Whenever a chocolate-related holiday comes along, the internet is awash with suggestions that we should try to pair our chocolate treats with a nice glass of wine.

It’s a noble suggestion. We eat a lot of chocolate in this country. Various studies in the past decade have placed the UK at or near the top of per-capita chocolate consumption in the Europe, showing each person devours anywhere from 9 kg or more per annum.

That’s a lot for a country that isn’t even famous for its chocolate (although some of the most famous chocolate manufacturers in the world, such as Cadbury’s and Fry’s, are British).

And since it comes as no surprise that the British enjoy their alcohol, particularly wine, having a desire to match these two favourite vices is only natural.

Except for one problem. Chocolate and wine aren’t the easiest things to pair – at least it doesn’t seem that way. Dry wine is out of the question here unless a very dark, bitter chocolate is being paired with a full-bodied Bordeaux or something equally structured. Alternatively, a full-bodied Shiraz that has spicy, peppery aromas, can make a nice match for the brooding flavours of dark chocolate.

So what goes well with chocolate? Not your typical wines, I’m afraid, so you’re going to have to go off the beaten path here and try something new.

Vins doux naturels

These wines are made by adding – yes adding – alcohol to stop the fermentation process, meaning there is more residual sugar in them and, in turn, more natural grape flavours. Typically these wines are known as Maury or Banyuls and come from the south of France and most often made from the grenache grape. Around the 16% alcohol region, they are close to Port but not as heavy and certainly a lot cheaper because they are not nearly as well-known or popular.

One to try:

Waitrose Seriously Plummy Grande Réserve NV Maury, Roussillon, South of France (£9.77, Waitrose)

Moscatel

Another route to try is moscatel with its rich flavours and notes of citrus and marmalade. This is a dessert wine that will be heavy on the sweetness and have all sorts of floral aromas.

One to try:

Torres Floralis Moscatel Oro (£8.89, Ocado)

Moscato

Another option here is to go for the slightly fizzy moscato wine. The right one will have a good balance of creaminess and fruit flavours to match the chocolate.

One to try:

Brown Brothers Moscato (£6.49, Tesco)

Sherry and Madeira

Creamy sherries and sweet Madeira could be a good match for chocolate, particularly rich and sweet chocolate cakes and puddings. A Palo Cortado sherry is somewhere between the rich oloroso and the crispness of an amontillado, so it won’t be too sweet or too dry. However, it might be worth going all-out for the sweet Pedro Ximenez if you have a sweeter tooth.

One to try:

Sainsbury’s Taste the Difference 12-Year-Old Pedro Ximenez (£7.99, Sainsbury’s)

Other options:

In addition to the above, you might also want to try an Amarone, one of the richest and biggest of the Italian wines, which is made by pressing grapes that have been dried to the point of becoming raisins. Malbec and zinfandel, too, can be good friends of chocolate for their full flavours and fruit content, although be sure not to choose to sweet a chocolate to go with them.

Ella Mag’s editor Samantha Downes is getting married this summer and she’s doing it on a budget. However her bridal preparations have hit a bit of a snag.

With no budget for anything, aside the cost of the church and the hire of the church hall (my mum and dad are helping with the cost of the food and drink) there’s not much Andrew and I can actually do this week but wait for our guests to RSVP .

We gave a deadline of 31 March, and my ultra-organised Andrew even set up a website where guests could go online and RVSP and even  select their menu options for the wedding breakfast.

I’ve looked at wedding dresses but with such a minimal budget we are waiting till the last minute to kit ourselves and our bridesmaids out.

Oh and not only have I broken my Lenten promise not to eat chocolate I also gave in to the call of caffeine on Friday when I had not one, not two but three deadlines, all before 9am.

Now I wasn’t going to give up alcohol however two things have made me change my mind.  One: the last two Saturdays I’ve knocked back units in three nights than the previous six months and I realise how rubbish alcohol makes me feel, even in moderation.

And two: I met a former work colleague last week who doesn’t drink. She’s at least six years older than me has two children and although shes in her mid 40s she could pass for at least 15 years younger.

These things have convinced me that my bootcamp will now involve no booze, no caffeine and no chocolate. It sounds boring but I’ve actually not missed these things as much as I thought I would.

Now my gym programme is one thing that is going to plan. My weekly run hours runs with my new BFF Julia (who is also a part-qualified personal trainer) are coming on well. And I’m managing to fit in spin classes, weight training and yoga.

The only down side to this is the 5.30am starts. Well, how else did you think I was going to fit it all in?

Like this? Read more:

My mission to be a buff bride

The summer bridal bootcamp starts here

If you haven’t already noticed, this Wednesday is the start of Lent.

Lent (which means lengthen by the way) is the 40-day period which comes before Easter and therefore quite an important event in the Christian calendar.

In olden times people used to be really strict about observing Lent. Some would even fast for the whole 40 days, aiming to replicate Jesus Christ’s sacrifice and withdrawal into the desert before his crucifiction.

Some people still do fast on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday – the days which start and end Lent.

Giving up food is a big deal, instead nowadays people use Lent as a time of reflection, and instead deprive themselves surrender of something they like such as favourite foods, drinks or smoking.

I know a lot of non Christians who give up stuff during Lent. Now I don’t get smoke – but I do like the odd chocolate or cup of coffee, and have even been known to down a glass of wine or three.

But I was wondering how much money I could save during Lent, so I’ve done some sums I’d like to share with you (by the way all prices have been taken this morning from www.mysupermarket.co.uk)

Chocolate.

I have only ever met one person who spent more than £5 on chocolate a day. A small bar of Cadbury Dairy Milk (49grams) costs 58p. Giving up just one of those a day will save you £23.

Caffeine.

I’ve already stocked up on caffeine free tea and coffee – and it’s just as expensive, if not more than the caffeinated stuff. Far better to avoid any kind of tea or coffee and instead stick to water. Nescafe coffee is £4 for 200grams, assuming you get through one of these jars a week, you would save £22 over the 40 days . If you drink tea as well, say Tetley 40 tea bags priced at  £1.15 (and assuming 5 cups a day you would save around £6.

Alcohol

Now we are talking bigger bucks. Assuming you drink a couple of bottle of wine a week (Jacobs Creek shiraz wine 750ml) at £7.48 and beer (Fosters, four cans for £3.98) then that’s £18.93 a week saved or £108 during lent.

Smoking

Another bigger bucks saving. The average pack of 20 cigarettes of over £6. Even smoking cessation patches work out at around £3 a day.

Saving (if you smoke between 10 and 20 a day) a whopping £120.

If you are looking at giving up smoking you might want to read my new year resolutions article which appeared in the Independent last month.