Food and Wine

An Apéritif, Dinner, Dessert? -- Food and Wine is the Perfect Match

Deciding how you will serve the food and wine is another important element when selecting wines. Will you serve wine as an apéritif, or with appetizers, dinner, or even dessert. Let’s check out the details.

Serving Wine As An Apéritif

An apéritif stimulates the appetite making it a perfect start to the evening. Here are a few tips for serving apéritifs to your guests while you are putting the final touches to your dinner.

• Choose a sparkling wine as your apéritif. Sparkling wines are very affordable and you'll be surprised how much fun serving a sparkling wine brings to your evening.

• Select a white wine that is low in acidity. A white wine from a warm climate will have lower acidity. This will keep from interfering with the taste of the food.

• Select a red wine that is low in tannins. The high tannins may be too strong and will interfere with the taste of the food.

Wine with Dinner

Don't stress over the perfect food and wine pairing. There are endless possibilities and there is no right or wrong. Of course, there are some pairings that may be better suited than others, but here are a few tips to help a little.

It's important to remember to have fun, experiment a little, and if you like it, that's all that matters.

Let's take some of the food and wine pairing rules and make it simple. A good food and wine pairing will enhance the flavors and of both the food and the wine.

"What does that mean?" you ask. It's not really difficult to master. Just try to keep the flavors of the food, or the sauce, the same as the flavors in the wine. For instance, if you are serving a seafood dinner with a citrus or lemon sauce, serve a wine with citrus flavors.

Listed are some characteristices in wines that will help you serve up that great food and wine pairing for your guests.

Wines for Fish

• Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand are light, crisp and citrusy.
• Sancerre and Pouilly Fume (also from sauvignon blanc) are French wines that are light with grassy or herbal flavors that are also great with fish.
• White Bordeaux sometimes a blend of sauvignon blanc and semillon (semillon gives a richness) can stand up to richer fish dishes such as salmon, as well as a variety of other dishes.
• Pinot Grigio has a neutral character that makes it a good match for fish.
• Australian Riesling varieties have a lime/citrus flavor.
• Pinot Noir it is very good with salmon and grilled fish if you are a red wine drinker.

Wines for Meat

• Cabernet Sauvignon from California, Australia, Chile, or Bordeaux are classic pairings for red meat. Merlot and Syrah/Shiraz are also good pairings.
• Bordeaux and Rioja will pair with Lamb
• Syrah/Shiraz, and Zinfandel are robust enough to go with stews and casseroles.
• Pinot Noir, Beaujolais are light reds that pair well with pork and veal. You can also choose a Chardonnay to pair with the pork.
• There is a variety of wines that will pair with chicken. It all depends on the preparation of the dish. Hearty dishes can pair with a Pinot Noir or even a Merlot. Lighter styles can be paired with a Chardonnay.

If you are serving mushrooms with your meat entre, you might want to choose a wine with earthy flavors such as a Pinot Noir.

Another way to pair your food and wine is to serve a wine from the same region as the style of food you are preparing. If you are serving spaghetti and meatballs or pizza, open an Italian Chianti.

Wine With Dessert

Serving wine with dessert is a simple rule. Again, you want to match the flavors. In this case, you want to match the sweets with the sweet. Moscato d'Asti from Italy is a delicious dessert wine.

Prosecco is a light fizzante wine to serve with fresh fruits for dessert.

Sparkling wine and dessert is a perfect match. You can't miss.

Appetizers
Food and Wine Pairings
Vegetarian Wine Pairing
Dessert Pairings

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