Food And Wine Pairing Flashcards
What is the rule of thumb for Match quality when it comes to pairing food and wine?
- Special -Occasion dishes with special occasion wines
- Everyday dishes with everyday wines
Notes: When pairing wine and food, you must always take into account, the quality of the wine and the quality of the wine and the quality of the dish.
- A complex dish made for special occasions deserve a complex and special wine. On the other hand, simple, everyday dishes match best with simple and easy to drink wines
What is the best way to match the power and weight of your food and wine pairing!
- Heavy dishes with heavy wines, robust dishes with robust wines
- Light dishes with light wines, delicate dishes with delicate wines
Notes:
Always take the relative power and weight of S wine and dish into account when making a pairing.
The whole point of food and wine pairing is to make both the food and the wine taste better
If you cannot taste one or the other, then you are defeating the purpose
What is mirroring and how does it help with pairing food and wine
Mirror Flavors and Characteristics that a dish and a wine have in common
Example: if you have a peppery dish and want to emphasize the spicy pepper flavors, then pick a wine that had peppery Characteristics
How does picking the right wine fight fat?
Using acid and tannins to contrast fat in a dish.
- Acid cuts through fat
- Tannins stand up to fat
Notes:
Light Dishes
- Lighter dishes with high levels of fat, such as salmon, poultry, cream sauces, and pork are best paired with wines high in acidity. Think Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc, and Pinot Noir
- The acid in these wines will act like a knife that cuts through the fairness in a dish, revealing more of its flavor.
- At the same time, the fat in the dish will neutralize much of the acid in the wine, dulling the knife and making the wine less tart
Heavier dishes
- Heavier dishes with high levels of fat need heavier wines, and typically, the heavier the wine, the lower the acidity. Therefore, a different way to contrast fat is needed
- These types of dishes are best paired with wines high in tannins, such as Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot.
- The tannins in the wine act like a brick wall that stand up to fat
- As tannins settle on the surface of the tongue, they physically block fat
- While this is occurring, the fat also helps to lessen the presence of the tannins, so the wine will soften
How does flavoring work in pairing food and wine?
- Salty and sour flavors bring out the positive characteristics of flavor
- Sweet, bitter, and Savory flavors bring out negative Characteristics
Notes:
- Chefs understand this, and it explains why almost all sauces are either sour or salty
- To make wines taste better pair them with food that have salty or sour flavors
- To make foods taste better, wines that are high in acidity and have sour flavors work best
What is the rule of thumb when pairing wine and food from a similar location?
Pair regional wines with regional dishes
Notes:
- Wines and foods of a region pair together well
- if your serving a regional dish, pair if with a wine from that region. They were made to go together
What does see the whole picture mean in regards to pairing wine and food
Take all components of a dish into account (meat, sauce, etc) when selecting a wine
Notes:
- A gold wine pairing takes into account more than just the meat or protein served in a dish
- When pairing food and wine, you need to as the BIG PICTURE.
- Pair the wine not only to the protein, but also to the sauce, vegetables, and starch in a dish.
- By taking the entire dish into account, you will select a wine that pairs so much more successfully with the whole plate
What is the best way to handle spicy food with pairing wine and food?
- Spicy foods pair best with slightly sweet wines
- Spicy foods are bad match for high tannin wines
Notes:
- Spiciness in dish isn’t something we taste it’s something we feel
- The sweetness of the wine will tame the heat of the dish and bring out more of its flavor
- Wines to avoid with spicy dishes are those wines that also irritate the surface of the tongue
- Tannins are the component of red wines that irritate the soft tissue in the mouth, causing a sense of dryness on the palate
- Adding this irritation to the irritation caused by spicy food will actually make the food hotter and the wine more tannic
What is the best type of wine for desserts
Desert wines should always be sweeter than the dessert they are served with
Notes:
- If that sweetness is stripped away from the wine, all that will show is that stark, raw acidity
- By ensuring that your dessert wine is sweeter than your dessert you ensure that the wine will retain its natural sweetness and complement the dish, rather than turn into battery acid
True or False
It is always best to pair a high quality wine with lower quality food accentuate the wine
False
What two Characteristics in wine are best when paired with dishes that have a high fat content!
Acid and Tannins
True or False
It is always a good idea to match full bodied wines with heavy dishes
False
Which two taste sensations bring out the positive flavor Characteristics of a food or wine?
Sour and Salty
True or False
In almost every case, the determination of a wine pairing should be based only on the protein (meat) component of a dish?
False
True or False
When pairing sweet wines with desserts, it is always best for the dessert to be sweeter than the wine?
False
