It's Valentine's Day. Lights are dim, the main course is through, and Cupid's arrows are ready to be pulled taut in the bow. Chunks of dark Belgian chocolate are on the table and two small glasses of liquid gold glisten in the candlelight. Fine chocolate served with dessert wine is one of the greatest marriages in the gastronomic world. Silky, creamy and syrupy textures of dissolving chocolate and sticky, sweet wine unfold within an array of dried and candied fruits, caramel and honey. But, like a first kiss, the true sensation of it all is better left to be experienced than talked about. The following dessert wines are all found and priced as half bottles (375 milliliters). They are perfect for two. — Joe Iurato
* 2010 Quady, "Essensia," Orange Muscat, California
Quady focuses solely on making dessert wines from the orange and black muscat varietals, grapes that are scarcely used in California winemaking. And they're known for doing it quite well. The Essensia is pale golden in color with orange peel, apricot, white flowers and spice on the nose. It's a clean, fragrant dessert wine that's more about showing citrus and spice than it is about being sticky sweet.
How much: $13.99
Where to buy: Widely available including at Bottle King locations.
* NV Campbell's, Rutherglen Topaque, Rutherglen, Australia
Formerly known as Rutherglen Tokay because of a 150-year-long case of mistaken identity (read more at campbellswines. com.au), this is a decadent dessert wine and by far the richest of the four reviewed here. It's caramel golden in color with notes of honey, tea, dried plums and toffee. On the palate, sweet, candied, dark fruits come to mind as the sugar wraps its way around intense flavors.
How much: $15.99
Where to buy: Widely available including at Bottle King locations.
* 2007 Pacific Rim, Selenium Vineyard, "Vin de Glacière" Riesling, Columbia Valley, Washington
After the riesling grapes for this wine are harvested, they're frozen, then pressed. The result is low yields of highly concentrated juice similar to that of "ice wine." The 2007 Vin de Glacière is mature, medium golden in color with notes of apricot, pear, honey and a hint of caramel. On the palate, sweet apricot dominates in a viscous, lengthy finish.
How much: $20.99
Where to buy: Widely available including at Carlo Russo's Wine & Spirit World, Ho-Ho-Kus.
* 2008 Chateau Doisy-Vèdrines, Barsac, Sauternes, France
Chateau Doisy Vèdrines is a Second Growth in the Bordeaux Classification of 1855 and one of the most consistent producers of high-quality, value-priced sauternes. Primarily semillon with a small amount of sauvignon blanc, the wine is straw golden in color. Peach and apricot with hints of citrus peel, pineapple and honey lead the way for a seductive wine that finishes with a fair amount of acidity and a touch of spice.
How much: $19.99
Where to buy: Widely available including at Total Wine & More locations.
