A Guide To Mastering The Art Of Food And Wine Pairing

Do you always struggle to find the right type of wine for your romantic candlelit dinner at home or you aren’t sure which wine to bring to a barbeque? The ideal complement pairing of wine and food can go a long way in further enhancing the dining experience. Finding the right pairing isn’t difficult, all you have to do is follow the easy guidelines here for food and wine pairing!

Think of Acidity

When eating foods that are oily or with rich buttery sauces, you can cleanse the palate by drinking a wine high in acid such as young Riesling. On the contrary, having foods that already contain high acidic content like a salad with vinegar-based dressing, you should pair with wine that is crisp and dry such as Pinot Grigio.

It’s important to also note that acidic wines will typically clash with flavors from a rich and creamy sauce.

Pairing with the Sauce

You should attempt to pair the wine with the different sauces you have using the complementary pairing techniques. For example, try pairing mushroom and cream sauces with Chardonnay, meat and red sauces with Shiraz, and citrus-based sauces with Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc.

If your food doesn’t have sauce, you can simply try matching the wine to your choice of food such as fish, poultry, or meat.

Match Flavor Character and Intensity

Similar wine and food flavors can match and work well with one another. If you’re having fish with a side of lemon sauce, then a wine like Pinot Gris would an ideal pairing since both have citrus flavors.

For light-tasting, milder foods, pair them with mild wines while you match strong tasting, flavorful foods with strong wines. For example, if you’re having a black pepper steak, pair that with a glass of bold and spicy Shiraz.

A general guide would be to simply match the wine to the flavor intensity of the food you’re having to maximize the experience of your meal.

Maintain Wine and Food at a Similar Weight

No, we don’t mean kilos or pounds when we talk about weight. Match your wine to the food’s weight by pairing heavy, rich foods to heavier-weight wine and conversely, lighter and mild foods to a less flavorful wine.

For example, red meat casseroles are heavier-type foods that require stronger wines like Shiraz. Medium-weighted foods such as prawns complement well with Chardonnay, whilst milder tasting foods like fish and poultry match well with delicate wines such as low-tannin or white wine.

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