The perils of pairing

One of the greatest Epicurean joys is matching the right wine with a meal. Wine can enhance flavours and increase pleasure in eating, but it can be stressful when ordering it in a restaurant – does it have to be white with fish even though you prefer red? And how do you choose wine in a Thai or Indian restaurant?

In this article, we will offer some basic guidance but please do remember: it is all down to personal preference. Some people are more sensitive to certain flavours so don’t be afraid if your perfect pairing is not the same as that recommended by the wine waiter. 

WORKING IN TANDEM

In a good restaurant the wine list should complement the menu. The chef and the sommelier should work together to provide the best experience. A rule of thumb is ‘what grows together, goes together’, which is one reason regional restaurant wine lists tend to include mainly wines from that country. It does make sense in Europe, where wines have developed over centuries with local cuisine, but less so in the newer wine growing regions that produce international varieties such as chardonnay and cabernet sauvignon. 

ENHANCING THE TASTE

When thinking about pairing wine and food, consider how taste buds adapt when you taste one thing, which then alters the perception of the next item. For example, orange juice tastes horribly acidic if drunk immediately after brushing your teeth. But get the pairing right and food can taste even better after a sip of wine: Champagne, with its high acidity, is a perfect match for fish and chips, for example. 

Also consider matching or contrasting flavours of wine and food. Both can produce interesting tastes. A matching pairing increases shared flavours – for example, syrah and steak share many compounds, including rotundone, which is found in both and contributes black pepper spice characteristics. 

Contrasting flavours is less traditional but is becoming more common – think about the ubiquity of salted caramel. A wine example is pairing blue cheese with a sweet wine – if you haven’t tried it, do. The combination is one of Carole’s favourites. 

DELVING DEEPER

It is also worth thinking about different structural elements in food and wine: acidity in food such as tomato-based sauces will increase the perception of body, sweetness and fruitiness in wine, which can be very pleasant in a high-acid wine such as sauvignon blanc, but a wine lower in acidity – viognier, for example – can appear flabby. 

Sweetness in food needs to be matched with an even sweeter wine, which is not always easy. If the food is too sweet the wine will seem bitter. Chocolate is classically difficult to pair, though this does not just relate to sugar levels, but also the ability of chocolate to coat the mouth. The Wine Society pairing tool suggests a range of wine to pair, including Australian sparkling shiraz and Madeira. Perhaps this is an excuse for some home experimentation! 

"For dishes with a sauce it is more helpful to match the wine to the sauce, not the meat"

Salty food can improve the perception of wine by increasing the body and decreasing astringency and acidity – this helps explain why nuts and salty crackers are served with wine. 

Pairing wine with food containing chilli can be challenging because it will make the wine seem more bitter and astringent. Alcohol also increases the burning sensation of chilli, which can be unpleasant. So it is best to seek a lower-alcohol, off-dry wine such as Gewurztraminer from Alsace or a rosé with your Thai curry. With hot, spicy Indian food, wine pairing becomes even more precarious. We would suggest a beer.

THE WEIGHT OF WINE

The sensation of how weighty wine feels in the mouth is a factor of both alcohol and concentration of flavour. In general, it is better to pair a light, lower-alcohol wine with lighter food such as salad, and a heavier meal with a robust red wine: for example, the classic pairing of Argentine malbec with steak. 

Fatty foods are often paired with a wine high in acidity, which gives the sensation of the wine cutting through the richness and cleansing the palate. Try a New Zealand sauvignon blanc with oily fish. Alternatively, a fish in a rich buttery sauce will be enhanced with an oaky Australian chardonnay. 

Some other general principles include considering wine with the same flavour intensity as the food. For dishes with a sauce it is more helpful to match the wine to the sauce, not the meat.

The Wine Society website has a useful tool with interesting suggestions – just put in your menu suggestion and look at the results. 

We hope this article has given you some ideas and the confidence to reject the sommelier’s recommendations if you fancy something different with your meal. And do try experimenting at home – open a couple of bottles and see which wines best enhance your evening meal.