Pairing Food and Wine
Wines exist for the pleasure of pairing them with food, and if they are paired wisely, the resulting harmony of smells and flavors will enhance their characteristics. It's impossible to establish strict rules about wine pairing because both food and wine are complex substances that are easily altered.
The taste of a dish depends on its ingredients and its cooking process. The organic characteristics of wines depend on the types of grape used, the different soils, climatic conditions, and techniques of cultivation and manufacture. The general rule is that the flavor of the wine should not prevail over food and vice versa-the wine's body must be in harmony with the structure of the dish.
A delicate dish requires a light wine, while a rich dish calls for a well-structured wine. If you pair hot, spicy barbecued scampi with a delicately flavored white wine, you will not even taste the wine because the intensity of the food is so high. The same happens if you pair a robust, heady red wine with an understated delicate dish: the wine will overwhelm the subtlety of the food. There are so many contradictory theories that people often decide to follow the popular rule that "white goes with fish and red with meat."
Matching by Contrast
It may seem paradoxical, but the most effective method of pairing is by juxtaposing wine and food that have clashing qualities. For example, a fat and greasy dish like sweet Italian sausages would be paired with a dry, acidulous wine, like a zesty Barbera, that would cleanse the palate and lighten up the heaviness of the entrée.
Matching by Similarity
Another common method is that of matching flavors of roughly equal intensity, color, bouquet or flavor. A sweet Malvasia would be paired with delicate pastries, or a tart, acidic white might taste better with a vinaigrette-dressed salad.
Matching by ProvenanceThe "traditional" approach pairs a regional dish with a wine from the same geographic area because they are similar in perfumes and flavors. Florentine steak would be paired with Brunello di Montalcino, a wine from Tuscany.
Appetizers Best with light and dry white wines. If the appetizers are made with seafood, we suggest more vibrant and aromatic white wines.
Suggestions: Prosecco di Conegliano, Soave, Vernaccia di San Giminiano, Trebbiano d'Aprilia, Bianco di Custoza.
Cured Meats Best with flavorful, well-balanced and full-bodied red wines. Suggestions: Barbera di Monferrato, Grignolino, Lambrusco, Chianti, Piave Cabernet, Montepulciano d' Abruzzo.
Soups Best with refined, semi-sweet white wines. Suggestions: Vernaccia di Oristano, Colli Perici Pinot Bianco, Naragus di Cagliari, Montecarlo bianco, Colli Albani.
Rice and Pasta Pasta and rice are neutral foods, so wine pairings depend on the sauce. Generally, white sauce (butter or fish) with dry white wines and colorful sauces (tomato or pesto) with rich red wines. Suggestions (red): Carema, Gattinara, Barbera d'Asti, Dolcetto d'Alba, Cabernet di Pramaggiore. Suggestions (white): Verdicchio, Greco di Tufo, Vermentino.
Beware of mushrooms! They don't love tannin or acidity, so they must be paired with light, lively rosé wines. Suggestions: Moscato rosa, San Gimignano.
Seafood Best with all types of white wines, especially for mild white fish. With other kinds of meatier fish, like eel, blush wines can work well too. Suggestions (white): Pinot Grigio, Cinque Terre, Franciacorta Pinot Bianco, Soave and Verdicchio of Matelica. Suggestions (rosé): Grignolino, Castel del Monte and San Severo.
Beef We pair dry white wines with fried meat and luscious, austere reds with boiled and roasted beef. Suggestions (white): Tocai bianco, Frascati, Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi. Suggestions (red): Sangiovese di Romagna, Valpolicella, Chianti, Rosso di Cerignola, Montepulciano d'Abruzzo.
Poultry Roasted poultry pairs well with soft, rich, well-balanced red wines. When boiled, they pair well with young, aromatic and dry reds. Suggestions: Rosso Conero, Valpolicella Classico, Dolcetto di Dogliani, Nebbiolo d'Alba.
Vegetables Serving wine with vegetables depends on whether they are a main course or just a side dish, in which case the seafood, meat or poultry would determine the choice. Most vegetable dishes alone call for a wine on the light side, a white or rosé
Cheese We pair a light red or blush wine with creamy delicate cheeses and more opulent reds with stronger and more fermented cheeses. For fresh cheeses, like mozzarella and ricotta, we prefer dry white wines. Suggestions (reds): Barbera d' Alba, Ghemme, Breganze Cabernet, Valpollicella Superiore, Etna Rosso. Spiced cheeses will also pair well with sweet dessert wines. Suggestions: Moscato d' Asti, Mionetto Marzemino Dolce.
Fruit Best with those wines that bring out all the different flavors of the fruit itself, like sweet spumante or off-dry white wines. Suggestions: Brachetto, Recioto or Vinsanto.
DessertBest with sweet white "dessert wines," with the exception of fruit tarts and chocolate cakes that go better with reds. Suggestions (white): Cinque Terre Sciacchetrá, Moscato d' Asti, Malvasia di Lipari, Vinsanto di Toscana. Suggestions (red): Aleatico di Puglia, Freisa, Brachetto, Malvasia di Casorzo.
