Matching Wine and Food

Appetizers/Finger Foods

Since most appetizers and finger foods are fatty a wine with acidity is called for, say, sparkling wine. It not only stands up to the fat, sparkling wine has the added value of clearing the palate, which the residue of many appetizers and especially finger foods demand. But sparkling wine and salt are not good partners (salt and any wine makes for a bad relationship). So forego the caviar and sparkling, at least until you can get your hands on caviar that has not been adulterated with additions of salt as preservative.

Poultry and Seafood

And so we are led to the generality that white wine goes with fish; it does, but it is not alone.

Have you ever had chicken parmesan? If so, you know that a red wine can go with chicken; in this case, the red would be a southern Italian wine like Salice Salentino or Brindisi.

Perhaps you have had smoked chicken with a tangy mustard sauce--it needs a white wine all right but one with lots of fruit and perhaps even some spiciness, like Riesling or maybe Gewurztraminer.

The only time a good Chardonnay seems to marry with chicken is when the chicken is either cordon blued (don't see much of that these days) or a simple preparation with medium spices.

That same Chardonnay, however, can make your trout or soft shell crabs sing, especially if it retains the true fruit character of the grape and is not produced in a buttery/oaky style, a style of wine that defies most foods.

Incidentally, most shell fish are best when prepared simply or eaten raw and paired either with a steely Chardonnay or a crisp Sauvignon Blanc, or other similar whites.

One favorite Italian-American dish at Christmas time is a hearty seafood chowder along the lines of a spicy New Orleans gumbo. In either case white wine will not do. The line up for such a chowder includes Zinfandel, Primitivo or other varietals that offer strength, fruit and a solid finish to stand up to the tomato-based, spicy dish.

And then there is salmon. It is a fish but it is a flavorful fish. Most white wines pale when faced with the fats and flavor intensity of salmon; instead it is a perfect match for Pinot Noir or maybe a Pinot Noir rose. The fruitiness and acidity of a clean New World Pinot Noir seem almost produced with grilled salmon in mind.

Game Meats

Game meats like buffalo, alligator, kangaroo, ostrich, rabbit, fowl and venison are often leaner, especially when taken from the wild or grown under conditions that mimick the wild. But the real interest in game meat is in its richer, sometimes spicier taste profile. The perfect liquid accompaniment to the richness of game meats requires a good degree of flavor and structure; think wine!

The best wines to pair with game come in three colors: red, white and rose. And the best within each color category offer full flavors that are sometimes spicy, like the ginger/lychee qualities of Gewurztraminer (white wine) or the crisp, full, fruity qualities of Riesling. The benchmark for great Gewurztraminer is Alsace, along the French border with the Rhine River, and the benchmark for great Riesling is Germany and Austria. But the grapes also do well in the Finger Lakes region of New York and in parts of northern Italy.

Austria's version of white wine for game meat is Gruner Veltliner, a wine with the taste of white pepper. This wine also is one of the rare wines that matches with rich vegetables like asparagus.

The dark pepper-like sensation of Shiraz/Syrah (the same red grape variety under two names) is a fine example of wine for lamb, but even finer with many game meats. Blended wines that combine Grenache, Mourvedre or Cinsault with Syrah/Shiraz heighten the wine's ability to match game meats.

Some northern Italian wines like Barbera, Barbarseco and a wine called Schiopettino often pair quite well with game meats, especially boar which is available in Italy and sometimes appears on butcher shelves in the United States.

Some Grenache wines come in dry rose style; they are wonderful with game meats, especially when both the meat and the wine are slightly chilled, as for a picnic. Other rose wines made from Pinot Noir can also be good with the spice of game meats.

A great place to get game meats in Manhattan is Ottomanelli's on Bleeker Street, Manhattan.

