Wine and Food Pairing, What Wine with Which Foods

You spent hours preparing that special meal for your guests and what better way to compliment that meal but a nice wine. 

However you may shy away from drinking or serving wine because you are unfamiliar with what type of wine they should serve. And all the language and terminology is baffling to the beginner.

You may be afraid to show your lack of knowledge by serving the wrong wine with your meal.  So, wine is often ignored when preparing a meal for guests.It isn't that difficult, you can learn the easy ins and outs of wine.  No need for a special vocabulary or fancy talk.

First of all, there are nine classifications of wine; Appellation Wine, Red Wine, White Wine, Rose Wine, Table Wine, Sparkling Wine, Dessert Wine, Fortified Wine,
and Cooking Wine.

The first classification of Appellation Wine is a French term used in identifying what region the grapes that were used for the wine were grown. An example of this is
Frog Rock Creek Shiraz Wine.

This tells you the place of origin is Frog Rock which is the name of the supplier that created the wine. Shiraz states the type of grape that was used to make the wine. Often these types of wines will conform to regulations concerning the varieties of grapes used, as well as the alcohol content.

Appellation Wines often use an abbreviation after their name like AC or AOC. These wines are also classified as the highest legal classification for French wine.

Red wine is made from red or black grapes. You will notice that a lot of red wines aren't really red at all. If you see a deep purple color, it may be labeled as red wine. however it is a newer wine.

If the red wine is more a brownish color then that means it is a well aged wine. If the wine is a pale color of red, more than likely there was oxygen combined with the grapes before they were processed.

Red wines are not meant to be kept very long.  Maybe no longer than three years is the norm. If the red color is too pale or too dark, it may not be that pleasant to drink.

Merlot is a great example of a red wine. Merlot is easy to drink and is soft tasting.  A gerat introduction to red wine for those who have never had it before. As for pairing Merlot with food, it can be drunk with any type of food. To add to the variety Merlot wine can be found in black cherry and herbal flavors.

White wine is a misnomer because it is yellow.  It is a lot more delicate than red wine. White grapes are used and must ferment for about three weeks.

White wine is appropriate for all occasions whether it is before, during, or after a meal. One famous White wines is Chardonnay. Chardonnay grapes are used to create the wine and have a bold taste.  Like Merlot it is available in a variety of flavors. Chardonnay goes well with poultry dishes, pork, seafood, or recipes that use a heavy cream base.

Rose wine is sometimes called a summertime wine and is a mix of white and red wines. The taste is light.  The wine is produced by removing the skins just before the batch
of wine gets a deeper red color.

One of the most popular Rose wines is White Zinfandel. White Zinfandel is sweet and inexpensive that is low in alcohol.  This accounts for its popularity.  The high sugar content almost makes it taste like fruit punch.

Rose wine is made for immediate consumption and should not sit and age. If you do choose to try the White Zinfandel, pair it with a seafood, pasta, or vegetarian dish.

Table wine is a distinction between standard wine and a higher alcoholic content wine. Table wines normally have a minimum alcohol, maybe 7 percent or up to a maximum of
14 percent.

Many table wines are simply labeled as red or white table wine. Keep in mind the different types of wine and associate the 'table' portion of the title as a reminder that your guests won't get inebriated with just a few drinks.

Sparkling wine is fizzy and bubbly, it has high levels of carbon dioxide. Champagne has become the generic type of sparkling wine. Sparkling wines are normally used as the choice for celebration. Champagne is very light to taste.

Dessert wines are simply that.  They are sweet tasting wines served with dessert. Dessert wines contain sugar or honey and alcohol.  Normally brandy is added during the fermentation process.

If you are serving chocolate for dessert, serve Black Muscat Wine. It is a late harvest dessert wine that goes particularly well with chocolate. However, if you are serving a blue cheese type dessert or a light dessert that is NOT chocolate, Sauternes is the perfect dessert wine of choice. It can be expensive, but the sweetness brings out the best in the dessert.

Fortified wine is a wine in which other types of alcohol have been added to beef up the alcohol level.  It also adds sweetness to the wine. Fortified wines have a minimum
of 15 percent alcohol and are very robust in flavor.

 

Sherry wine is an example, its alcohol percentage is about 17 and is aged for at least three years. Sherrys are excellent to serve with tapas, seafood, mild cheese, white fish and ham.

When choosing your wine you also want to consider aftertaste. Some say Sauvignon Blanc wines have a bad aftertastes, so you might want to stay away from them. Bertani wine
would be a good choice.  It has a fruity aftertaste. It's 13 percent alcohol content and goes very well with any Italian meals.

You might also be wondering about 'dry' wines.  This may describe how your mouth feels after drinking the wine. Dry wines give you that puckering sensation.

You may serve more than one type of wine at a meal, just serve the lighter wines first.  Also lower alcohol wines should be served before higher alcohol wines. And when
pairing wine with food, match the wine to the sauce, seasoning or dominant flavor of the dish.

If you are serving steak or prime rib, Merlot wine is a favorite.  It has a gentle fruity flavor that compliments your steak or ribs. You may also serve wine with hamburgers.  For this Beaujolais is perfect. Beaujolais is a fun wine and is not too heavy and fairly inexpensive.

And don't forget about pizza, you can also serve wine with pizza. Barbera wine is a rustic red wine and works well with pepperoni and the tomato sauce on the pizza.

For a dessert wine try Glacier Wild Huckleberry Wine.  It is amazing. When paired with the right foods it is out of this world. It is 100% wild huckleberries.  It is extremely sweet. You can also use it as a dessert. Try serving it over ice cream and you got an amazingly fruity and flavorful dessert in seconds.

There are a lot of wines out there that bring out the best in a meal. Spending hours to cook a meal, it only is right to compliment it with a wine that will heighten the taste.  Your guests will not only enjoy the meal, but remember it as well.

A final point is to try some wines, taste them with different foods and make your own recommendations and suggestions.

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