You might have a lot of guests coming over for dinner at your home in Saint Clair. The ultimate winning combination to serve is food and wine. To ensure a pleasant experience, you should choose to serve a wine that either perfectly complements the food or enhances it. However, it can be challenging to determine what food to serve with wine or vice versa. Worry not! Pairing food and wine is no rocket science!
Below, we have listed the top four simple rules for matching food and wine!
- Serve food and wine of similar weight: Firstly, by weight, we do not refer to pounds or kilos. We mean pairing lighter-weight food (lower in fat) with lighter style wine and heavier food with heavier-weight wine from Bolney wine estate. For instance, delicate wine will go well with light food like poultry and fish. On the other hand, Chardonnay will complement prawns as both are medium-weight and rich. Shiraz and red meat casserole is a perfect pairing option as both are heavy.
- Match flavour intensity and character: Look for flavours that complement each other. For instance, Pinot Gris and fish with lemon sauce have citrus flavours. You should also aim to match mild wines with mild foods and complex, flavourful foods with big flavourful wines. For instance, buy bold Shiraz from a wine merchant near me and pair it with a peppery steak. You should also ensure that the richness of the food also matches the richness of the wine. Ideally, you should serve a glass of rich Chardonnay with a rich chicken in cream sauce.
- Consider the acidity: You should serve high-acid wines, like Young Riesling, after eating greasy food such as Indian curry to cleanse the palate. If you are serving a highly acidic dish, pour crispy dry Pinot Grigio from independent wine merchants in the UK. However, remember, rich, creamy sauces will contradict wines like Sparkling. Note: Wines from cool climates are more acidic than those from hot climates.
- Do not mix salt and tannin: Crispy, acidic wines from Simpsons Wine Estate, like Sauvignon Blanc, can help balance the salty flavours like that of feta cheese and salty olives. But, you should know that you need a hint of sweetness to enhance the salty foods. Therefore, serving a sweet wine, like Sauternes, with salty Roquefort cheese is ideal. You can also serve Pinot Gris sourced from cold-climate regions. However, remember, salt and tannin will just clash with each other. That is why avoid Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz.
If you want to carry dry wine to work with your salty lunch, choose the one with low tannins and sufficient acidity. You can go for a good Chardonnay to complement semi-hard and hard cheese.