Flavor Pairings

Question 1

Sauvignon Blanc

Answer 1

Pairing: most seafood but stay away from crab legs if it has been aged in wood.

Flavor notes: grapefruit, gooseberry, cut grass and hay, herbs

Question 2

Meritage

Answer 2

Meritage is a blend of several different grapes: Cabernet, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Malbec, Petit Verdot

Question 3

Pinot Grigio

Answer 3

Pairing: all seafood except for salmon and fish with a heavy sauce

Question 4

Chardonnay

Answer 4

Pairing: Salmon, sea bass with balsamic reduction, and pork if it’s a big Chardonnay

Flavor notes: apple, lemon, flint, butterscotch

Question 5

Pinot Noir

Answer 5

Pairing: filet mignon, salmon, sea bass with the sauce, crab cakes, bacon shrimp

Flavor notes: raspberry, truffles, forest floor, cloves, cinnamon, and cherry

Moderate tannins, high acidity

Question 6

Zinfandel

Answer 6

Pairing: Hawaiian ribeye, lamb, NY steak, filet mignon, salmon with the sauce

Flavor notes: black cherry, jam, dried fruit, clove

Softer tannins, balanced acidity

Question 7

Syrah

Answer 7

Pairing: NY steak, filet mignon, ribeye, lamb, black cod

Flavor notes: jam, tar, smoke, spice, game, leather, pepper, and herbs

Good amount of tannin

Question 8

Cabernet

Answer 8

Pairings: ribeye, lamb, NY steak

Flavor notes: cherry, currant, chocolate, and vanilla

Good dose of tannin, medium acidity

Question 9

Merlot

Answer 9

Pairing: NY steak, lamb, filet mignon, salmon if served with sauce

Flavor notes: plum, prune, black cherry, chocolate, and vanilla

Soft tannin, low acidity

Question 10

Champagne

Answer 10

Pairing: most foods

Champagne is a blend of several grapes: Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunière

Brut nature: no sugar, extremely dry (3 grams or less of residual sugar)
Extra brute: slightly less dry than nature
Brut: a little less dry than extra brut
Extra dry: a little less dry than brut
Sec: sweet in style
Demi sec: sweeter than sec (32-50 grams of sugar)
Doux: sweetest of all (50 grams or more of sugar)