Basics of Food & Wine Pairing Flashcards
Knowing why certain combinations work and other do not.
If food is sweet, wine seems…
More drying and bitter
More acidic
Less sweet and fruity
Pairing sweet wine and sweet food is difficult - the sweetness in both will compound on itself and come across as unabalanced.
If food has umami, then wine seems…
More drying and bitter
More acidic
Less sweet and fruity
Parmesan Reggiano cheese will make a fruity, youthful Chianti taste more complex.
If food is salty, wine seems…
Less drying and bitter
Less acidic
More fruity, more body
A steak rubbed with salt will make a Cabernet Sauvignon taste smoother, fruitier and less tannic.
If food is acidic, wine seems…
Less drying and bitter
Less acidic
More sweet and fruity
If food is richly flavored, wine seems…
Overwhelmed by the food flavors
If food is fatty or oily, wine seems…
Less acidic
A fatty piece of salmon will make a medium- to high-acid pinot noir taste less acidic, when consumed together.
If food is hot (chilli), the wine will seem…
To increase the heat from the chilli, and the alcohol in the wine will become more noticable
Where can bitterness in wine come from?
Tannins (naturally in the grape)
or
Oak (as part of the winemaking process)
A good pairing for a Thai dish with lots of chilli heat might be…
Off-dry riesling
The sweetness in the wine will off-set the heat, and the natural acid in the wine will off-set the subtle fruit or veg flavors in the Thai dish.
