Your no-stress, high-enjoyment Guide to Food & Wine Pairing

You have just slaved away preparing the perfect dish for you and your loved ones, the table is all set and the hungry mouths await the meal. It is now time to select the wine to pair with the dish… Don’t panic. In this article we will go over the basics of food and wine pairing so that you can wow your guests.

Let’s dive right in…?

When your wine pairs with your dish you will find a balance between the two - the mouth watering harmony that is the combination of wine and food.

Normally you would assess the flavour components of your dish first but we are all about wine here so we will start with the wine.

#1 - Let’s have a look at the components of wine

This is a little trickier but again there is a rule of thumb one can follow to be on the right path. With wine we have only three major flavour components: bitter, sweet and acidity.

• Red wines - more bitter (Drier Tannins)
• White wines - more acidic (Fresh Fruitiness)
• Sweet wines - you guessed it, more sweetness

The first step is that easy!

#2 - Know the basic taste components of food

Salt

Sweet

1. Spicy
2. Acidity?
3. Fat
4. Bitter?

That's it - you can boil down your dish into these six components and noting which of these your dish has more of will guide you towards a better wine pairing. A red meat braai will give you foods higher in fat and salt components, a salad with a balsamic vinaigrette will be more acidic and bitter, and a Durban Curry typically spicy, fatty and salty.

#3 - Intensity - this is your final hurdle?

FOOD - When preparing your dish take a moment to consider the intensity of the food - is it a super light or a very rich dish? If your dish is light in intensity then opt for a wine with less body, that way the wine doesn’t overpower the food. If your dish is rich and intense then opening a wine with a more fuller body will better compliment the dish.

WINE - The intensity of a wine can depend on many factors, it could be the region, the style of the wine and of course the varietal the wine is made from. BUT we have many tools in our arsenal to discern a wine's intensity. We can look at the wine - if the white wine is yellow in colour it most probably will have gone through an oaking maturation and therefore will be more rich and intense, and if a red wine is more see-through and a lighter red colour it is most probably a lighter, easier drinking red wine.

#4 - So how do we pair food and wine?

This part is up to you, and you have two choices to choose from:

Congruent pairings: This is where you select a wine to pair with your dish that shares the same prominent element as the food. A creamy wine will be paired with a creamy dish, a more acidic wine will be paired with a fresher, maybe more lemon based dish. You are trying to enhance the main particular component of both the food and the wine.

Complementary pairings: This is where you select a wine to pair with your dish that has the exact opposite main component to the dish as you are attempting to neutralise the dominant characteristic to create a base for the other flavours to shine. The easiest one is Cabernet Sauvignon and red meat, the tannin in the wine is a complementary pairing with the salt and fat in the dish thus giving the fruit in the wine and the meaty flavours of the dish a space to shine.

#5 - Wines in almost everyone's homes

Sauvignon blanc - This wine is characterised by higher levels of acidity and a light body.

Chenin blanc - This is a tough one in South Africa as the wine is made in so many different styles, but the most common style has got higher levels of acidity (or zippy acidity) and a medium body.?

Chardonnay - The Queen of all grapes, Chardonnay is typically characterised by a fuller body and less acidity.

Grenache Noir - A Spanish variety, Grenache Noir is characterised by a lighter to medium body with higher levels of acidity.

Cabernet Sauvignon - This wine is characterised by a fuller body and a high level of tannins.

Food and Wine pairing will take some practicing, so my homework for you is to drink more wine, eat more food and be creative!

To further dip your toes into the pairing pool I would recommend a trip to the Cape Winelands to visit:

• Culinaria Food and Wine pairing at Leopard’s Leap
• Salt and Wine Pairing at Waterford Estate
• Pizza and Wine at Brenaissance
• Artisanal Salt and Wine at Fleur du Cap

And for those who are looking for something a bit more adventurous…

• Music and Wine, Black Elephant Vintners & Co?

Remember to take a photo and make a note on those occasions when the pairing thrills you. You may not hear sweet harmony every night, but solo voices can be pretty good together, too.

#winepairing #foodpairing #wineandfood