Pairing Off: Don't snicker at wine and snickerdoodles.

One might think Nate Gomez is perfectly situated to help with this week’s pairing. After all, he manages the Puma Road Winery tasting room in downtown Monterey—and it gets better.

“That’s my partner’s favorite cookie,” he says.

Yes, there might be an occasion when you’re hosting a party and someone bakes cookies, or in this case picks up a half dozen snickerdoodles from The Perfect Crumb bakery on Lighthouse in Monterey. 

Now you’re stuck with a wine pairing conundrum. So you turn to Gomez, but there’s a catch. While his partner may crave a dusting of cinnamon and sugar, “he doesn’t drink wine, though.”

So pairing wine with snickerdoodles is uncharted territory—and it can be tricky to navigate, because one must address the sweetness of the cookie and the fruity zing of many bottles.

“Wine and sugar, you have to have the right ratio,” Gomez explains. “Tart and snickerdoodle don’t go well together.”

For this reason, he veers away from whites, suggesting instead a sparkling Blanc de Noirs that promises to be quite smooth or a red blend.

Puma Road’s 2015 Cache leans heavily on Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, at 50 percent and 30 percent, respectively. However, this leaves a substantial 20 percent space for Cabernet Franc to play.

On the nose, the blend is decidedly fruity—fresh dark cherries spilling from a bowl. But there’s also an alluring notion of chocolate, gentle spice and a dry, herbal sensation. A sip of Cache releases more cherry, this time like a hard candy, its sweetness sapped by a weighty graphite. In between is a comforting cushion of toasted spice, split cedar and mellow chocolate. The Cab Franc gives it a lighter body, making for an easily approachable wine.

The holiday spice offered by the blend favors the sprinkle of cinnamon and sugar on the cookie, as does the soft chocolate and juicy fruit. It lingers on the finish, allowing the signature snickerdoodle dusting to cling to the palate, with a warming vanilla cream impression. It’s as if a trio of sweet sauces were drizzled over the snickerdoodle.

So yes, invite friends over for wine and tell them to bring cookies. Snickerdoodles, to be more precise. Chocolate chip or Thin Mint would mean another trip to a tasting room.