Food & Wine Pairing 101

Friday, May 9, 2014

As with many things that involve wine, food and wine pairing can be an intimidating endeavor.  So to make things easier, here are a couple suggestions and some things to keep in mind when choosing a wine for your dinners.  We’ve found that with just a little bit of knowledge and the names of a couple wines listed on your cellphone, you’ll be able to make great choices no matter what you’re having for dinner.

Basic Facts:

• The human palate can distinguish 5 basic tastes: sweet, sour, bitter, salty, and umami (the savory taste of shiitake mushrooms, monosodium glutamate, or any food rich in glutamic acid). Since wine is rarely perceived as salty or shiitake-like, we are left with sweet, sour, and bitter as the three basic tastes in wine.
• Food allows us to experience all five tastes plus the sensations of hot (temperature and/or spiciness) and cold.
• Both food and wine have texture, in other words how they feel in the mouth. When pairing food and wine, the goal is to match the texture in the food with the texture of the wine. 

How to Pair Food with Wine:

1st - Consider intensity of the dish

2nd - Select wine of the same intensity level. For example, a lightly sauteed shrimp in white wine and garlic would not pair well with a heavy red. We always pair light with light and heavy with heavy.

Here is a list of a couple types of wine and their intensity levels. Remember that some wines will be labeled by which grape is used and some wines will be labeled by where they come from. Regardless of which method is used on the label, these are wines that you should be able to find with minimal effort.

Light White

o   Pinot Grigio

o   Sauvignon Blanc

Heavy White

o   Chardonnay

o   Viognier

Light Red

o   Pinot Noir

o   Chianti (Chianti Classico has a medium intensity)

Medium Red

o   Cotes-du-Rhone

o   Tempranillo

o   Barbera

Heavy Red

o   Cabernet Sauvignon

o   Zinfandel

o   Syrah

While we could go on and on, these simlple tips, plus lots of practice (the fun part!) should have you on your way to wine pairing greatness. 

Remember that there is really only one rule to follow: drink what you like. That includes price point. While you do generally get what you pay for, there are plenty of great wines out there for $12 to $15. They may have names that aren’t familiar or be made from grape you’ve never heard of before, but if you’re open to trying new wines, you’ll be pleasantly surprised by what you’ll find.  

Want to know more? Email Don at Sherlocks!