Ramon -
This is a very interesting question and one I work on quite a lot when I put together my "Sophisticated Pairings" events. I did one last weekend and here are some of the ingredients and highlights:
I used four chocolates - Felchlin Criolait (33% milk made with beans from the Lake Maracaibo region of Venezuela) and three Rancho San Jacinto (Ecuador) -- 55, 65, and 100%. I made a fondue-like melted chocolate from the Criolait and the 100% with half-and-half that I used because it's just easier to work with and I cut the sweetness of the milk chocolate with the 100%.
There were going to be three wines to drink but the shop did not deliver one of them, so we had only two: a Washington State Gewrztraminer (Chateau St Michelle, both 2009 and 2010) and a California Pinot Noir (2010 Mark West). The wine that did not make it was a Prosecco - which is my all-around favorite wine for pairing with chocolates of all kinds. I prefer it over most Champagnes because it tends to have a softer bubble structure (meshes with the chocolate), and also tends to be less acidic and alcoholic-tasting than most champagnes. Proseccos are also generally much less expensive.
I likeGewrztraminers that are on the dry side (they do exist) and that have a mild effervescence. This particularGewrz comes as a surprise to people who reflexively ask for Chardonnay or Pinot Grigio - both of which I find more problematic for general pairing. I also tend to stay away from acidic whites and in general find it easier to pair whites with dark chocolates. The Pinot is also one I use a lot because it's an "easy drinking" wine. It doesn't demand any particular attention by having too much of any particular varietal character. Thus, it goes with many things. Reds with lots of varietal nuance (and/or that need plenty of time open before really being drinkable) don't lend themselves well to impromptu pairing, I have found. They require a lot more thought to make "work".
The event format was a la minute: I have lots of different ingredients and I prepare small bites to order in addition to combinations that I create based on experience and knowledge of the ingredients I've selected.
One of those combinations is a variation on a Japanese hand roll (temaki) using bresaola (very lean air-cured beef) as the wrapper instead of rice and seaweed. Inside are arugula, herbed goat cheese, and a dollop of the melted chocolate.
Another combination was a rosemary cheese cracker on top of which was a thin shmear of the melted chocolate, cheese aged in cognac (from Sartori), dried apricot poached in simple syrup, curry-flavored salt, and a candied pecan.
As you can tell, I like complex layering of flavors and textures. And people love being challenged by them - in this event format they are open to new ideas for flavor combination and I engage them to push them past the edge of their comfort zone and keep an open mind.
I had one other cheese for the day (for a total of three), a four-year aged Gouda, so I had plenty of variety there. In addition I had:
a good aged balsamic vinegar
a very good olive oil
smoked pink salt
fleur de sel (from a small harvester in Oregon)
poached figs (simple syrup, same as the apricots)
marcona almonds (in oil, with rosemary - phenomenal with the fig)
an Italian herbed sea salt with sage, rosemary, black pepper, and garlic
cherry wood smoked soy sauce
Granny Smith apple (matchsticks)
sun dried tomato (chiffonade)
One of the memorable combinations I made up for a vegetarian guest was to put a dash of balsamic vinegar into a Chinese-style soup spoon and on top of that layer the apple matchsticks, sun dried tomato chiffonade, olive oil, and the smoked soy sauce with a dusting of 100% chocolate flakes.
Personally, I have found that bresaola works and prosciutto does not. In part, that's because of the high fat content in the prosciutto, which results in an unpleasant texture when paired with the chocolate. The bresaola is extremely lean which is the reason it works better (in my experience) in pairing.
Furthermore, I have found that it's more important to have a good taste memory than it is to be a supertaster. Having a good taste memory enables me to "taste" flavor combinations in my head before I put them together for a guest, and it's that skill that turns out to be most valuable when working on pairings.
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clay - http://www.thechocolatelife.com/clay/