Completely new, but want to impress

[wondersofwine]

Many wines go with various cheeses. You can find pairing notes at
http://www.wineintro.com/food/cheese/
and
http://winemonger.com/catalog/winemonger-talk/wine-and-cheese-pairing/2006/07/15/
(The principal grape in Chianti is Sangiovese. In the WineMonger website you can find a listing of cheeses to pair with Sangiovese-based wines.)

Some wines that do well with chocolate are the sparkling red wines from Italy, Brachetto d'Acqui (Banfi makes one that is readily found), Banyuls, and Port.