An extraordinary culinary experience wouldn’t be complete without the presence of wine (beer or other drinks) to accompany it. A bad match between food and drink can easily turn into a nightmare: metallic taste, bitter flavors, and so on.
Lots of great restaurant put the effort to offer wine to their customers that will match perfectly the food they serve. Before I even take a glance at the menu, I usually browse the wine list. If the wine list is well made, I 'm sure they will put as much detail in their dishes. Then just follow the advice of experienced sommeliers who know both their food and their wines for an ultimate pleasure.
However, in a BYOW restaurant, we must rely on our own judgment. To avoid a bad experience, here are some tricks of food and wine pairing. You can apply them both at home and at your favorite restaurant.
First, we must understand the basis of the interaction of flavors. When we eat, our taste buds become accustomed to the level of sugar, salt and acidity of the food. This modification of your buds will influence the way other things taste. Of course, this also applies to wine. The interaction with the molecular components of wine (tannins, acidity, ...) will be different depending on the condition of your taste buds and the composition of your saliva. How many times have you said that the orange juice was not pleasant after a tooth brushing? This is an excellent example of bad interaction.
Salt is a very important component in food and wine pairing. A savory dish will increase the perception of the body of the wine and reduce the perception of astringency, bitterness and acidity of the wine. A beautiful piece of meat, well-seasoned goes perfectly well with a young wine with firm tannins.
Some other components can make the match more difficult. Bitterness is a good example. A bitter dish increases the perception of bitterness in wine. This is perhaps not the desired result.
Other foods do not interact as well. This is particularly the case of artichokes which give the wine an unpleasant metallic taste. There is also egg yolks and asparagus (although some Sauvignon Blanc blend well with asparagus).
Generally with desserts it is preferable to have a wine at least as sweet as the dish.
In principle, we do not know if an entree is bitter, sweet or salty. So here are some basic rules:
For grilled meats, choose a full-bodied or semi-bodied red wines aged in oak according to the aromatic intensity of the meat. Stewed or braised meats require generous wine with soft tannins.
For fish, the type of fish, the cooking technique and the spices will greatly influence the choice of wine. For grilled and flavored fish, you can also choose a dry and generous white wine or a light red wine. A wine with subtle flavors and a sharp acidity are perfect for fish baked in foil and shellfish.
The secret is in the sauce, so beware! Sauces greatly influence the selection of the wine. Everything is in the texture. We will tend to choose wines with a greasy texture to accompany a creamy sauce. For gravy, we will serve the same type of wine that has made the sauce.
For more information, I invite you to visit my website: www.presseraisin.com
Cheers!
