5 Tips for Making Rich Dark Chocolate Wine Brownies at Home

Booze and brownies are already an irresistible duo but how about when you mix the two? We mean adding the wine into the brownie batter! Chocolates is already an amazing pairing with wine, not just any wine, red wine to be exact, so with some extra ingredients, brownies quite benefit from the red wine going into it and creating a truly indulgent treat. Whether you’re baking them for a celebration or just treating yourself, follow these pro tips below for the perfect batch of brownies that go from simple to stunning in minutes.

Choose a Bold, Flavorful Red Wine

When baking brownies with wine, the type of wine you choose can make or break the flavor profile. Opt for a dry red wine, which is full-bodied and rich in flavor – Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Zinfandel, or Syrah. These wines have enough body to stand out yet complement the bitterness of the likes of Cadbury Bournville 70% Dark Chocolate. The fruity and earthy notes of the red wine, can enhance the already nuanced flavors of your brownies, that you just can’t get from chocolate alone.

For that extra pop of flavor, you can reduce the wine a tad, before adding it to the batter. Simmer the wine for 5-10 minutes over medium heat to reduce it, to concentrate its flavor and burns off some of the alcohol.

Use High-Quality Dark Chocolate

Skip the basic baking chocolate or unsweetened cocoa powder if you want next-level brownies. Instead, go for high-quality dark chocolate with a cocoa content of 70% or higher – Cadbury Bournville 70% Dark Chocolate is perfect for this. The higher cocoa percentage adds a decent amount of bitterness and complexity that perfectly pairs up with red wine’s flavor.

To get the most luxurious texture out of your dark chocolate, melt the dark chocolate, chopped down into small pieces, with unsalted butter, using a double boiler method. This not only ensures a silky, rich base for your batter but also guarantees that the chocolate blends evenly without seizing or becoming grainy.

Balancing the Sweetness

It might seem small, but a little salt goes a long way, when it comes to its role in any baked goods – especially the ones as rich and indulgent as a batch of fudgy and gooey brownies. Chocolate and red wine are both dominant flavors that will benefit from salt, as it brings out the best of both worlds. Adding a bit of fine sea salt to your brownie batter helps to cut through the sweetness as well.

For that professional touch, sprinkle a few flakes of finishing salt on top of the brownies right before or after baking, preferably the latter. That little extra addition of salt brings out the sweetness, of the brownies and also enhances the flavors of the treat with every bite.

Avoid Overmixing for Fudgy Brownies

The key to soft and chewy brownies lies in not overworking your batter. After you've folded in the flour and eggs, stop mixing as soon as everything is just combined. Overmixing will make for a tougher batter, with the gluten developing more which will lead to cakier brownies, not that great if you are aiming for a fudgy texture.

Let the batter rest for a few minutes in the bowl, before baking, which helps the flour absorb the moisture in the batter and leading to a smoother batch of brownies that are more denser and a delight to bite into. Note: If you're folding in ingredients like dark chocolate chunks or walnuts, do it carefully as to not overwork the batter.

Slightly Underbake the Brownie

Brownies continue to cook a bit after you take them out of the oven, so it's crucial to take them out while the center is still feels wet but not too wet. You’re not looking for a clean toothpick result here, you want the toothpick to come out with a few moist crumbs which means the brownies have a fudgy interior while the outside is set.

Baking times can vary, but generally, 20-25 minutes at 160-180°C should do the trick depending on your oven and pan size. Start checking at the 20-minute mark and err on the side of caution. It’s better to have slightly gooey brownies that set as they cool than dry ones that are overbaked. Once out of the oven, let them cool completely in the pan – this helps them firm up and develop that rich, dense texture.