15 Rules for Great Wine and Food Pairings

BY RAY ISLE

F&Ws Ray Isle created pairing principles for the worlds most important wines, then the F&W Test Kitchen came up with stellar recipes to match. The result: the most comprehensi e pairing guide we e e er created.
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Crispy Udon Noodles with Nori Salt

Scallops with

rape!r"it#Onion Salad

$"cchini Lin%"ine with &er's

Sea!ood (ostada Bites

Si))lin% Shri*p Sca*pi

(hai

reen Salad with +"c, Crac,lin%s

&oneyed Fi% Crostatas

Beet Risotto

(riple#+ec,er Ba,ed Italian Cheese Sandwiches

Lee,#and#-ecorino -i))as

-appardelle with .eal Ra%/

Chic,en +r"*stic,s with Asian Bar'ec"e Sa"ce

Crea*y Chic,en#Li0er 1o"sse

La*' Chops with Fri))led &er's

C"*in#Spiced B"r%ers with &arissa 1ayo

Asian#Spiced -or,

So"r#Oran%e Y"cat2n Chic,ens

Crisp Sal*on with A0ocado Salad

Shiita,e#and#Scallion Lo 1ein

S*o,y Shri*p#and#Chori)o So"p

3orean Si))lin% Bee!

Slideshow: 15 Pairing Rules & Recipes

15 Perfect Pairings, from White Wines, to Ross, to Reds: White Wines

Champagne is perfect with anything salty Most dry spar ling wines, such as !rut "hampagne and Spanish ca#a, actually ha#e a faint touch of sweetness$ %hat ma es them e&tra'refreshing when ser#ed with salty foods$ Crispy Udon Noodles with Nori Salt Champagne Pairings

Sauvignon Blanc goes with tart dressings and sauces %angy foods won(t o#erwhelm )ippy wines li e Sau#ignon *lanc, +inho +erde from Portugal and +erde,o from Spain$ Scallops with Grapefruit-Onion Salad -photo. Sour Orange Yucat n Chic!ens Sauvignon Blanc Pairings

Gr"ner #eltliner when a dish has lots of fresh her$s /ustrian 0r1ner +eltliner(s citrus'and'clo#er scent is lo#ely when there are lots of fresh her!s in a dish$ 2ther go'to grapes in a similar style include /l!ari3o from Spain and +ermentino from 4taly$ %ucchini &inguine with 'er$s Gr"ner #eltliner Pairings

Pinot Grigio Pairs with light fish dishes 5ight seafood dishes seem to ta e on more fla#or when matched with e6ually delicate white wines, such as Pinot 0rigio or /rneis from 4taly or "ha!lis from 7rance$ Seafood (ostada Bites Pinot Grigio Pairings

Chardonnay )or fatty fish or fish in a rich sauce Sil y whites8for instance, "hardonnays from "alifornia, "hile or /ustralia8are delicious with fish li e salmon or any ind of seafood in a lush sauce$ Si**ling Shrimp Scampi -photo. Crisp Salmon with +vocado Salad Chardonnay Pairings

Off-,ry -iesling Pairs with sweet . spicy dishes %he slight sweetness of many Rieslings, 0ew1r)traminers and +ou#rays helps tame the heat of spicy /sian and 4ndian dishes$ (hai Green Salad with ,uc! Crac!lings Off-,ry -iesling Pairings

/oscato d0+sti loves fruit desserts Moderately sweet spar ling wines such as Moscato d(/sti, demi!sec"hampagne and /sti Spumante help emphasi)e the fruit in the dessert, rather than the sugar$ 'oneyed )ig Crostatas /oscato d0+sti Pairings

Ros Wines

-os1 Champagne is great with dinner2 not 3ust hors d0oeuvres Ros spar ling wines, such as ros "hampagne, ca#a and spar ling wine from "alifornia, ha#e the depth of fla#or and richness to go with a wide range of main courses$

Beet -isotto -os1 Champagne Pairings

,ry -os1 )or rich2 cheesy dishes Some cheeses go !etter with white wine, some with red9 yet almost all pair well with dry ros, which has the acidity of white wine and the fruit character of red$ (riple-,ec!er Ba!ed 4talian Cheese Sandwiches ,ry -os1 Pairings

Red Wines

Pinot Noir is great for dishes with earthy flavors

Recipes made with ingredients li e mushrooms and truffles taste great with reds li e Pinot :oir and ;olcetto, which are light'!odied !ut full of sa#ory depth$ &ee!-and-Pecorino Pi**as -photo. Shiita!e-and-Scallion &o /ein Pinot Noir Pairings

Old 5orld 5ines and Old 5orld dishes are intrinsically good together %he fla#ors of foods and wines that ha#e grown up together o#er the centuries8%uscan recipes and %uscan wines, for instance8are almost always a natural fit$ Pappardelle with #eal -ag6 -photo. Smo!y Shrimp-and-Chori*o Soup Old 5orld 5ine Pairings

/al$ec won0t $e overshadowed $y sweet-spicy $ar$ecue sauces Mal!ec, Shira) and "<tes'du'Rh<ne are !ig and !old enough to drin with foods !rushed with hea#ily spiced !ar!ecue sauces$ Chic!en ,rumstic!s with +sian Bar$ecue Sauce /al$ec Pairings

%infandel )or p7t1s2 mousses and terrines 4f you can use the same ad,ecti#es to descri!e a wine and a dish, the pairing will often wor $ 7or instance, the words rustic and richdescri!e =infandel, 4taly(s :ero d(/#ola and Spain(s Monastrell as well as chic en'li#er mousse$ Creamy Chic!en-&iver /ousse

Ca$ernet Sauvignon is fa$ulous with 3uicy red meat "alifornia "a!ernet, *ordeau& and *ordeau&'style !lends are terrific with stea s or chops: %heir firm tannins refresh the palate after each !ite of meat$ &am$ Chops with )ri**led 'er$s -photo. 8orean Si**ling Beef Ca$ernet Sauvignon Pairings

Syrah /atches with highly spiced dishes When a meat is hea#ily seasoned, loo for a red wine with lots of spicy notes$ Syrah from Washington, "a!ernet 7ranc from 7rance and >inoma#ro from 0reece are all good choices$ Cumin-Spiced Burgers with 'arissa /ayo -photo. +sian-Spiced Por! Syrah Pairings

References: 15 Rules for Great Wine and Food Pairings BY RAY ISLE htt :!!"""#foodand"ine#co$!articles!15%rules%for%great%"ine%and%food% airings Retrie&ed on 1'!1(!1(