food-and-wine-pairing-a-sensory-experience-robert-harrington

Flavors in food and wine are the third category of elements that we will discuss in this text. Flavors are closely tied to
our perceptions of specific characteristics inherent in food or wine and are derived from both aroma and taste
sensations. Matching the flavor elements in wine and food is one of the defining steps in the pairing process
and helps to move the level of match from good to synergistic.
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The concepts of aromas and flavors have received a substantial amount of both anecdotal and empirical study.
Unfortunately, much of the anecdotal research comes across as elitist, with wine and food experts articulating
convoluted descriptions with obscure references. Stories abound of supposed experts who claim to be able to
identify the exact vintage, variety, winemaker, and terroir—only to find out that what’s in the glass is a blend
of several different wines. Nonetheless, identifying aromas and flavors is a skill that can be developed and
improved substantially based on experience and hard work, so you should not be intimidated. The exercises
provided throughout this book are intended to help you to further develop this ability. But beware of the selfproclaimed
expert—Alex Eberspaecher’s amusing definition of a wine expert in Vino Veritas is ‘‘a person who
has an inferiority complex or some other personality disorder.’’
For the purposes of wine and food pairing, the concept of flavor follows Baldy’s definition of flavor as retronasal
or ‘‘in-mouth’’ smells. Basically, flavor in any food or wine substance can be defined as the collaboration between
the sense of smell and the sense of taste in the back of the mouth. When selecting wines to pair with food,
the concept of flavor encompasses the following attributes: dominant identified flavor(s), intensity of flavor,
persistency of flavor, and whether or not the wine or food has any spicy characteristics.
Chapter 9 provides on overview of the impact and implications of spiciness in food and wine. This element of
flavor is discussed first because spicy food can have a substantial limiting effect on the wines that will pair well
with it. Spiciness in food is a wild card in the pairing process—while a food and wine may match well in the
component and texture relationships, food spiciness may trump this relationship and return us to the no match
or refreshment match level.
Chapter 10 provides an overview of flavor categories or types and their intensity and persistency. For both the
food and wine items to become equal partners in the pairing relationship, they must have similar or contrasting
flavor types, similar levels of flavor intensity, and similar levels of flavor persistence.