Red Meat

So much has been written about red meat with red wine that it is difficult to say anything new on the subject, but we shall try with this sentiment: it isn't the color that counts. Sure, red meat, especially a cut cooked on the rare side, is a good match for an elegant red wine that is velvety and smooth yet finishes with firm tannins. But not all red wines are suited to red meat (if you disagree, try a grilled steak, rare, with Chianti, or read our fish, poultry and vegetable pages).

In our opinion, the best red wines for a fine steak are those produced from the classic Bordeaux grapes: Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, and a few lesser-known varieties. In Argentina, where beef is king, Malbec is often the preferred wine.

But add black pepper to the steak, as in steak au poivre, and you have a completely different situation. Steak prepared with pepper or any other hot spice needs an equally peppery wine like Shiraz/Syrah or Mourvedre, or a blend of the two. The same can be said for lamb dishes except in this case it is not heat that cries out for a peppery wine--it is the gamey flavor of the lamb.

In Burgundy, beef and the mighty Pinot Noir marry, but in the New World many Pinot Noirs are lighter and fruitier than their French counterparts. For that reason, many lamb eaters prefer New World Pinot Noir. Light and Fruity sometimes make a fine contrasting accompaniment to the intensity of lamb. But a lot of lamb preparations include sweetened mint jelly. If overdone, the sweet flavor of the mint jelly gets in the way of most red wines. Next time you have lamb, try a garnish of fresh mint leaves -- and hold the mint jelly.

If there are times when white wine goes perfectly with red meat they are the rarest of moments. Although we once met a woman who claimed to drink only white wine, and only Riesling at that--even with a fine Filet Mignon--proving that while some make rules most taste is subjective.

Other White Meats

Pork is the other white meat; we also place veal in this camp. The two do not often marry with the same kinds of wine, because the flavors of pork are generally more intense than the subtlety of veal.

The flavor of even a simple grilled pork is strong. Some like it with a Bordeaux-style red but it seems to shine when paired with a spicy red like Shiraz/Syrah or a wine from the Rhone. This kind of wine also goes well with pork that is cooked with spices such as cilantro and chile, but the Spanish flavor of the dish also matches beautifully with a fine Spanish Crianza red from the Ribera del Duero region or a Portuguese red from Extremadura.

Veal is not for hot spices. It demands elegant and simple preparation as in veal Milanese (lightly breaded and seasoned with garlic and lemon and topped with roasted red pepper) or a veal chop that is flour dusted, grilled and then topped with a sauce of shallot, garlic and Madeira. Each preparation calls for a white wine that is fruity yet firm, like a fine French Maconnais or a Spanish Rias Baixas Albariño.

Pasta and Other Grains

The thing about pasta is that, like rice, it borrows flavors from its surroundings. Therefore, pairing wine with pasta relies strictly on the ingredients and/or especially the sauce. A ravioli filled with cheese and topped with tomato sauce certainly calls for a southern Italian red like Primitivo, or maybe a California red Zinfandel, but a ravioli stuffed with shrimp and topped with sweet red or yellow pepper sauce would disappear under the weight of the red wine; this dish calls for Gewurztraminer or Riesling, or maybe an Austrian white like Gruner Veltliner.

Italians create pasta soups known as en brodo, i.e. tortellini en brodo. The broth for these soups is produced either from chicken or veal stock and as such they are perfect with a rich, nutty Pinot Grigio or Tocai Friuliano, or maybe a fine Soave.

And then there is northern Italian pasta, which in the northeast of the country is often produced from barley. Many of these dishes include robust smoked meats like prosciutto or sharp cheeses like Reggiano, they are fine with northern red wines that have good acidity and lots of fruit--Refosco comes to mind.

Rice as risotto (delicate ingredients like mushrooms, seafoods and cheese) calls for a light white wine, like a Sauvignon Blanc; as paiella (hearty ingredients like chorizo and hot spices) it calls for big, peppery red wine like Shiraz/Syrah or Mourvedre. Rice as a side dish generally has no wine partner.

