Valentine’s Day Ideas With Wine Pairings

For Valentine’s Day, brighten up this special day celebrating the one you love and create a memorable experience full of magic for your Valentine. There are many creative ways to celebrate your relationship. Something intimate, something memorable and special, just between the two of you.

Check out these great ideas… they’re even paired with a fantastic wine picks for the celebration of your choosing.

Plan a Blissful Picnic with Great Wine

If you’re fortunate enough to be somewhere surrounded by land with grass, plan a romantic picnic. Bring a cozy blanket, a basket full of delicious goodies, a wifi speaker and a special bottle of wine to complete the perfect intimate scenario, like a 2019 Châteauneuf-du-Pape Blanc.

The Château La Nerthe 2019 Châteauneuf-du-Pape Blanc vintage has a rich and aromatic of stone fruit (peach, apricot) and white flowers on the nose.with a long finish. On the palate there is a nice complexity with notes of lime, pineapple and mango with a good balance between acidity and fleshiness. Château La Nerthe is one of the oldest estates in Châteauneuf-du-Pape that extends over 220 acres around a castle. The location, near one of the few natural springs of the Châteauneuf-du-Pape designation, creates a perfect microclimate, which creates white wines with a strong personality. This is an elegant and well integrated wine. $64.00

For a Romantic Evening at Home

They say that love is brewed in the kitchen. If you or your partner are culinarily-inclined and want to show your affection through food, find a great recipe and create your own personal Valentine’s Day romantic culinary experience. In terms of a wine pairing, there’s no grape more versatile than Pinot Noir – and that’s where the Craggy Range 2015 Aroha ($107.00) comes in. Aroha means love. Grown on the Te Muna Road vineyard in Martinborough, New Zealand. The third of three consecutive exceptional vintages, this fine wine has a great depth of aromatics with notes of plum, dark cherry, sage, thyme and fresh bark coming through, and pairs well with duck or lamb. The palate shows a wonderful level of elegance. $107.00

After dinner, cuddle up with your Valentine and fire up the streaming service of your choice. Domaine Ferret 2018 Pouilly-Fuissé. This excellent Chardonnay is crafted within the rolling hills of Burgundy. The Pouilly-Fuissé is a blend of only the best vineyard parcels with ten to thirty five-year-old vines from the Fuissé amphitheater and soils composed of limestone and clay. Each parcel was vinified separately to ensure the finest expression of the fruit. Half the wine was fermented in enameled tanks and half in two to four-year-old oak barrels.

To complete the ambiance and vibe, and tie in the wine and the occasion, it is recommended watching Wes Anderson’s newest film – The French Dispatch. $49.00

For a Ski Weekend in the Mountains

Get out of the city and spend a weekend in the mountains and ski the slopes together. After an exhilarating day skiing, head back to your cabin and for a glass of fine wine to warm your insides, like a Montes 2017 Purple Angel ($89.00). Dense dark cherry color, this red hails from the Colchagua Valley of Chile (a great ski destination!). Great depth of aromatics with notes of plum, dark cherry, sage , thyme and fresh bark coming through. The palate shows a wonderful level of elegance from this low-cropping growing season with a roundness of red fruit beautifully integrated with layers of savory dry tannins which finish long. “The vineyards destined for Purple Angel are located in the Marchigüe and Apalta sectors of the Colchagua Valley. The soils are of granitic origin and vary in their clay content, amount of organic matter, depth, and especially in the types of stones of fluvial and glacial origin, which reflects the tremendous diversity of soils in our vineyards.” $89.00

For a Night Out on the Town

A special night out to a great restaurant and a meal gives you a chance to have nice intimate conversation while indulging in some sexy food over a great bottle of red. Check the wine menu before you choose a restaurant to see if they carry Tenuta Sette Ponti 2018 Oreno.   If not, find a restaurant that allows guests to bring their own bottle of wine for a small corkage fee.

This special wine is named after the river that runs through the property, and is the flagship of Tenuta Sette Ponti. The soils that produce the fruit for Oreno are a blend of clay, sand and the stony galestro limestone that is special to Tuscany.This Tuscan red is comprised of 50% Merlot, 40% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Petit Verdot and goes great with any meal where red meat is the centerpiece.

“Impressive deep purplish-red in color. The aromas are complex, with pronounced blackberry and ripe blueberry fruit. There is also dried plum, cooked cherry and candied fruit. The 18 months of aging in French oak gives a complex nose of toasted aromas, nuts, sweet spice, and touches of dairy and vanilla. On the palate, the flavors follow the aromas, with sensations of dark fruit and toast leading to a long finish that is finely balanced with good body and structure.” $114.99

You can’t go wrong with any of these suggestions. Happy Valentine’s Day!