A candy as snackable as Sour Patch Kids deserves a friendly wine that’s just as sippable. Bring a touch of panache to your favorite sour candies with this wine paring tip, which comes from our guide for pairing wine with Halloween candy. Happily, Sour Patch Kids are available year-round, and so is our go-to wine for elevating this treat to a sophisticated grown-up snack: sparkling rosé.
With Sour Patch Kids, the biggest hurdle is selecting a wine that will complement the full variety of fruity flavors. Each Sour Patch Kid has a different taste. As Tasting Table’s own wine expert Lucia Capretti explains, “Given that these gummy candies evolve as you consume them, you’ll want a wine that stands up to the range. Sparkling rosé is incredibly versatile since it balances soft tannins with effervescence and fruity flavors, making it an excellent pairing wine.”
On the palate, rosé is semisweet with enough dryness to counterbalance that already-sweet candy. The sparkling bubbly fizz provides a compelling textural component alongside the candy’s mouth-puckering citric acid coating. Cut that sour acidity with an effervescent mouthfeel and lean into your playful side. To delight dinner party guests, bring out a crystal glass dish of Sour Patch Kids and a bottle of sparkling rosé to punctuate a multi-course dinner party (bonus points for making the dessert course easier on the host, too). Or, simply enjoy this perfect pairing during a solo movie night, or an afternoon in the hammock.
Pair your Sour Patch Kids with sparkling rosé and you may never enjoy them without a flute again
In the nuance-centric wine world (a more flattering way to refer to its infamous penchant toward snobbishness), accessible rosé often gets a bad rap. It’s true that some rosés, like the one from Barefoot Wine, simply miss the mark. However, not all wines are created equal, and just like red or white, the quality of your rosé bottle makes a world of difference in your sipping experience.
To best showcase the chewy fruity candy, says Capretti, “[W]e’d recommend an option with berry aromas and a refreshing crispness to complement the sweet and tart elements of the Sour Patch Kids.” The juicy, high-acidity rosé by Epoch Estates is our favorite brand of rosé, but for the sparkling option that’ll best complement your Sour Patch Kids, Veuve Clicquot Brut Rosé Champagne is the candidate for the job. With its lingering silky mouthfeel and mature dryness, it’s no wonder why Veuve Clicquot topped our ranking of 25 sparkling rosés by a professional sommelier.
Alternatively, La Marca prosecco rosé is a budget-friendly Italian bubbly that delivers the bright, crisp, fruity tones that’ll make your Sour Patch Kids shine. This impressive, friendly wine features dimensional tasting notes of citrus, honeysuckle, peach, pear, ripe red cherry, raspberry, and wild strawberry — flavors as wide-ranging as those Sour Patch Kids — and at a Target in Chicago, a 750 ml a bottle runs for $15.99.
