Ah, good wine and well-cooked food. A duo about as old as mankind itself, and one you’d be hard-pressed to top. However, choosing the right wine to go with a specific meal can sometimes prove difficult.
Should you enjoy Riesling with sushi or steak? Is that Carbernet Sauvignon going to pair well with your grilled chicken? How many types of wine are there, anyhow?
If you’re in a tizzy over how to pair wine with food, then worry no longer. Our guide will tell you what you need to know about wine pairings so that you won’t feel uncultured the next time you dine out.
The Classic Rules of Wine Pairing
Let’s start with the basic “rules” that most diners already know about. In most cases, you want to order red wine with red meat, and white wine with fish or chicken.
Why is this? Well, the tannins present in red wine could easily overwhelm the more delicate flavor profiles of the fish or chicken. Therefore, white wines, with their lower tannin contents, are preferable to red.
Advanced Tips to Pair Wine With Food
Of course, the traditional rules of wine pairing don’t account for every variance. If you want to know how to pair wine with food beyond the “red to red, white to white” rule, then you need to look more at the flavor profiles of the wine and the dish.
Something with a rich, earthy flavor like a pinot noir will pair best with another weighty, earthy dish. This can even include pasta dishes that place a heavy emphasis on mushrooms.
By contrast, if you want to order a lemon pepper fish, you’ll want something like a Sauvignon Blanc. The tartness of the wine will pair well with the citrus and spice of the fish.
Professional Ways to Pair Wine
We’ve covered basic and intermediate wine pairing tips thus far. But you want to take your sommelier skills to the next level.
So, how do restaurants with great wines like those in Vegas and Los Angeles tend to pair wine these days? Simple: They look to match the vibe more than the flavor profile alone.
Classic wine descriptors like tannic and fruit-forward mean about as much to the novice sommelier as they do to the layperson. So, if you’re at a fancy restaurant, see if they can describe the wine according to its mood or vibe. Something with a bright or energetic vibe might match a party, but not a subdued dinner with bosses.
Let’s Review How to Pair Wine With Food
Figuring out how to pair wine with food can be difficult. At its most basic, you can boil wine pairings down to “red with red, white with white”. After that, try to match flavor profiles. Then, beyond that, try to match the vibe of the occasion with the wine you choose from wine delivery Melbourne.
If you can line these three elements up, then you’re sure to pick the right wine when the time comes to order at a restaurant. And, if you’re looking for more delicious food articles, check out our blog for more content like this!
