There are any number of ways to celebrate this special romantic day with food and wine. While chocolate, Champagne and roses may first come to mind, certainly great choices, my wife and I are planning to join forces this year and prepare a fun, creative brunch. While we have yet to choose the theme, we’ll let you know when we do. Meanwhile, there are many of you who will take advantage of dining at one of our local restaurants listed in our Wine News section and trust me, they all have great menus planned. But since I touched upon brunch, let me address some food and wine ideas, whether you choose to cook at home or dine out.

Brunch allows me to be outlandishly creative if I wish and it’s quite easy to accomplish, especially if keep a couple of themes in mind. For me, it’s easiest to think about the foundation for the dish such as eggs, meats, pancakes/French toast, doughnuts or fruit. Then, I can think about how I want to accent or kick up the dish. Once there, I can hone in on the wine or alternative beverage. A slightly different take is to decide which country or region you wish to “visit” culinary wise and build your dish accordingly.