Thursday, October 26, 2006

Scarily Scintillating Halloween


A wine and candy tasting for your adult trick or treaters

Did you say candy and wine? If you get bored sitting around waiting for the cute kids to ring your doorbell this Halloween, how about hosting a Halloween-themed wine tasting party? This will be a huge hit for you friends and all the adult trick or treaters.

You’ll really impress your guests by pulling out your copy of WineParty and offering a wine game to the adults who visit your house on Halloween. When they arrive offer them a taste of the blinded wine and ask them to guess what kind of wine it is. If they guess correctly, they get a tasty treat, if not they get your most devilishly devised trick.

While many people think that wine and candy don’t mix, we disagree. Get all your favorite Halloween candies, and offer a selection of wines that might pair well with them. Here are some ghoulishly delicious combos*:

1) Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups and California Meritage
2) Sweet Tarts and Sauvignon Blanc
3) Candy corn and dry Riesling
4) Almond Joy and Syrah
5) Snickers and Cabernet Sauvignon
6) M&Ms and Zinfandel
7) 3 Muscateers and Malbec
8) Hershey’s Kisses and Merlot
9) Butterfinger and Chianti or Sangiovese
10) Hot Tamales and Pinot Grigio
11) Nestle Crunch and Dry Rose

*WARNING: some of these pairings might be a fright. You decide!

If you’re hoping for a bit more elegant of an evening, serve your adult guests a selection of quality dark chocolates paired with red wines, Madeira, Port, or even some ales or dark beers (Barley Wines are particularly delightful).