Wine and Chocolate? Lots of these two ingredients makes for an awesome girls getaway and it sounds like many of the Niagara region wineries agree! The Days of Wine & Chocolate Event is back in Niagara-on-the-Lake and it’s better than ever.

This year, the wineries are promising to out do themselves, and you can expect to see even more yummy wine and chocolate-inspired pairings being made available during the event. Each of the 28 member wineries will pair a premium VQA wine matched with new chocolate-infused dishes. This sounds like my kind of event!

Tim Coons, chair of the Days of Wine & Chocolate committee, gives us the delicious details: “This year we will be increasing the scope of food pairings to include both sweet and savoury dishes infused with decadent chocolate. Using local ingredients and chocolate to accompany our wines adds a delicious new feature to this popular event.”

The event takes place each weekend in February, including Fridays from 11 am to 5 pm; I’m thinking sampling great wine and consuming copious amounts of chocolate would be a great way to brighten up some of those dark and dreary winter days.

For a full listing of featured VQA wine and chocolate infused pairings, visit:

www.wineriesofniagaraonthelake.com

You can also expect to see lots of delicious dishes from Niagara-on-the-Lake pastry chef Catherine O’Donnell of Willow Cakes & Pastries, she will be working with many of the wineries again in 2013. Her team will create over 50,000 delectable sweet savory dishes infused with chocolate and other local ingredients during the month-long event. Now, that’s a lot of chocolate!

Touring passes are $35 per person (plus HST) and Designated Driver passes are $25 (plus HST, limit one per purchase).

Passes can be purchased online at: www.wineriesofniagaraonthelake.com