Your Village Hordle Dec 18 Jan 19

NOTES FROM THE SOLENT CELLAR
The Art of Food & Wine Matching
The festive period will soon be upon us, so we
thought we would offer some advice on food
and wine matching. We think that a meal can
be enhanced by a well thought out wine to
match, and we are always here to help guide
and advise on classic or more interesting
pairings.
How about one of these wines to enjoy on Christmas day?
When looking for a wine to pair to a particular
dish it is worth considering the following
factors:
Acidity
All wine has acidity and this can be detected in
the mouth, high acidity in a wine would be a
similar sensation to when sucking on a lemon.
Wines with high acidity work amazingly well
with fatty foods, which is why fish and chips
goes so well with Champagne! A wine with
lemony acidity is also like adding a seasoning to
a dish, for example the classic oysters and
Muscadet pairing. Wines with a low acidity
tend to be from hotter climates and richer in
flavours and these go with richer flavoured
foods.
Body & Tannin
When we talk about the body of a wine, it is to
do with the power and strength in flavour.
Tannins come from grape seeds, skins and also
any ageing in oak add body and dryness to a
wine. A full bodied, tannic wine will go well
with fuller flavoured foods, for example
Chateauneuf du Pape which is full bodied and
tannic pairs well to meats such as slow roast
shoulder of lamb or roast beef. Lighter bodied
wines with low tannins such as Pinot Noir,
Beaujolais or Mencia pair well to white meats
and meaty fish.
Sweetness
At this festive time of year it's
a real treat to pair a dessert
course with a sweet wine. As
a general rule a wine to go
with a dessert should be
sweeter than the food. We
have an amazing selection
of sweet wines to pair to
different types of dessert.
Just a small selection of
our selection of dessert
wines
Classic Festive Matches
Smoked Salmon Canapés - Try pairing these
with a Chablis, Gruner Veltliner, Albarino or a
dry Riesling.
Turkey and the trimmings - A white with a bit
of body to stand up to the medley of flavours. I
suggest something from Southern Burgundy,
Pinot Gris or an aromatic white Rhone. On the
red front, something juicy with bright cherry/
cranberry fruit such as Pinot Noir, Barbera
d'Alba, unoaked Spanish Garnacha or
Beaujolais.
Mince Pies - Mince pies tend to be enjoyed in
the afternoon or with a bit of blue cheese, try
pairing to an off dry Madeira or a Moscatel.
(*Madeira Saturday tasting is on Dec 1st*)
Cheese - Most people go for red wine when
pairing to the cheeseboard, but often this
overpowers the flavour. This year ,try serving a
white wine from the Savoie or Jura region, an
off-dry Riesling or Muscat Beaumes de Venise,
or if you're a fortified wine lover try with a
nutty Amontillado or white port.
Pop into the shop for help with your food and
wine matching this Christmas!
Heather & Simon, The Solent Cellar
Our shop is on Saint Thomas Street
(opposite M&S)
www.thesolentcellar.co.uk
To advertise please email: jqpeacock@gmail.com or tel 01590 643969/07801 562 358 9