DC Eats Magazine_First Issue_Update

wine
Do It Yourself Guide to
Wine Pairing
[ By Paul Stern ]
Seeking an expert wine pairing
recommendation makes
menu planning easy. You
can simply find a professional
you trust and take
their word for which wine will match
your food, but sometimes, it can be
more fun to choose your own wine
and food combination. This article will
give you some questions to ask that
will help you to find your own wine
pairings for any dish.
1. What kind of wine do you
and your friends like to drink?
The first question is important because
it can help you to eliminate options
and make your decisions easier.
If you only like red wine, for example,
then you don’t have to worry about
white wine. If your friends don’t like
sparkling wine, you can stick with
red or white. While there are many
“classic pairings” that call for specific
wines, you shouldn’t be expected
to drink anything that you or your
guests won’t enjoy.
2. How intense are
the flavors in your dish?
This question does not refer to which
flavors are in your food, but how
strong or subtle they are. If the dish
were a musical piece, you’d consider
the overall volume without regard
to which instruments were playing.
If you’re serving a strongly flavored
dish, you should serve a powerful
wine that won’t be subsumed by the
food. Conversely, you should serve
delicate wines with delicate foods so
that the wine won’t be overwhelming.
Even if you normally prefer rich,
flavorful wines in general, you should
consider something lighter if you’re
serving subtle dishes.
3. Is the food sweet and/
or sour?
Foods featuring sweet or sour flavors
are more difficult to pair with wine.
The wine should generally be sweeter
and more acidic than the food - otherwise,
it will taste harsh or overly
sour. So, for example, dishes
with lemon or vinegar will pair
well with tart wines, while foods
with sugar or honey should pair
nicely with sweet wines. Keeping
all of this in mind, it becomes
clear that higher acid wines with
a slight sweetness are the most
versatile for wine pairing.
4. What is the fat content
of your dish?
Foods with higher fat content call
for wines with higher tannins - the
compounds found mainly in red wine
that coat your tongue and teeth with
a drying sensation. Tannins and fat
soften and enhance each other. This
is why tannic wines like Cabernet
Sauvignon work so well with marbled
meat, like steak.
5. What are the main flavors
in the food?
Now we’re leaving intensity behind
and asking about the character of
the food’s flavor. Does your dish
have a savory, meaty flavor, a fresh
vegetable flavor, or subtle, briny seafood
notes? The traditional European
approach to wine pairing is to seek
wines that have similar flavors to the
Wine and food that
originate in the same
region tend to be
a good match.
dish. For example, you could pair lamb
with mint alongside a Cabernet Sauvignon
from Australia. The Cabernet
has enough tannin to match the fat
in the lamb, and Australian red wines
are famous for flavors of eucalyptus,
which has a green taste similar to the
mint in the dish.
For another example, think about
pasta with butter sauce and toasted
almonds. Chardonnay features both
nutty and buttery flavors that would
match the food well.
6. Where is your dish from?
There’s a famous saying: “what grows
together, goes together.” This simply
means that wine and food that originate
in the same region tend to be
a good match. Pasta with red sauce
and Italy’s most popular red grape,
Sangiovese, work very well together.
The Alsace region in France produces
wines that are great with pork - the
mainstay of local cuisine. When in
doubt, look for wines from the area
that your dish comes from.
7. Which course is
the wine pairing for?
If you find yourself with more than
one possible wine for a particular
dish, you can decide between them
based on the course order. If you are
serving salmon as a first course,
you might consider a dry Rosé,
but if it’s an entree, maybe a
Pinot Noir would be better.
Most of the time, lighters
wines are served earlier
in the meal, and sweet
wines are served last
with dessert. You can, of
course, make exceptions
if you want.
8. Don’t be afraid
I’ve heard it said that 80%
of wine pairings are fine, 10%
are great, and 10% are terrible.
In my experience, this holds true -
meaning that you have a 90% chance
of finding a wine that’s at least okay
- even if you guess. If, however, this
article helps you find a truly wonderful
pairing, you’ll be proud of yourself,
impress your guests, and have a
unique culinary experience. Have fun
with the journey and let us know if
you come across a top-notch pairing.
Paul Stern has spent the last nine years
in various roles in the wine industry,
from tasting thousands of bottles in
North Carolina to coordinating the
wine pairings for some of Philadelphia’s
elite restaurants. Before joining WTSO’s
Product Development Team, Paul
earned a certification with the Court of
Master Sommeliers. Paul enjoys wine
of all styles but has a particular love of
lighter style reds and aromatic whites.
6 DC Eats Magazine #1 issue
#1 issue DC Eats Magazine 7