Food and Wine Pairing - Just the Basics

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The following suggestions are general guidelines for food and wine pairings. The first rule is drink what you like! The second rule is choose a wine that won’t get overpowered by the flavors of the food. But, if you’re looking for some help, here are some general pairing suggestions:

• Sparkling wines work well with most any food 

• Pork and chicken dishes work well with most white wines

• Carb-based meals (pasta, potatoe, rice) work well with acidic wines, like Sauvignon Blanc (white), Pinot Noir or Barbera (reds)

• Spicy dishes generally pair well with fruitier, sweeter wines (Riesling, Grüner Veltliner, Gamay Beaujolais, Carménère)

• Rich or fatty dishes can benefit from either a high acid wine such as a Pinot Noir or an oaked Chardonnay that will complement the flavors

• Red meats that are well-marbleized with fat, work well with higher tannin wines, like Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah or Tannat

Some Further Specifics:

• Brunches

  • Egg dishes, Quiche: Sparkling Wine, Rosé, Sauvignon Blanc, Un-oaked Chardonnay, Pinot Grigio

• Poultry

  • Un-Seasoned Grilled Chicken: Sauvignon Blanc, Un-oaked Chardonnay

  • Chicken with Barbecue Sauce: Zinfandel

  • Spicy Asian Chicken: Grüner Veltliner

  • Turkey: Most white wines, Pinot Nor and Zinfandel

• Red Meats

  • Steaks: Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, Petite Syrah, Zinfancel, Merlot

  • Hamburgers: Most red wines

  • BBQ Beef Ribs: Merlot, Syrah, Zinfandel

• Seafood

• Mild White Fish: Pinot Grigio, Viognior, Un-oaked Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc

• Medium Fish (trout, snapper, grouper, or halibut): Un-oaked Chardonnay, Chenin Blanc, Pinot Noir

• Bolder Fish (salmon, swordfish and tuna): Pinot Noir

• Lobster: Sparkling wine, Sauvignon Blanc

• Crab: Oaked Chardonnay

The bottom-line is back to rule number one - drink what you like! But, hopefully these suggestions will help if you’re in a quandary. Cheers!

Ever Wonder Why Wine and Cheese Pair So Well?

Wine and cheese. They just go together. But, there's actually a pretty good reason that this pairing typically works together so well.

It’s due to the combination of an astringent element, wine, that gives your mouth a dry feeling and a fatty element, cheese, to make the mouthfeel slippery.

We generally don’t like to have an overly fatty coating in our mouth. And, we usually don’t like to have our mouth dried-out or puckered up. So, we seek just the right balance. That’s why we find a sip of wine so refreshing after nibbling on a piece of cheese. They are opposites that create a balanced mouthfeel.

Red wines can be rather tannic due to the stems, seeds and stems of the grapes. Tannin is also introduced into red wines from the oak barrels that are so commonly used for aging. All this tannin, especially in young red wines, can leave your mouth with a dry, chalky feeling. This astringent sensation, on its own, isn't a good one. But, the fats contained in cheese act to balance out the tannins in red wines. They just work together!

Cheeses also pair well with white wines. But, not in conjunction with tannin. White wines have little to no tannin. They can have bold acidity. And, that acidity yields a mouth-watering sensation which can be very refreshing. So when a creamy soft white cheese is paired with the acidic notes in white wines, it balances things out.

It’s very natural that wine and cheese strike such a perfect balance. It’s been a famous pairing for centuries. So, give it a try! Cheers!

Best Wines to Pair with Your Thanksgiving Meal

The traditional turkey dinner for Thanksgiving is often served with a white wine. While most white wines do go well with turkey, there are plenty of other excellent options. 

Traditional white wine choices include:

• Gewürztraminer - A Thanksgiving favorite. It is a highly aromatic wine with floral touches and spice notes such as cloves and nutmeg.

• Riesling - A dry Riesling has spicy, fruity flavors with touches of peaches or apricots and a floral fragrance that compliments the meal well.

• Sauvignon Blanc - Light and crisp, with grassy or herbaceous flavors and good acidity to cut through all the richness of the meal.

• Pinot Grigio (Pinot Gris) - Light and zesty with flavors of lemon, melon and peach.

• Chardonnay - A very common choice. But, it's best to go with the lighter and fruiter un-oaked versions that work best with all the flavors on the Thanksgiving table.

Sparkling wines also go well with almost any meal and are a natural pairing with turkey. And, any dry rosé will also work quite nicely with your turkey meal.

Turkey, by itself, is a pretty neutral meat.  So, you should actually focus on pairing your wines with all the side dishes that go along with the turkey. It may be a bit surprising, but a red wine will often work exceptionally well with your meal.  Just as cranberry sauce goes well with the turkey, a fruity red wine is also a great choice.

Some red wine options include:

• Beaujolais - Light, dry and fresh with fruity flavors. And you can serve it chilled.

• Pinot Noir - A light bodied red with flavors of cherry, raspberry and strawberry. In the French wine section at your store, this is called a red Burgundy. And this too can be served slightly chilled.

