This Is The Type Of Cookie You Should Pair With Your Chardonnay

When was the last time you had a really good port...and peanut butter cookie? No? Cab Sauv and peppermint pattie? If the term "wine pairings" makes you think of cheese and charcuterie, it might be time to add another C-word to your list: cookies. Food and Wine published a list of the best holiday cookie wine pairings in 2019, but in 2021 anything goes: it doesn't have to be a holiday to enjoy your favorite sweet treat, and washing it down with a glass of white instead of milk feels very Roaring 20s.

Although the classic chardonnay hails from Burgandy, France, it's been winning the popularity contest by a landslide in the U.S. for a while now. In 2018, there were 93,148 acres of California vineyards devoted to the grape – the next most common white wine grape only had 18,246 acres to its name (via The Washington Post). Chardonnay can be oak-y with hints of vanilla (especially if it's aged in oak barrels. Duh) or a little more tart if the grape comes from a warmer climate. And it gets its buttery notes from a process called malolactic fermentation, which gives a chardonnay the creaminess more often associated with red wines. So what cookie would you pair with this buttery beverage?

The Washington Post points out that your chardonnay shouldn't taste like buttered popcorn, but it will probably pair well with something buttery. Enter: shortbread cookies. These Scottish sensations are the sensible biscuit of the cookie world; they even have the word "bread" in their name, lending the treat an air of legitimacy. (Like, maybe it's part of a balanced diet.) Those buttery cookies and your chardonnay will go together like peanut butter and jelly. Or, if you prefer: syrah and oatmeal raisin. Or riesling and gingerbread (via Total Wine).

Per yoozh, the Italians have been ahead for years on this food trend. A classic after-dinner treat in the Tuscan region is cantucci with Vin Santo; a baked almond cookie that is only slightly sweet, paired with a late-harvest wine that is incredibly so (via The Florentine). In a classic milk-and-cookies move, Italians prefer to dip their biscotti into the Vin Santo. Just imagine that crispy cookie getting soaked and crumbly, dissolving in your mouth with syrupy sweetness. And if you want to try that with your shortbread and chardonnay, no one is going to judge you.