Here are some of the basic principles of food and wine pairing, outlining different elements and their best matches. Keep in mind that a great paring doesn’t have to be fancy or pretentious. Sometimes there’s nothing better than a piece of pizza and a nice Tempranillo! Remember one thing when pairing: match the weight of the wine with the weight of the food.
SOUR
There’s one rule to remember with sour foods and wines: sour likes sour. Pair acidic wines with sour foods and sauces. Pairing: Sauvignon Blanc and Goat Cheese. Sauvignon Blanc, especially in it’s old-world style, is high in acidity. Goat cheese tends to be fresh and sour as well.
SWEET
Sweet likes sweet, so pair sweet wines with sweet foods. Sweet wines will also work with spicy foods. Pairing: Sauterns or Icewine and fois gras. Both of these dessert wines are very sweet, and are a classic accompaniment to the sweet, velvety fois gras. Quality examples of these desert wines also have a nice acidity that balances out the richness. Aline Baly, of Bordeaux’s Chateau Coutet gave me this recommendation for pairing Sauternes:
“Sauternes [pairs well] with lobster, sea scallops or even just a plain farmer’s chicken. Asian foods tend to go extremely well, especially with ginger spices.”
BITTER
Bitter and astringent flavors in food go well with similar flavors in wine. Sugar will mask bitter flavors. High levels of alcohol/tannin will intensify bitter flavors. So pair either acidic or sweet wines with bitter foods. Pairing: Sauvignon Blanc with Asparagus. The acidity and grassiness of the Sauvignon Blanc will pair well with the astringency and bitterness of the asparagus.
SALTY
Salt and bitter work well together. Salt in food will also intensify oak flavors in wine. Stay away from high alcohol wines with salty foods, as salt intensifies the alcohol sensation. Sweet and salt pair the best. Pairing: German Riesling with Prosciutto wrapped bass. The sweetness of the Riesling and saltiness of the Prosciutto will dance in your mouth.
TANNIN
Tannin is usually only discussed when referring to a red wine. Most of the tannin in wine comes from the grape skins. Wines high in tannin need protein, fat or salt to complement them best. This is one of the reasons why cheese and big red wines work so well! The creaminess and fat of the cheese soften the tannic grip of big reds. Pairing: Cabernet Sauvignon and Steak au Poivre. Both the protein and fat in the steak pair with the high level of tannin found in quality Cabernet Sauvignons.
HEAT (SPICY)
Pairing spicy foods is not as hard as you may think. Throw all of your preconceived notions out the window here. This is where we can have some real fun. There are two things that will calm the heat of spicy food: sugar and acid. So think of either sweet or acidic wines to pair with spicy foods. Pairing: Gewurztraminer and Pad Thai. I usually find myself turning to either German or sweet Alsatian whites to pair with spicy Asian foods. I like Gewurztraminer particularly because this grape tends to have a slight spice to it, along with sweetness.
REMEMBER THESE MAIN POINTS:
- Weight with weight
- Acid likes acid
- Fish oil hates tannin
- Tannin loves fat but hates fish oil
- Acid cuts saltiness
- Sweet likes sweet
- Sweet likes salty
- Sweet likes spicy
- High alcohol + spice = fire!
