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

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Chapter 10 Flavor Intensity and Flavor Persistency
6. Taste the wines in the following order: warm-climate Sauvignon Blanc, Old World Sauvignon Blanc, and Southern Hemisphere
Sauvignon Blanc. Evaluate the wines for flavor type and intensity, documenting the results on the Wine Intensity and Persistency
Level sheet (Figure 10.1).
7. Taste each of the food items, cleansing your palate with water and crackers between food items to ensure that there is no
carryover of flavors from one item to the next. Evaluate the food item for flavor type and intensity, documenting the results
on the Food Intensity and Persistency Level sheet (Figure 10.2).
8. Taste each food item with all three wine samples and record the results on the Wine and Food Flavor Intensity Match sheet
(Figure 10.3). Use one sheet for each food item.
a. Sip the warm-climate sample.
b. Chew, taste, and swallow a little of the asparagus.
c. Take a sip of the same wine sample.
d. Determine the relative levels of intensity for the asparagus and the warm-climate Sauvignon Blanc. Is the food flavor more
intense or less intense than the wine flavor?
e. Repeat this process with the asparagus and the Old World Sauvignon Blanc. Then repeat again with the Southern Hemisphere
sample.
f. Repeat steps a–e using the Pasta with Pesto as the food item with the three wines.
g. Finally, repeat steps a–e using the hot dog or sausage with mustard as the food item with the three wines.
9. Assess the flavor types.
a. Warm-climate Sauvignon Blanc. What is the flavor of this wine? What types of food would you serve with this wine? Why?
b. Old World Sauvignon Blanc. What is the flavor of this wine? How does the flavor of this wine differ from the warm-climate
sample? What types of food would you serve with this wine? Why?
c. Southern Hemisphere Sauvignon Blanc. How would you describe the flavor of this wine? Herbal? Grassy? Any other flavors,
such as canned asparagus, hay, tarragon, green bean, green tomato, or gooseberry? What types of food would you serve
with this wine? Why?
10. Rank the wine samples from least to most intense flavor.
Least intense 1. 2. 3. Most intense
11. Rank the wine samples from least to most persistent flavor.
Least persistent 1. 2. 3. Most persistent
12. Rank the food samples from least to most intense flavor.
Least intense 1. 2. 3. Most intense
13. Rank the food samples from least to most persistent flavor.
Least persistent 1. 2. 3. Most persistent
14. Write any other comments, thoughts, and observations that you identified during this evaluation process. How did you identify
flavor type? Was the identification primarily driven by the aroma or in-mouth smells? Was it difficult to assess flavor intensity?
Asparagus is one of several naturally
acidic foods (others are spinach, sorrel,
and artichokes) that can be a challenge
when pairing with wine. One method to
lessen the negative impact of these acidic
foods on wine is to serve them with additional
fat or sweetness to mask the
natural acidity. Creamed spinach and asparagus
with hollandaise or beurre blanc
are examples of this tactic. 28 Taste the asparagus
with each of the wines and judge
for yourself if it is a food that should be
avoided when drinking wine with your
meal. You can also experiment by putting
sweet butter on the asparagus and testing
the new relationship.
Sparkling wine is a good accompaniment
with asparagus or artichokes with
hollandaise sauce. Asparagus can be
successfully paired with several less
common selections such as Austrian
Grüner-Veltliner, Italian Verdicchio, or Ital-
ian Vermentino. These Old World white
wines have a substantial amount of
earthiness, acidity, and spice that subdues
the acidity and negative taste, altering
the impact of the asparagus. 29
Pasta with Pesto is easy to prepare,
and if the raw garlic taste is not overpowering,
this dish is generally very winefriendly.
As you taste this dish with the
three wines, think about the impact of flavor
matching and intensity matching.
Would this dish also hold up to some red
wines? Are there any clues from the
Chapter 9 discussion and exercises on
spiciness?
The hot dog or sausage with mustard
is a simple example of the impact of
a savory and spicy food item on wine.
The classic beverage match might be
beer while watching a baseball game at
the ballpark, but this type of food is similar
to other savory and spicy prepara-
tions such as Pork Tenderloin with Creole
Mustard Sauce, Shrimp Remoulade, or
Filet of Beef with Sauce Robert. Does the
Sauvignon Blanc wine work with this savory
and spicy combination? Why or why
not? What wine suggestions would you
make for this food item?
After tasting the food and wine together,
did these tests confirm any ideas
regarding wine and food pairing? Did
these tests create any surprises regarding
wine and food pairing? Did the tests support
the idea of matching by flavor type
and flavor intensity?
PART C: BUTTER FLAVOR
OBJECTIVE
To identify differences in butter flavor; to
identify differences in intensity and persistency.