WINE AND FOOD HARMONY

·         Originally wine styles evolved to compliment local cuisines of a region.

(e.g.) Italy – for its local cuisine made of tomato gravies, olive oil based dishes, pastas etc.

·         The first aim is to match the weight of the food with wine.  Rich heavy foods like game and red meat casseroles need full-bodied red wines.

·         Lighter food like plain white meat or fish is complemented with delicate light bodied white or red.

·         Dry wines can seem tart and over acidic when drunk with any food with a degree of sweetness, so sweet food is best matched with greater degree of sweetness.

·         Sweet wines with good level of acidity matches well with oily food as pate, with puddings or dessert, with wine being sweeter. (e.g.) Sauternes with Foie gras.

·         Wines with crisp acidity match with tart food. (e.g.) any Italian dish.

·         Rich creamy sauce will need wine of sufficient weight and acidity. (e.g.) Chicken in cream sauce will be enhanced by a Riesling or Chardonnay.

·         Tannin in wine (organic compound found only in red wines) reacts with proteins.  High protein food especially red meat will be softened by tannin on the palate. (e.g.) tanic red grapes like Cabernet-sauvignon, Shiraz and Merlot go well with roast meat/stew.

·         Grapes of floral characteristics go well with fruits. (e.g.) Muscat, Moscatel or any late harvest wines.

·         Sweetness can also balance saltiness in blue cheeses. (e.g.) Port with Stilton is a gastranomic cliché.

·         Smoked food with oaked wines, spicy food with Gewürztraminer based wines.