Pour out your love with perfect Valentine’s wines
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In this modern age of crass commercialism and shrink-wrapped concepts of romance and love, can one still be romantic? As Valentine’s Day is just around the corner, this is a timely and pertinent question. In our quest for true romance a bottle or two of wine is a great way to flame the embers of love. Only wine will do, as wine is the most inherently amorous of all beverages and the key to unlocking your lover’s heart.
Short history
In the 5th century Pope Gelasius proclaimed February 14th as Valentine’s Day. But exactly who was Valentine? The Catholic Church recognizes three saints having the Roman name Valentinus — or Valentine — in modern English. Valentine’s past is rather murky, but two tales may hold the answer. The first tells of a priest who defied the ban on marriage by Emperor Claudius II, a overbearing despot who believed that single men made better soldiers for his legions. In this tale Valentine was put to death for defying the emperor and secretly marrying lovers.
Another popular account claims Valentine was layman who was imprisoned for helping persecuted Christian escape tyrannical Roman overlords. In prison he fell in love with the jailor’s daughter and just before he was executed he wrote her a love note signed, “From your Valentine.” Both tales are somewhat morbid but they do emphasize sacrifice and the spiritual nature of romance. In addition to history, we also have wine to help us be more romantic this Valentine’s Day.
Our ancient ancestors knew the benefits of moderate inebriation, and its resulting loss of inhibitions. No less of an authority than the Roman poet Ovid in his 17AD work, “The Art of Love,” claims wine, “warms the blood, adds luster to the eyes, and therefore wine and love have ever been allies.” Ovid concluded that wine should always play a central role in skillful seduction. But Ovid wasn’t alone as great thinkers and romantics throughout the ages have sung the praise of wine and romance. Before the time of Ovid, in ancient Greece Homer recited, “the god of wine Bacchus opens the gate of the heart;” and Euripides wrote, “where there is no wine, there is no love.”
Modern science agrees with the ancients. Studies have shown that the aromas of certain wines mimic the pheromones of humans in a state of arousal. In his book “Scents and Sensuality” Dr. Max Lake claims that wine aromas help stimulate feelings of attraction in the brain. He notes that the earthy, leathery and musky scents of oak-aged red wines most closely resemble male pheromones while the lighter, fresher and subtler yeasty notes of white and sparkling wines resemble female pheromones.
So whether you believe in ancient sagacity or modern science, wine is an inessential ingredient to a romantic evening, especially when accompanied by libido stimulating food.
Some of nature’s most delicious aphrodisiacs include olives, oysters, lobster, goose liver, roasted red meat, asparagus, almonds, honey and of course chocolate. All these fecund treats embellished by the right wine are a tried and true recipe for a passionate evening.
Some wines are more romantic than others. I suggest starting with bubbles. Dry sparkling wines like an Italian Prosecco or Spanish CAVA are ideal for the budget conscious while more costly Champagne or Franciacorta wines are for those willing to splurge. Some recommended sparklers available in Shanghai include Prosecco wines from La Tordera, Bisol, Carpene Malvolti and Zonin and CAVAs from Freixenet, Codorniu and Reyes de Aragon. Some of my favorite Champagne houses include Bollinger, Gosset, Ayala, Pol Roger and Taittinger while even the most dour date won’t be able to resist Franciacorta sparklers from Bellavista and Ca’ del Bosco. These wines will start your evening on the right amorous note and be gracious companions to appetizers and seafood dishes.
Should red meat be on your Valentine’s dinner menu, then only a substantial red wine will do. One of the world’s most romantic wines is Chateau Calon Segur, a third growth from Saint Estephe in Bordeaux. Not only is this a superb, typically hearty Saint Estephe red, but it also has a great story. In the 18th century, Nicolas Alexander, who was also the Marquis de Segur, was the fortunate owner of several wineries in Bordeaux, including three of the most famous, namely Chateaux Lafite, Latour and Mouton. Despite this, Alexander proclaimed, “my heart is with Segur” so to this day a big heart adorns every label of Chateau Calon Segur. Like other top Saint-Estephe wines, Calon Segur offers intense dark fruit flavors with ample tannins and sexy, slightly spicy notes.
In gastronomy, as in love and life a strong ending is important. The perfect fecund finish to your Valentine’s dinner is chocolate and wine. In general there are two ways to go, the first is lighter wines like the Italian Moscato d’Asti sweet sparkling wine with delicate milk or white chocolates or more robust libations with dark chocolate. In the later case, sweet fortified wines like Port or Sherry are perfect though high-alcohol, off sweet Zinfandel or Amarone reds also work well.
Where to buy in Shanghai
yesmywine.com (website)
Chateau Calon Segur
Cardinale Lanata Moscato d’Asti DOCG
Augusti Torello Mata CAVA Brut
Pudao Wines (376 Wukang Rd, 6090-7075)
Pol Roger Brut Reserve
Pol Roger Brut Vintage
Batasiolo Moscato d’Asti DOCG
Everwines Shanghai (200 Taizhou Rd, 3208-0293)
Taittinger Prelude Grand Crus Brut
Zoning Prosecco DOC Black
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