• Carignan - This red wine is a bit higher in tannins and acid, and has flavors of dark and black fruits, pepper, licorice, and spicy, savory aromas.

• Rhône Blends - Rhône wines focus on Grenache, Syrah and Mourvedre grapes, producing medium-bodied blends.

• Zinfandel - This medium bodied red wine can really work with a Thanksgiving meal. It has characteristics that include jammy flavors with spicy or peppery notes.

Finally, you might want to avoid full-bodied, highly tannic, red wines (e.g., Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah) that can get lost in the presence of all the fruit, sugar, and salt on the Thanksgiving table.

But, as always, ensure that you drink what you like. That's what is most important.

Enjoy your Thanksgiving. Cheers!

Behind the Cork™ - Sherry & Pie Pairings for International Sherry Week

In celebration of International Sherry Week (November 8-14) and, in preparation for the upcoming holidays, here are a few suggestions for some really super Sherry offerings and some pie pairing to go along with them.

Gonzalez Byass Solera 1847 Cream ($17) & Texas Two Step Pie

This Sherry is made from 75% Palomino and 25% Ximénex grapes. It is dark mahogany in color and velvety smooth. It has flavors of dried figs and raisins, with a toffee finish. Served slightly chilled.

Gonzalez Byass Alfonso Dry Oloroso ($17) & Apple Pie

This sherry is made from 100% Palomino. It has a beautiful mahogany color with a wonderful walnut aroma. This is not a sweet Sherry. It’s dry with great nutty flavor and a long smooth finish. Served slightly chilled.

Gonzalez Byass Néctar Pedro Ximenez ($17) & Cherry Pie

This Sherry is made from 100% Pedro Ximenez. It has a deep dark mahogany color. And, oh my! It’s rich and sweet and velvety smooth with flavors of caramel, dried fruits, figs, mocha, nuts and spices. It’s dessert in a glass, but also pairs well with cherry pie! Served slightly chilled.

Harveys Bristol Cream ($20) & Pecan Pie

Did you know that Harveys Bristol Cream is Sherry? It’s actually the number one selling Sherry in the world!

This Sherry is crafted from four different styles of Sherry (Fino, Amontillado, Oloroso and Pedro Ximexez) and aged between 3-20 years in the traditional Solera system.

Serve it chilled (50-55 F) to open up its rich, yet mellow flavor notes.

All four of these Sherry offerings are from Gonzalez Byass. The first three Gonzalez Byass offerings come in both 375 ml (pictured) and 750 ml bottles. The Harveys Bristol Cream, also from Gonzalez Byass, is featured in a 750 ml bottle.

Hope you get a chance to sip one of these wonderful Sherries during International Sherry Week, or anytime, and keep these amazing pie-pairing in mind as you do. Cheers!

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Disclosure of Wine Sample Submission: I received these samples at no cost for review. The opinions expressed are entirely my own.

Samples Provided by Donna White Communications

Great Wine Pairings for Thanksgiving

It’s always one of the questions regarding the Thanksgiving meal - “What wine should I serve?” It’s a great question that doesn’t have just one good answer. It has lots of good answers!

Conventional wisdom says that with the traditional turkey you must serve a white wine.  And white wines do go well with turkey.  Traditional white wine choices include:

• Gewürztraminer - One of the Thanksgiving favorites. This is a highly aromatic wine with floral touches and spice notes such as cloves and nutmeg.

• Riesling - This has spicy, fruity flavors with touches of peaches or apricots and a floral fragrance that compliments the meal well.

• Sauvignon Blanc - Light and crisp, with grassy or herbaceous flavors and higher acidity. This wine goes well with all the rich foods on the table.

• Pinot Grigio - Light and zesty with flavors of lemon, melon and peach.

• Chardonnay - A common choice, but best to go with the lighter and fruiter un-oaked versions that work best with all the flavors on the Thanksgiving table.

And, rosé and sparkling wines are also natural pairings with turkey. 

So, white wines are a good choice when pairing with turkey. But, who eats just plain white turkey meat? Generally, the turkey is eaten with a rich gravy, cranberry sauce or some other wonderful topping. And then there are all those tasty side dishes. So, when deciding on a wine, one might focus their attention on the toppings and side dishes.

In many cases, a red wine might be best to pair with all the amazing Thanksgiving flavors. Some red wine options include:

• Beaujolais - Light, dry and fresh with fruity flavors. And you can serve it chilled.

• Pinot Noir - A light bodied red with flavors of cherry, raspberry and strawberry. In the French wine section at your store, this is called a red Burgundy. And this too can be served slightly chilled.

• Carignan - This red wine is a bit higher in tannins and acid, and has flavors of dark and black fruits, pepper, licorice, and spicy, savory aromas.

• Rhône Blends - Rhône wines focus on Grenache, Syrah and Mourvedre grapes, producing medium-bodied blends.

• Zinfandel - This medium bodied red wine can really work with a Thanksgiving meal. It has characteristics that include plummy, jammy flavors with spicy or peppery notes.

So, what every you do, try a different wine with your Thanksgiving meal this year! But, most of all, enjoy! Cheers!