55 Pairing Tips

Cava is a great choice for salty or spicy snacks because the bubbles refresh your taste buds and make you ready for more.
Gewürztraminer tends to be a great match for spicy foods because of the exotic flavours and the touch of sweetness in the wine.
If you're serving a dish you would squeeze lemon on (like oysters) choose a tart, citrusy wine - it will have the same refreshing effect on the dish as a squeeze of lemon would.
If your dish has some sweetness in it, you need to balance that sweetness in your wine selection, so pick an off- dry wine, or a wine that is fruity enough to make it seem a bit sweet.
Look for "Montilla" wines in the Sherry section of your liquor store - they are less expensive but made in the same style as Sherry.
Pairing wine with ice cream is tricky - it needs to be at least as sweet as the ice cream, but it also should be crisp enough to match the coolness of the dessert.
Port and cheese are a classic pairing. Many cheeses have very distinct, pungent flavours with rich, creamy textures, so a wine that is both sweet and rich matches well.
Prosecco is a great match for anything salty and sweet.
Riesling is a perfect match for a spicy sauce, because the sweetness in the wine takes the edge off the heat without squashing the taste.
Strong cheeses need a big, full-flavoured wine. Because the wine is so flavourful, it doesn't get overpowered by the pungent cheeses, and vice versa - they balance each other.
The tart, pungent flavour of the mustard is a tricky flavour to pair with wine. It's important to find a wine that has enough flavour to not be overpowered, but it also needs lots of acidity to balance the tartness of the mustard.
When serving a dish that has both mild and rich flavours you need a medium bodied wine that can stand up to the stronger flavours while not overpowering the milder ones.
When serving a wine with dessert, make sure that the wine is at least as sweet as the dessert itself or the wine will taste a little bitter.
When you're making a dish that has fruit in it, it's fun to pair a wine that has similar fruit flavours.
When you're pairing a wine with food, you always try to either complement or contrast the main flavours of the dish you're serving.
Wine grapes have many inherent fruit characteristics - these flavours are naturally occurring in the grape, not added in as flavourings. Common ones include: berry, citrus, apple, pear, peach and jammy.
Body is used to describe the "feel" of a wine in your mouth. The varying levels of body are divided into light, medium and full.
Light Body wines have a consistency on the tongue similar to skim milk or water.
Medium Body wines are fuller on the tongue, comparable in consistency to 1% milk.
Full Body wines have a richer texture similar to that of 2% milk or thicker, like cream.
Crisp refers to a wine that has a fresh, acidic, and mildly tart taste to it. It is mainly used to describe white wines, but sparkling wines, rosés and lighter styles of red can also be described as crisp.
A wine is described as "smooth" when it has a velvety texture on the tongue - leaving a soft feeling on the palate after swallowing. These wines are easy drinking with or without food as they do not have a harsh or rough aftertaste.
Tannins are natural organic compounds that are found in grape skins, seeds, and stems. Tannins also develop when wine is aged in oak barrels. Tannins provide an important flavour dimension in wine.
When you taste a wine high in tannin (a "tannic" wine), you will feel a mouth-drying, puckering sensation, similar to strongly brewed tea or biting into a grape seed.
The "finish" of the wine refers to the flavours that linger on your taste buds after swallowing. Wines that are described as having a "long finish" contain flavours that hang around for a long time after drinking.
The nose is a term sommeliers use to describe the aromas of a wine. Most sommeliers will swirl the wine in their glass and give it a big deep smell before sipping. The aromas that result from this act are referred to as the nose.
The legs of a wine refer to the way the wine clings to the inside of the glass. Give the wine a swirl, and watch how the "legs" move down the glass.
Wines that are "oaked" have been fermented and/or aged in oak barrels. The wine's contact with wood during this time adds complexities to the aromas and flavours, including characteristics such as vanilla, char, toast, and smoke.
Wine that is "unoaked" is fermented and/or aged in steel tanks. This style of wine allows the pure fruit flavours of the grape to express themselves without the added complexities of oak.
Generally speaking, white wine is made from "white" grapes (which are actually usually greenish in skin colour). Common white wine grapes include Chardonnay, Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Grigio, Gewurztraminer, and Viognier.
