Ask anyone about wine from Portugal and the first thing they mention is Port, that heavenly nectar that caps many a long repast. But like the cuisine, the red and white wines of Portugal are frequently left out of the conversation, a tragic mistake as anyone who has toured the country and sampled the wines will tell you.

  The best known winemaking regions include Dão, Duoro, and Vinho Verde, but I have very stylish wines from Alentejo, Algarve, Setúbal, and Bairrada, with each region tempting the palate with new flavors and unique sensations.

I recently tasted some delectable wines paired with grilled chicken, some ruggedly spicy and others with milder, more subtle accents. Although there would many Portuguese wines I would enjoy with these flavors, I settled on reds from Duoro.

Dow 2008 Vale do Bomfim (Duoro, Portugal, $12). This is a rich, succulent wine with dark fruit aromas, rich layers of dark fruit, and velvety textures. Flavors focus on black currant, plums, and soft ripe cherries, and the finish is pleasingly long.

And there will be loads of chocolate-themed desserts displayed for mouth-watering appreciation. So what do we drink with so much chocolate?

Tawny port is an easy choice, serving up caramel flavors with a certain nuttiness in a smooth concoction that is a perfect libation for the holiday season. Some favorites include:

Cockburn’s 10-year and 20-year Tawny
Dow’s 10-year Tawny
Graham’s 10-year and 20-year Tawny
Sandeman’s 20-year Tawny
Taylor Fladgate 10-year Tawny
Churchill’s 10-year Tawny

But everyone serves Port. Perhaps you’d like to go a different direction, something less mainstream and, perhaps, a more perfect match.

Banyuls, is a fortified wine from the Languedoc-Roussillon region in southern France. Made primarily from the otherwise plebian Grenache grape, after some aging in oak barrels, Banyuls is expressed as a lightly sweet, amber-colored liquor.

And it is a heavenly answer to Chocolate Espresso Ganache, a luxurious dessert that combines all the sensuous flavors of chocolate, roasted coffee beans, and cream. Since Banyuls appears only in some wine stores, do your searching by phone, or call you favorite local shop and order it ahead.

Up there with the most difficult foods to pair with wine is pecan pie.  If anyone can successfully recommend a table wine for this uber-rich creation, we’re all ears.  We asked a couple of sommeliers in Tulsa for their take on the the southern pecan pie pairing.  Tim Baker of  Sonoma Bistro & Wine Bar recommended cappuccino or coffee with liqueur, such as Amaretto or Bailey’s.  He said if wine is a must, an earthy Tokaji might would couple well.  Joe Breaux, sommelier at Fleming’s in Tulsa, said pecan pie must be paired with a wine that is sweeter than the pie.  ”The sugar in the pie will make any table wine taste dull or bitter.  A good older vintage tawny Port works because the nuttiness in the wine is enhanced by the nuttiness of the pie; the 1986 Delaforce Colheita Port is a very good match.”

This was one pairing we gladly put to the test, and we wanted to do it right (Karo corn syrup need not apply!).  We asked  Sandy Farris to send us one of her famous pecan pies, which are available nationally via mail order (abundant packaging and 2nd day air ensures your pie arrives fresh and in perfect shape).  The tawny Port proved to be a tasty partner to the flaky crust and infinite layers of pecans in the Farris’t of Them All pie.  For the sake of comparison we also poured an Evan Williams single-barrel bourbon that was on hand.   The nuances of the pie that were greatly enhanced by the Port’s pale spice and toasted flavors but were masked my the whiskey’s smokiness.

If you are looking for a Valentine’s day gift for your hubby, Farris’t Pecan Pie and a bottle of tawny Port are a tasty way to say “I love you!”

Gary Vaynerchuk is the Director of Operations at WineLibrary in Springfield, NJ.  One of the most popular personalities in the wine industry, his exciting and informative Wine Library TV Webisodes attract more than 80, 000 viewers daily.  His new book on social media and business, Crush It, is on sale now.

The  Sommelier Society is America’s oldest wine education organization and offers resources for consumers and industry professionals.  In addition to her work as an educator, Ms. Frederick consults for numerous importers in the northeast and works with hospitality establishments to optimize their wine programs.

You can find this wine at many retailers on Wine-Searcher.