The Best Wine To Drink With Halloween Candy

If you’re anything like me, you’ll use any excuse to crack open a bottle of wine and pair it with food. You’re all over the charcuterie boards, vast array of cheeses, and wine varietals like white on rice. Sometimes you just need to shake things up though! You may have already learned how to pair wine with junk food, but with Halloween just a couple of weeks away, it seems only fitting to create the ultimate Halloween candy wine pairing guide for you winos.

Can you think of a better way to celebrate Halloween like a total boss? It’s things like pairing wine with candy that make you stay classy as an adult. Trust me, as an adult, I can tell you this with the upmost confidence. Thankfully with all the wine out there, whether you are a chocoholic or a die-hard lover of candy corn, there’s a wine to be paired with your candy.

This guide is the perfect excuse to indulge in wine and candy while you wait for the little ones to ring your doorbell on Halloween. There’s a little something for everyone, from chocolate to gummies, fruity chews to the classic candy corn. So make sure your wine fridge is stocked and the candy is bought — your Halloween night just got infinitely better.

Here are some pairings that will make your Halloween epic.

1. SweeTARTS — Riesling

Paul Mekis, wine director of Madera and Rosewood Sand Hill in Menlo Park, recommends pairing the “semi-sweet and citrus flavors” in SweeTARTS with a German Riesling. Mekis goes on to explain that the fruity and high acidity in a Riesling such as Erben von Beulwitz Kaseler Nies'chen Riesling would pair perfectly.

2. Tootsie Rolls — Rich Red

The chewy chocolate candy is a personal favorite of mine, so I plan to take Mekis’ advice and pair it with a more complex red wine. Mekis explains the candy “has a little smokiness to it making it the perfect pair” for this Jean-Louis Chave "Silene" Crozes-Hermitage 2010.

3. Junior Mints — Cabernet Sauvignon

“Cabernet and dark chocolate are a classic pairing!” Mekis says. It’s hard to argue with that, isn’t it? Mekis recommends pairing the chocolate and mint candies with Heitz Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon 2010, which has a “combination of earthy and eucalyptus flavors.”

4. Nerds — Moscato

Nerds disappear by the bucket-full in my house, and it’s easy to see why. The crunchy, tart candies are a party in your mouth! Vintage Point Partners in Wine recommends pairing the candy with a bubbly wine like this 2014 SIP Moscato to keep flavors fun and lively.

5. Skittles — Verdejo

Are you ready to taste the rainbow with wine? Per the recommendation of Vintage Point Partners in Wine, I’ll be reaching for a more unique wine to pair. The 2012 Lo Nuevo Verdejo is ideal to balance the sweet flavor of the candy with “vibrant acidity.”

6. Butterfingers — Chardonnay

Butterfinger is one of those candies that has its own truly unique flavor. The chocolate-covered candy screams for a chardonnay. The 2013 Educated Guess Chardonnay has “creamy notes of toast and spice” to really shine next to the candy, explains Vintage Point Partners in Wine.

7. Candy Corn — Chardonnay

Halloween isn’t complete without at least one handful of candy corn, am I right? HobNob Wines has a chardonnay that is “fresh, relaxed and a bit complex” to pair well with the cloying sweetness of the candy corn.

8. Snickers — Pinot Noir

There’s little I won’t do to get my hands on a peanut-packed Snickers bar. Pairing the classic peanut and chocolate combination with wine is just the challenge HobNob Wines was up for. Pair this one with a pinot noir. According to Hob Knob, this is a top-notch combo, “with the saltiness of the nuts bringing out rich flavors from the Pinot.”

9. M&Ms — Red Blend

To round out your Halloween wine pairing extravaganza, don’t forget the M&Ms. HobNob Wines recommends its Wicked Red Blend with “notes of hazelnut and mocha” to pair well with the chocolate.

For more Halloween ideas, visit Bustle on YouTube.

Images: Jeff Golden, Jamie, Windell Oskay, Robert Couse-Baker, Mike Mozart, Dominic Rooney, Dat Nguyen, Scott McLeod, Leonid Mamchenkov, Justin Ennis, Dominic Rooney/Flickr