Vegetables

The two most striking examples of wine for vegetables are Docletto (red) and Gruner Veltliner (white). In each case there is lightness, fruit and acidity in the wine. But there is something else, a kind of light pepper (in the case of Gruner it is like crushed white pepper) that marries quite nicely with many green vegetables, even one of the most difficult of all greens to pair with wine--asparagus.

For those true vegans who also like wine the general rule is to pair any wine, red or white, with the spices and sauces of the meal instead of the vegetables. In other words, consider the texture and strength of the dish and then find a wine equal to the task, whether it is red, white or rosé, and do not forget sparkling wine. Come to think of it, that rule holds for all wine and food pairing.

Cheese

Much has been said about the perfect marriage between wine and cheese, but anyone who has gone to a hastily put together wine and cheese party surely has encountered some disastrous combinations. As it is with all generalities, the marriage between wine and cheese has its exceptions. For instance, try a big, bold Italian wine like Barbera with a triple-cream Brie cheese and you will see quite quickly why pairing wine with cheese takes a little thought. Since Barbera has acidity and Brie is fatty, the match should work as acids cut through fats. But a good Barbera also has intense fruit character. Brie is often so subtle that the forward wine obliterates the cheese's taste.

A sharp, salty Reggiano cheese works rather nicely with northern Italian red wines such as Barbera, Chianti or Dolcetto. The acid of the wines cuts through the cheese and at the same time the cheese's strength stands up to the boldness of the fruit.

One of the classic wine and cheese matches of all time is a fortified wine, Port, with Stilton. The relative sweetness and roundness of Port is a perfect foil for the sharp pungency of a good Stilton. Among the best pairings of this type are the Ports known as Late Bottle Vintage (LBV). LBV Ports from good producers are sweet enough and flavorful enough to make it almost impossible to stop eating Stilton until the bottle of Port is empty. On its own, however, Stilton's edginess is quite a lot for the palate to handle over a long period of time.

Another interesting cheese and wine combination is to pair a crisp white wine like Sauvignon Blanc with a creamy, fatty cheese like Camembert; here, acidity meets fat and the two begin to harmonize. At the risk of sounding Revolutionary, at is-wine we believe pairing crisp white wines with fatty cheeses is a step above the classic pairing of elegant red Bordeaux wines with such cheeses.

One thing to remember when pairing cheese with wine is that the bread or crackers you select should be neutral. Far too often a salty cracker or a molasses-sweet dark bread completely ruins the wine and cheese combination.

Dessert

One of the best desserts is dessert wine. A good dessert wine can stand alone as a delightful treat for those who require their sugary ending. In fact, most dessert wines are poor partners to sweet dessert dishes because the intense acidity of most dessert wines will fight with the desserts. One dessert wine, Sauterne, and its cousins Barsac and Loupiac, have a place right next to country paté--here it is the age-old combination of fat with acid, but the sweetness of the wine and the strength of the paté make for a delightful mouthful.

Not exactly dessert wines, but suited as desserts on their own, some fortified wines pair with some sweet desserts--these are the wines of Madeira. Madeira Bual is perfect for pecan or pumpkin pie. Likewise, Madeira Malmsey makes for a great syrup over ice cream. Madeira Verdelho with nuts at the end of a meal is a fine sweet/tangy dessert.

And then there is wine with chocolate. In our opinion, it isn't that red wine does not pair well with chocolate, it is that the wines that do best are not only of the Cabernet family; Shiraz/Syrah, Zinfandel/Primitivo, and some Madeira wines are fine matches for deep, rich chocolate. Often, the chocolate subdues these intense wines and brings out the many berry-like qualities hidden underneath, and many of us like berries with chocolate. The truly adventuresome might look into pairing a good sparkling wine (extra dry) with white chocolate! One of the greatest wine and chocolate pairings is with a wine produced in the southern regions of France; it is called Banyuls.

Picture: The Girl with the Wineglass (fragment)-- 1659-1660 -- by Jan Vermeer