It’s probably not a comparison you make often. After all, one is reserved until after 5pm, and the other (usually!) before then. But coffee and wine have lots more in common than you’d think. 

Of course, they’re two of the most popular beverages in the UK (wine is reported as our favourite alcoholic drink, and we brew 98 million cups of coffee per day), but it goes much further:

Both the grapes behind wine and coffee cherries love altitude and just the right climate. At dizzying heights, they gain complex flavours and that all-important balancing acidity. They both struggle to grow with too little heat, but die with too much.

In fact, both have their own ‘belts’ (strips of land) on which they thrive – known as the wine and bean belt. 

Sadly, due to climate change, both of these strips will look significantly different unless we do something about it, which is why we’re backing reforestation and sustainable efforts with every possibility. And why we’re teaming up with the carbon-neutral Virgin Wines for this article!

There’s certain characteristics that the wine grape and coffee cherry have in common:

Taste notes – both have their own natural flavours that we often refer to in a ‘flavour wheel’. They’re usually notes of fruits, chocolate or, particularly in wine, baked goods. Think of the wide vocabulary of a wine critic (or passionate barista!).

Acidity – this is the stuff that makes your mouth water with every sip, and it can vary widely. Does it have the zingy acidity of a green apple, the rounded, delicate acidity of an oaky Chardonnay or something in between? 

Sweetness – this is distinctly different from synthetic-sugar sweetness in both coffee and dry wine. Imagine the subtle difference between the sweetness of strawberries and honey.

Mouthfeel – how will it feel in your mouth? Heavy, dense and indulgent or light, silky and delicate?

When it comes to professional tasting, you can draw some more parallels. A wine critic’s tasting is a coffee connoisseurs ‘cupping’, and both are (sometimes controversially) rated on a points system out of a total 100.

Ready to match your wine with your coffee?

If you like a Rioja, the creamy acidity, heady flavours and full-bodied mouthfeel of a Brazilian dark roast will be ideal. Try Salto. 

If you like Malbec, look for more fruity flavours in coffee made with the washed process. We recommend El Silencio. 

If you like Pinot Noir, you’ll love the light nature, high acidity and fruity blackcurrant notes in a Rwandan light roast. 

If you like Riesling or Gewürztraminer, go off the beaten track and discover something truly different on our fruity-floral line.

Fancy a glass of wine? Take a look at Virgin Wines. They’re the first online wine retailer to be certified carbon-neutral and have put some significant planet-friendly steps into place this year. The wine’s pretty good, too…