Wine Guide
Which Wine Goes With What Food
For the most part, the old standby of "Red with meat, white with fish" is a fair rule of thumb, but should by no means be the rule. The world has changed a lot since those rules were first made. Not only have the variety of dishes increased, but the types of wines available have also increased.
There are the traditional rules to pairing wine to certain foods, however, so-called experts have been proven wrong when it comes to what actually goes well with a particular meal in every case. The selected proper wine might go well if the dish is served in the traditional manner, but add other ingredients or make it more exotic than the original rules, that wine may no longer be the right one for that particular meal.
The reason traditional rules can be thrown out the window is the world has opened up the door to new ways to express old dishes. What may taste right with one wine can taste off with different ingredients or spices.
The new school of thought is to pair the wine with the overall outcome of the dish to be served. These are loose guidelines to help you pick the right wine for the meal.
- Select light bodied wines with lighter food, and fuller bodied wines to go with heartier, more flavorful dishes.
- Sweet Foods go well with slightly sweet wines like Chenin Blanc, White Zinfandel, Riesling.
- Highly acidic foods go well with Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Grigio, Pinot Noir.
- Bitter and astringent foods go well with Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot.
If possible, attend wine tasting events to become more familiar with the different available wines.