Pairings - The Rules

[Alix]

OK, I've just read an interesting little cheat sheet in my Fine Cooking magazine. The old "rules" of red with beef and white with fish or chicken no longer apply. I'm sure most of us knew that already, but its kind of an easy way to go if you don't know much about wine.

I like this little cheat sheet. Its got a couple of basic rules that even a wine dummy like me can follow.

Pair like with like, remember that salt causes wine to taste less acidic, a sweet food will make the wine less sweet, an acidic food with make the wine taste less acidic, a fatty or oily food will make wine lighter in body, rich sauces require full bodied wine.

Anyone have any easy basics to help the rest of us wine neophytes along?

 

[Rocklobster]

I like to keep some reds chilled in the fridge. I find that it goes well with more casual meals. It remains dry, but some of the characteristics are muted a bit. I usually do this with the cheaper table wines. Every day stuff.

 

[Alix]

I chill my reds too. I know its not de rigeur, but I prefer my reds cold and I figure room temperature in those draft stone castles was pretty chilly!

 

[GB]

I figure room temperature in those draft stone castles was pretty chilly!

That is actually right. Room temp in a wine cellar is much cooler than room temp in your house. I believe 50F is what many wine experts will say is room temp for reds.

 

[ChefJune]

That is actually right. Room temp in a wine cellar is much cooler than room temp in your house. I believe 50F is what many wine experts will say is room temp for reds.

50 degrees F is too cold for a red wine, and even for most whites. 58-60 is my preferred red range, and 55 for whites. Of course, if it's plonk you're hoping to make drinkable, then it's "the colder the better," as the cold definitely dulls the flavor.

A really good rule of thumb is to put your red wines INTO the fridge about 20 minutes before you want to serve them, and take your white wines OUT about that same 20 minutes.

 

[Alix]

Well June, I suspect I drink "plonk" when it comes to red wine. I can't tolerate any commercial red wine, so my sister makes wine for me. (I love her!)

Without meaning to, I suppose I've done just what you suggest. I generally pour a glass of wine and leave the bottle out on the counter while I cook.

When I was in Matera, they showed us a lovely little wine room where they store all their wine. (Matera is a city carved into the stone hill) It was danged chilly in there! I don't remember the exact temp, but I DO remember thinking I was drinking my red wine WAY too warm.

 

[Rocklobster]

50 degrees F is too cold for a red wine, and even for most whites. 58-60 is my preferred red range, and 55 for whites. .

I like my dry white table wine very cold. I'm not much of a sipper, and find it very thirst quenching and palate cleansing. I will drink other, more subtle, or complex, wine at the temps you mention.

 

[Steve Kroll]

I agree with ChefJune regarding temp. Generally speaking, the lighter the body of the wine, the cooler the serving temperature. For example, while the ideal temp for a meaty Cab/Petite Sirah/Malbec might be 65F, a lighter bodied Pinot Noir or Gamay could be served at 60. And you wouldn't want to serve a dry, oaked Chardonnay (a fuller bodied white) at refrigerator temperature. 50-55F would be better. Sparkling wine, on the other hand, can be served at refrigerator temp of 40-45F since the bubbles will last longer if served cold.

Regarding wine pairings, there really aren't any hard and fast rules. A few that I've found:

• When serving wine with dessert, the wine should generally be sweeter than the dessert.
• The "weight" of the wine should be paired with the "weight" of the food. Heavier wines with heavier dishes, etc.
• When serving a meat dish that has a sauce, pair the wine with the sauce rather than the meat. For example, Chicken Cacciatore smothered in tomato sauce works better with a red Chianti or Barbera than a white.
• Spicy foods tend to pair better with wines that have a little sweetness (though I would argue that the best pairing for spicy food is beer ).

Of course the best suggestion is to simply drink what you like.

 

[ChefJune]

Steve, the bubbles may last longer, but the flavor will be more pronounced if the sparkling wine is not so cold.

I'm fine with drinking inexpensive bubbly quite cold, but if I have "the good stuff" (i.e., real Champagne) I like it around 53.

In fact, when I was getting my Masters in France, one of our "Professors" was the winemaker at Charles Heidsieck and Piper Heidsieck. He prefers to drink Champagne from a white wine glass. The bubbles dissipate faster, but when you have a wine with great flavor (as I think his are) the rewards are HUGE with the white wine glass.

 

[GB]

I should have been more clear. I wad talking about storage, not drinking temp.

 

[ChefJune]

Alix, I'm a big fan of homemade red wine. In fact, one of the things I miss most about Boston is the farm couple from Billerica who used to gift me with a magnum of their homemade Red every autumn. Some years it was truly wonderful, but always, always great with a bowl of spaghetti with gravy.

 

[Steve Kroll]

He prefers to drink Champagne from a white wine glass. The bubbles dissipate faster, but when you have a wine with great flavor (as I think his are) the rewards are HUGE with the white wine glass.

That's what my wife and I use at home as well. The aromatics are so much better in a white wine glass. Besides, it's tough to swirl a Champagne flute.

 

[powerplantop]

For the past 7 months I have mostly been drinking Carmenère. It goes good with most things. As to temp I keep a few bottles on top of the fridge when I want one I open it.

This is the one I buy on a regular basis. It runs 2,000 peasos or about $4. The some place produces a more expensive one that cost 17,000 peasos but I have to get it in Santiago.

 

[powerplantop]

Sorry that sould have been 3,000 or $6.

 

[DaveSoMD]

Well June, I suspect I drink "plonk" when it comes to red wine. I can't tolerate any commercial red wine, so my sister makes wine for me. (I love her!)

Same here. Let's go have a glass of "plonk" together!

I wasn't a big fan of red until I found this red called Svenska Red from a small winery in central NY.

 

[taxlady]

Same here. Let's go have a glass of "plonk" together!

I wasn't a big fan of red until I found this red called Svenska Red from a small winery in central NY.

That's a weird name for a wine, especially made in NY. Svenska is Swedish for Swedish. The Swedes aren't really known for wine making.

 

[Selkie]

Whether red or white, I found a collection of wines under one label that have become my favorite for any occasion. It wasn't until AFTER I decided these are the ones that I will always keep on hand, that I discovered the award winning St. James Winery is only about 100 miles away, located in Southern Missouri.

I know that many people may snicker at the fact Southern and Central Missouri has wineries, but the weather and soil allows for some great harvests, and the wineries are making themselves better known each year. I feel privileged in getting to know the people personally who are producing the wines I enjoy the most.

 

[Steve Kroll]

I know that many people may snicker at the fact Southern and Central Missouri has wineries, but the weather and soil allows for some great harvests, and the wineries are making themselves better known each year.

That's nothing to snicker at. They've been making wine in Missouri for something like 150 years, which I believe is even longer than wine has been made in California.

Even more snicker-worthy is the fact that they make wine in Minnesota where I live. We have something like 30 commercial wineries here. Some are good. Some are not so good. But we're still learning.

 

[DaveSoMD]

That's a weird name for a wine, especially made in NY. Svenska is Swedish for Swedish. The Swedes aren't really known for wine making.

The winery's name is Swedish Hill Winery.

 

[Alix]

June, my sister makes a cabernet, a merlot and recently a valpolicella. I just about cried when I got home from visiting her place this last time, the val had been banged and had got a hole in the bottom. The rubbermaid tub was full of a lovely fragrant wine and I was without a bottle of deliciousness. I particularly enjoy the valpolicella. With a caesar salad and a steak...mmmmmm!

Dave, come on over and we'll drink plonk together.