Red wine is made from red grapes, whose flesh inside the skin is usually pale in colour. The grapes are crushed, but instead of pressing the juice away for fermentation, a period of "maceration" is allowed, during which the juice, skins, seeds, and bits of stem sit together.
Rosé comes in all sorts of styles, from sweet to dry, light to full bodied, but it's almost always fruity and refreshing and meant to be served chilled.
Sparkling wine is often referred to as Champagne as a generic term, but the name Champagne is reserved only for sparkling wines that are made in the region of Champagne in France. The traditional grape varieties in Champagne are Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Pinot Meunier, but other grapes are used in sparkling wine-making around the world.
A wine is described as "smooth" when it has a velvety texture on the tongue - leaving a soft feeling on the palate after swallowing. These wines are easy drinking with or without food as they do not have a harsh or rough aftertaste.
Very dry wines contain a very low amount of natural sugar. Crisp is often used as an adjective to describe very dry wine. Very dry wines contain a very low amount of natural sugar. Crisp is often used as an adjective to describe very dry wine.
Off-dry wine has just a hint of sweetness because a small amount of residual sugar enhances the fruitiness and palatability of the wine, also making it more food-friendly.
Sweet wines have a higher percentage of naturally retained sugar. They are considered the opposite of dry wines (which contain very low amounts of sugar).
Medium Sweet wines have a higher percentage of natural sugar than off-dry wines. Many varieties of Riesling fall into the medium sweet category.
Dessert wines are usually served with dessert (hence the term) or with rich foods in small amounts.
Ice Wine is an intensely sweet, rich wine that is often paired with dessert. It is made in cool-climate wine regions where the grapes are left on the vines until temperatures drop below freezing.
Fortified wine is made by spiking a regular wine part way through its fermentation by adding a high-alcohol spirit (usually brandy). This does two things: it stops the fermentation by killing the yeast, which leaves natural sugars in the wine that had not yet been converted to alcohol and it also increases the alcohol level of the wine.
New World wines constitute wines that come from every region outside of Europe, such as Australia, Canada, the United States, New Zealand, Chile, and others. The typical "new world" style of wine is fruity, easy-drinking, and ready to drink right away (no aging necessary).
Wine that is from Europe and the "older" wine regions can be labeled as Old World wine. These regions include France, Italy, Spain, Greece, and many others.
The most important aspect of wine and food matching is finding a balance between the two. You don't want your wine to overpower your food, but you also don't want the flavours of your food to overpower the wine. Consider both flavours and textures when looking for a wine to balance your dish.
Determine what the most dominant flavour in your dish is, then match your wine to that flavour. Often, this is the sauce or seasonings used in the dish rather than the meat.
One way of creating delicious wine and food matches is by mirroring the characteristics of the food in the wine. For example, pairing a rich, full bodied, creamy-tasting Chardonnay with a rich, creamy pasta dish can enhance both the wine and the food.
You can contrast the characteristics of the food with those of the wine. Stilton and Port is a classic example; Port is a sweet, rich wine that perfectly contrasts the strong, pungent, salty cheese to create a delicious result.
Ever wonder why a bottle of Chianti tastes so good with a bowl of spaghetti with rich, tomato meat sauce? They were made for each other! Regional wine styles developed over the years to complement the regional cuisine, so when in doubt, try a regional wine pairing for your dish.
Want a foolproof way to pair the right wine with your meal? Use the wine you plan on drinking as an ingredient! Wine can add great flavour to your dish - so don't be afraid to experiment.
Oxidization can happen before a wine is opened. This is common in wines that have a cork closure and have been stored upright for an extended period of time. Without the moisture from the wine (as it would have if stored on its side) the cork can dry up and lose its seal, resulting in unintended air contact.
White wine is usually served in smaller glasses to concentrate and have more focus on the aromas and the flavours.
Red wines tend to have bigger smells, so serving them in bigger glasses allows the aromas more room to release.
Champagne flutes are used to serve sparkling wine to keep the bubbles bubbly and to direct that crisp, refreshing wine right in the middle of your palate.
Full-bodied, fruity, spicy red wines shine when paired with classic BBQ fare like burgers, sausages and ribs.
Rosé is the perfect summer BBQ wine. It has enough body for strong grilled flavours, but it is served chilled so it's refreshing and cooling in the warm weather. Plus it's so food friendly that you can serve it with just about anything!