Wines And Their Food Pairings

Wine has been a staple of many romantic dinners for a very long time. When it comes to wine, you can easily enhance the flavors and aromas by simply pairing it with the proper foods.

Pairing foods with wine is not always easy so I wanted to go over a few basic tips because if you pair the wrong combinations together, you can easily muddle the flavors of both and leave you with a bad taste in your mouth.

Wine tasting is a popular activity and passion for many people because it can add a whole new dimension to your meals. This list below will help you identify some of the most common wines and food they go well with. I’ve also written out a brief description of why they will work well together, so you’ll be able to teach your partner something new at your next dinner date.

How Food and Wine Pairings Work

Wine flavors are derived from specific components: sugar, acid, fruit, tannin and alcohol. Foods also have flavor components, such as fat, acid, salt, sugar, bitter, and Umami (a fancy way of describing something that is savory). The most successful food and wine pairings feature complementary components, richness and textures.

You can try for either a similar pairing or a contrasting one depending on your personal preference, so there aren’t any universally right or wrong combinations.

for example, pasta in a creamy alfredo sauce, would go well with a crisp, dry, un-oaked white wine, since it would cut through the creamy fat. You could also wrap the flavor of the wine around the richness of the sauce by choosing a big, ripe, soft chardonnay if you prefer.

Of course you’ll need to brush up on wine basics to understand the flavors of each grape if you’re really interested in learning more. Armed with the knowledge of grape varieties, you can follow these food elements for a perfect match:

Food and Wine Combinations To Try

Pinot Grigio – is a white wine that is very popular among wine drinkers and made from pinot noir grapes from many different regions. Many of the Pinot Grigio wines have a soft and delicate flavor that is rich and often resembles a floral taste. Depending on the region this wine was made in, you may find that the wine is more acidic and less sweet. The color can range from a very light yellow to a copper pink color. The underlying flavors of this wine include apple, melon and pear.

Pinot Noir – is a dark wine that is made from the same grape as Pinot Grigio and can also be found in different regions all around the world. This wine is considered to be moderately dry since it doesn’t have a very over powering taste. The flavors exhibited in this wine’s flavor profile include strawberry, raspberry, cherry, and also blackberry. Many of the versions of this wine also have a spice note to them including cinnamon.

The reason there is a red and a white version of this wine is a result of the wine maker either leaving the skin and stems on the grape or removing them before they are fermented.

Food Pairings: This wine goes well with many different foods such as beef, poultry, cheese and chocolate. It makes a great wine for pairing and sits well with many different foods.

Food Pairings: The perfect foods to pair with this wine include poultry, pork, bacon, cheese, chocolate, fish, mushrooms and even lamb. Many people will use this wine to cook with as well. You can see that this wine sits well with many different foods and goes nicely with them.

Sauvignon Blanc – is a white wine that is made from green skinned grapes. This wine originated in France and is referred to as a dessert wine because it is pretty sweet. Sauvignon blanc’s profile is crisp and has some acidic tones to it along with the sweetness. There are underlying flavors of hay, grass, vegetables, and even tropical flavors.

Food Pairings: Since this wine is great for pairing with many kinds of food, you will find that it goes nicely with many different appetizer dishes such as: artichoke dip, spinach dip and veggie dips. Greek, Garden and Cesar salads also pair well with this wine.

Chardonnay – is a white wine that is also made from green skinned grapes. This wine is considered to be an important counterpart to many sparkling wines. The flavor of this wine comes in a wide range and follows many different fruits such as apple, melon, citrus and pear. There is also a buttered taste to the wine as well.

Food Pairings: Chardonnay is a great wine to pair with main entrees that include poultry such as pork and chicken. You will find that this wine also goes well with seafood and recipes that require cream and butter as a base. Chardonnay has been known to also sit well with guacamole, salad and even garlic flavors.

Cabernet Sauvignon – is a dark red wine that is made from cabernet sauvignon grapes. There is a deep flavor profile that accompanies this wine and the underlying tones include blueberry, plum, blackberry, cherry, spices and even vanilla.

Food Pairings: Cabernet Sauvignon is a great wine to pair with different red meats such as steaks and even lamb. You will also find that pairing dark chocolate and strong flavored cheese goes well and brings out the flavor of this wine.

As you learn to pair these common wines with food, you will find that you enjoy the flavors more and that the wine taste is enhanced. Simply adding a glass of wine to your meal at dinner time is a great way to get a full flavor profile.

If you have a particular combination that you really like, please leave a comment below and tell us what it is. The more we share our favorites with each other, the better off we’ll all be.

Joshua Rose