We know now that our perception of a wine's alcohol is amplified by food, specifically by salt and by spicy heat. If a very powerful wine is paired with spicy dishes, you may feel as though someone poured gasoline on the fire! Lots of salt creates a similar effect. In general terms, medium-bodied wines (those of medium alcohol content, 11 to 13 percent), and even lighter wines are easier to work with at the table.
THE KEYS TO UNDERSTANDING FOOD
Which comes first, the food or the wine? This question, like the chicken-and-egg dilemma, can lead people in circles, because the synergy between food and wine makes it impossible to make decisions about either one in isolation. But to know how a food might affect the way we perceive a good wine, we need to understand how various flavors and preparation techniques contribute to the taste of a finished dish. Now that we know how to define a wine's ability to go with food, we need to get a handle on how to understand a dish.
Recipes are as different as snowflakes; it's impossible to pair up every recipe with a single perfect wine. As with wines, in thinking about any recipe the rationale remains the same: identify certain basic characteristics. Rather than get caught up in thinking about a dish in all its complexity, it's far easier to look at the three food keys and then determine how to proceed.
KEY 1. INGREDIENTS
We have been “trained” to think about a dish primarily in terms of its ingredients. From a wine and food perspective, this approach allows you to think about pairings in a formulaic way: if you know the ingredients, you know the correct wine selection, right? Red meat with red wine, and white meat and fish with white wine. Well, sort of.
Certainly, when you're pairing wine and food, what's cooking is important, and it's often the main consideration. Of course, the wine you choose to accompany rock cod will be the polar opposite of what you'd choose to go with leg of lamb. However, within the broad “red” and “white” categories of meat, fish, and poultry, there are many shades of pink. For example, some fish are strongly fishy (sturgeon, mackerel, anchovies, and bluefish), while others are mild (rock cod, halibut, sole, and trout).
Red meat can be strong, like lamb, or mild, like a filet of beef. White meat (pork and veal) is very different from red meat in personality, often acting more like chicken, semineutral in character and much influenced by the supporting cast of ingredients. Poultry also may vary from mild (chicken) to pungent (squab). Then there are other categories, such as offal (sweetbreads, liver, and so on), vegetables, grains, and legumes. So it really is more complicated than choosing a red wine for dinner because you're having meat.
A handful of very useful ingredients can inform—and hedge—your wine and food pairings. Often referred to as “bridge ingredients” or “wine links,” these allow you to play Merlin in the kitchen. See the table on page 22 for a list of “magic” ingredients and their effects.
KEY 2. COOKING METHODS
Although the selection of ingredients is important, it's only one element of the overall plan. And while it's true that the primary ingredient in the food may determine the wine selection, just as often it's not the only or the main basis for the choice. Preparation of the ingredients can just as frequently play a part. Savory marinades can transform the taste of the primary ingredient(s), drawing out new or different flavors. But the cooking method may overshadow everything.
MAGIC INGREDIENTS AND THEIR EFFECTS
GARLIC AND ONIONS (SLOW-COOKED)…
• Add creaminess and roundness to a dish. When braised, roasted, or sweated, they add sweetness. When caramelized, they add sweetness and smoky flavors.
• ”Pop” red or white wines with riper fruit and/or slight sweetness.
• Meld nicely with oak-aged and oak-influenced wines.
• Help form a bridge between foods and wines with more weight and texture.
• Provide a link to earthier wines, such as classically styled European wines (true of raw and quickly sautéed garlic and onions as well).
OLIVES…
• Can swing dishes toward pairing with either red or white wines. Green olives create a white wine affinity (especially with Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Gris, and unoaked Chardonnay), and black olives create a red wine affinity (especially with Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Syrah).
• With flavored cures (such as those incorporating peppers and herbs) can lend another dimension of compatibility to a dish. Strong cures (especially those very high in acid or vinegar) are best rinsed off.
CURED MEATS (PROSCIUTTO, BACON, PANCETTA, AND OTHER CHARCUTERIE)…
• Can tilt “white wine” dishes (fish, poultry, veal, pork) toward pairing with red wines. Prosciutto-wrapped fish or shellfish with bacon, for example, can pair beautifully with soft, bright reds and rosés.
CHEESE AND OTHER DAIRY INGREDIENTS…
• Add texture and richness to a dish when used in cooking.
• Can be a bridge between salads or vegetables and higher-acid white wines. Try using a small amount of goat cheese, feta, or gorgonzola.
HERBS (FRESH OR DRIED)…
• That are fragrant (chervil, dill, tarragon) pair best with whites like Riesling and Chardonnay.
• That are more pungent (basil, thyme, rosemary) go best with Sauvignon Blanc and many reds (especially Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon).
LENTILS, BEANS, AND OTHER LEGUMES…
• Can pair beautifully with white wines.
• If prepared with herbs, can swing a dish toward white wine; if prepared with meat (bacon, ham, pancetta, sausage), can swing a dish toward red wine.
• Can provide a clean backdrop for fuller-bodied white wines. Waxy white beans are a good example.
• Can enable fish to pair with red as well as white wines. Try serving fish over a bed of green lentils.
MUSHROOMS…
• Add earthiness and a natural affinity for earthy wines.
• That are darker (especially reconstituted dried mushrooms) make almost all foods red wine friendly.
• That are light-colored, creamy, and textured (shiitake, chanterelles, oyster, button) help dishes go well with white wines, especially those with texture (Chardonnay, oak-aged Sauvignon Blanc, and Pinot Gris).
NUTS…
• When toasted and added to a dish (as a crust on a piece of fish, for example) pick up on the nutty nuances imparted by oak-barrel-aged wines and show off oak-aged wines.
• With the skin on (especially walnuts and almonds) have an inherent bitterness that softens the perception of bitter tannins in red wines and some strongly oak-aged whites.
• That are powdered and used in cooking (as in moles and other Latino and world foods) make dishes wine-friendly and can favor lightly oak-aged wines.
Some cooking techniques, such as steaming, poaching, and boiling, impart minimal flavor and are what I refer to as “low-impact.” Others, like smoking, grilling, and blackening, are dominant, “high-impact” techniques that can transform the flavors in foods. Smoking can add sweet as