Fortified Vin Santo is usually labelled Vin Santo Liquoroso
In Tuscany you drink Vin Santo with Cantucci (Almond Biscuits)
13-14°C (55-57°F) |
Orange Zest |
Apricot |
Tropical Fruit |
Raisins |
Figs |
Nuts |
Caramel |
Honey |
Herbal |
Truffle |
Licorice |
Mineral |
Typical flavors of Vin Santo wines are: Citrus. Apricot. Tropical Fruit. Dried Fruit. Caramel. Honey. Cream. Herbal. Earthy. Smoke. Spices. Licorice and Mineral.
Meditation |
Cantucci Biscuits |
Foie Gras |
Blue Cheese |
Vin Santo is a good match to Foie Gras. Paté. Biscotti. Cantucci. Italian Torte (Cakes). Panforte. Nut Cakes. Walnut Tart. Peacan Pie. Christmas Desserts. Dark Chocolate. Dried Fruit. Blue Cheese. Roquefort.
The wine should always be as sweet, or sweeter than what you are eating.
The style of Vin Santo varies depending on the production methods and the grapes used.
The sweetness can vary from bone dry (like Fino Sherry) to extremely sweet. The colour can range from a pale amber to neon orange.
White grapes are most widely used (Trebbiano and Malvasia), but red grapes (like Sangiovese) can also be used to produce a amber-red sweet wine called Occhio di Pernice (Eye of the Partridge).
In Tuscany, there are four DOCs that make only Vin Santo. Each of these corresponds to a major red wine DOCG zone:
Other DOC zones:
Vin Santo or Vinsanto (Sacred Wine) is a sweet dessert wine from Tuscany in Italy, most often made from the grapes Trebbiano and Malvasia.
Vin Santo is made from dried grapes, and the degree of alcohol, sweetness and oxidation will vary a lot between manufacturers.
Cantucci or Biscotti are almond cookies from Tuscany. They are made without oil or butter, and baked twice to crisp perfection. Biscotti literally means twice (bis) cooked (cotti).