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Wine
with Real Food
(Picking the right wines to
accompany the foods Americans really eat)
The following is adapted from
an article by Dan Berger. Joel’s suggestions are in
[brackets]. Additional wine and food suggestions are
available.
Pairing wine with food is not rocket science,
but there really is no perfect, singular solution to the problem.
For me, the most appropriate match-ups are really fairly easy to
understand if one follows this basic rule: never allow a wine to
be stronger than the food it’s going to accompany, and never
allow strong food to overwhelm the wine.
However, do you notice how it always seems a
lot more complicated than that? People are always making suggestions
that make this sound like it’s equivalent to calculus.
Imagine the following text if it had been written by one of this
nation’s wine writers: “This wine will go perfectly
with braised loin of muskrat in a juniper and mandrake root
kumquat sauce.”
Wine writers come up with these odd suggestions
(this one was made up), but not out of thin air. Often it happens
that they are invited to attend some wine function, at which a
chef has prepared a piece de resistance, a dish of magnificent
proportions. And often these dishes do, alas, include a variety
of ingredients that are next to impossible to find. And, yes, the
wine he or she is writing about probably did taste great with
this dish. However, to recommend that everyday Americans pick up
some obscure food on the way home from a tough day at work and
then spend 3 hours preparing dinner is ludicrous.
The real point is that the food we eat every
day also calls for wine. By every day food, I am referring to
things like hamburgers, spaghetti, fried chicken, baked ham,
macaroni and cheese. Things like that. So what are the wines that
go best with real food, the food we usually eat?
Hamburgers or meat loaf - Numerous wines work
here, including Beaujolais with its light tannins and juicy
fruit. This works especially well with burgers that have catsup
added. The sweet-ness of the wine works with the sweet, tomato
taste. [Go for a Cru Beaujolais if you want to move a little
up-scale.]
I also like (red) Zinfandel with hamburgers,
but many Zins are too powerful, too high in alcohol. The perfect
alternative is Syrah or Australian Shiraz. This plummy-scented
wine often is gutsy enough to go with onions, raw or caramelized,
mustard, and all the other condiments we use to doctor our
burgers. [You might also try one of the juicier new Italian reds
wines on the market. Our
Spaltenna Chianti would be great.]
Spaghetti - For starters, forget the
“chi-chi” primavera versions with garlic-scented olive
oil, basil and pine nuts. We’re talkin’ about spaghetti
with meat sauce from a jar here. For this I simply go with the
obvious: Chianti. If there is tomato in the dish, I need the
tartness of Chianti to balance the tartness of the sauce. [Or a
Barbera or another Sangiovese-based wine]
- If the sauce is of a more
radical nature, call an audible:
- If it’s Fettucini
Alfredo, go with a rich, buttery Chardonnay.
- For pasta with wild
mushrooms, try a Syrah or a Rhone blend.
- For dishes with lots of
spice, go back to Beaujolais.
Fried Chicken or Fish
Sticks - Mildly flavored foods like this (even if the
chicken has pepper, it’s still not usually assertively
flavored with herbs) require a light, clean, refreshing white
wine such as Sauvignon Blanc or a dry Chenin Blanc. Aim for those
that are made without oak aging, since oak and the oils that are
in the dishes are not compatible.
Sausages or Hot Dogs - As the weather turns
warmer and we think of taking the tarp off the kettle barbecue,
sausages become a relatively quick dinner item. Paired with a
salad, garlic bread and a side dish of fresh corn, you have an
easy meal. The wine should be an easy choice, too, but I tend to
look at the sausages before picking.
If you have real kielbasa , bratwurst or any
other highly seasoned sausages, you may prefer a bottle of
sparkling wine. [It doesn’t have to be expensive, but it has
to be dry. Forget the mediocre Korbel. There are numerous better
choices as low as $8 per bottle!]
For milder sausages and hot dogs, try a lighter
(red) Zinfandel. If the sausages are chicken or turkey based and
lighter in seasonings, such as a classic chicken-apple sausage,
try Gewurztraminer or a dry Riesling.
Barbecue
- Whether you’re having beef, chicken or ribs, this kind of
food usually has a slightly sweet sauce on it, or was marinated
in it. Thus I prefer the counterpoint of a hearty beer such as a
micro-brewed wheat beer. However, BBQ is very personal, and so
should be the wine chosen to work with the style of the sauce. If
the sauce is not sweet, or if the meat was dry-rubbed with
spices, try Zinfandel or a medium-weight Rhone wine or California
“Rhone” blend.
Tuna casserole, macaroni and cheese, fondue, other
cheese-based dish - Chardonnay usually works here, but
again I prefer to stay away from the heavily oaked versions. Look
for something from Mendocino, Monterey or Carneros, three cooler
regions of California. Another wonderful melted-cheese
accompaniment is a dry Chenin Blanc-based white wine from the
Loire Valley such as Vouvray Sec. Or dry a California dry Chenin
Blanc.
Ham - With the flavors in the typical ham coming
from clove or pineapple, a slightly or barely sweet rosé wine is a perfect
accompaniment. A number of wineries (Simi, Phelps, Geyser Peak)
make a dry rosé. [There are some lovely French, Spanish and even
Italian versions.]
Chicken fried steak with cream sauce - This
middle America classic is almost never served with wine in the
nation’s heartland, but I had one once with a very light
Cabernet Sauvignon and it was fine. If you’re in a diner in
East Texas, however, and you ask for a Cabernet, expect to be
laughed out of the place.)
Asian foods - If you like the flavors in
stir-fried foods with soy sauce, ginger, garlic and fresh
vegetables, try Gewurztraminer. Indeed, it also works well with
the assertiveness of Thai, the delicacy of Japanese, the mildness
of Mandarin, or the intensity of Szechuan. Or try a sparkling
wine. German Rieslings also work here, but avoid those that are
totally dry (trocken) since they will be too tart to compete with
the sweetness often found in these dishes.
Fish - It’s true that most white wines work
better than reds here, but there are subtleties that make this a
potential stumbling block. For one thing, if the seafood is
grilled and served with little if any sauce, or a citrus sauce,
Sauvignon Blanc or Pinot Gris are better than Chardonnay. The
latter is best with seafood in creamed sauces. Salmon and tuna
are usually best with light California or Oregon Pinot Noir.
Soups - Few Americans know of the joys of
serving a dash of Sherry in soup and a small glass alongside.
Sipping a light, well-chilled Fino Sherry with soup is a treat
all to often ignored in the rush to get the food on the table.
Try either La Ina or Tio Pepe, two of the top Spanish Fino
Sherries. Even if the soup is from a can, sherry can elevate it
into a more sublime experience.
Omelets - Eggs normally do not work with wine,
although when the innards of the dish are hearty and you desire a
wine for it, think mainly of the flavors of the dish. If the
interior is mainly cheese, seek out one of the wines suggested
above for cheese dishes. If the omelet is seasoned with green
herbs and has a salsa on the side, try a Sauvignon Blanc.
A final thought: if a dish seems to have no perfect
accompaniment, think of serving a sparkling blanc de noirs, often
a salmon-hued bubbly with ample, but delicate flavors. It’s
an all-purpose choice when inspiration fails you.
E-Mail:
beekman@conversent.net
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