eyes of a Jack-o’-lantern. To enjoy candy corn is really to experience texture over taste as the candy’s marked chewiness often overshadows its subtle sweet flavors. A glass of Pinot Gris, a wine defined by sharp flavors of lemon zest and orange, would make an ideal match for the muted flavors of candy corn, while also allowing its textural quality to complement the lighter body of the wine.

A popular candy to enjoy at the movies, as well as on Halloween, is DOTS, a colorful collection of fruit flavored gumdrops, which look just as good in a pumpkin-shaped candy dish as they do in their signature yellow box. These delightful drops also sit neatly beside a glass of Sauvignon Blanc, a wine bursting with fruit flavors bold enough to match those of DOTS, highlighting especially well the notes of citrus fruit, such as lemon and orange, in both the wine and the candy.

Another candy that boasts an assortment of colors and flavors is Skittles, smartly packaged in red and famously sporting the rainbow as its logo. However, you won’t just ‘taste the rainbow’ when you taste Skittles, especially if you pair these little candies with a glass of Chenin Blanc. The wine is perhaps just as versatile as the candy, flaunting similar flavors, such as lemon and orange, and ranging stylistically from off-dry to dry to even sparkling.

Turning up the heat in supermarket aisles and mall candy machines, Hot Tamales possess a taste and color that are hard to miss. Cinnamon-flavored and firetruck red, these spicy treats require a wine with spice to match, edged with subtle flavors of fruit to soften the bite. A glass of Carmenere is just the complement, possessing sharp notes of paprika and pepper, as well as fruity undertones of plum and raspberry, allowing the bold flavors of both the wine and the candy to exist without one overwhelming the other.

Available in a variety of brands and styles, red licorice is perhaps best known under the banner of either Red Vines or Twizzlers. The candy is texturally chewy and often tastes of red fruit, such as cherry or raspberry, making it the ideal match for a glass of Schiava. Light-bodied with gentle notes of strawberry, rose, and even cotton candy, the wine pairs seamlessly with the licorice, promoting the flutters of sweet flavor present in both.

Another variety of licorice made popular by Red Vines and Twizzlers is black licorice, an unusual candy to find among the trick-or-treating crowd, but a candy you’ll want at your next Halloween party. Dominated by flavors of anise and molasses, black licorice is more bitter than its red counterpart, and calls for a wine characterized by distinct flavors pronounced enough to cut that bitterness. A glass of Cabernet Franc, possessing an eclectic collection of aromas and flavors, including cherry, tobacco, and coffee, will dull the candy’s more dichotomous qualities.

Crispy on the inside, smooth on the outside, Butterfinger is famous for its crunchy peanut butter center and silky chocolate coating. The candy bar is as much about texture as it is taste, requiring a wine that not only offers the appropriate flavors, but the appropriate structure, as well. A glass of Chardonnay, preferably unoaked, interferes very little with the candy, possessing only a dash of sugar and donning soft flavors, including apple, lemon, and blossom.

Perhaps the most popular of the peanut butter infused chocolate candies is Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, a double dose of chocolate saucer shaped candies complete with a soft peanut butter filling. A glass of GSM, the blend consisting of Grenache, Syrah, and Mourvèdre, will sit pretty next to a candy so defined by flavor and sweetness, bearing little to no sweetness of its own with dominating flavors of spice, such as cinnamon and ginger.

Resplendent in a coat of milk chocolate and topped with two whole almonds, Almond Joy is perhaps most recognized for its sweetened, shredded coconut filling. Characterized by such distinct flavor, the candy is best paired with a wine that mirrors these flavors, but to a degree a shade more subtle. A glass of sherry, ideally dry, makes a marvelous match for the candy, showcasing complementary flavors of lemon and almond.

Likewise, Mounds is another candy bar particularly popular during the Halloween season, which features a coconut filling and chocolate coating. However, this candy does not include almonds and is covered in dark, rather than milk, chocolate. A glass of port, standing solidly on the sweeter side, pairs well with the candy’s dark chocolate notes, offering flavors of plum and cherry, as well as hints of cinnamon and raisin.

…and we haven’t even reached the bottom of the jack-o’-lantern shaped bucket!

Halloween is the time for not only ghouls and goblins to come out in all spooky resplendence, but candy, as well. Shaped for the season as pumpkins, bats, and skulls, and dressed in festive purple, orange, and green, candy never looks or tastes better than during Halloween.

…except, of course, when paired with the perfect glass of wine.

Here’s to your Happiest Halloween!