Serving Wine with Food

Food and Wine Pairings

Trying to find a wine to go with the food you serving can sometimes be a challenge. If you have a good wine shop available to you, the proprietor should be able to suggest wines that will complement your meal. Take along a list of what you are serving, from appetizers to dessert, and ask a lot of questions. Wine store owners love to talk about wine and relish the opportunity to show off their expertise and regale you with stories about wine. Countless books and websites can steer you in the right direction.

When serving wine with food, check to see if your recipe uses wine; a similar wine would be a natural match.

Go to Tastings

There really is only one way to know wine and that is to taste wine. Wine tastings have become very popular, and more often than not, they serve food samples to go with the wines. Take a lot of notes. If you like a particular wine, notice what they serve with it. If you live near a wine-growing region, the local vineyards may offer tours that end with a tasting.

Tastings are not just held at wine stores and vineyards but at restaurants as well. You will hear a little bit about each wine that you are offered, and the presenter will tell you what food to serve. It’s a good idea to familiarize yourself with the vocabulary of the wine industry.

Consider What You Serve

Is this a dinner party or an intimate dinner for two? When serving wine with food, the event often dictates what you should pour. For a family meal or a romantic dinner, you may want to just match the wine with the entrée. When planning a dinner party, you might want to consider several wines; one for each course. Pour only an ounce or two of wine with the smaller courses and a full glass for the main course. This will give you an opportunity to better pair the wine with the food.

Time and Temperature

Some wines need to breathe before they are served. Decanting the wine into a carafe and letting it rest takes time. If this is the case, you will want to do this early enough, so it has time to breathe, but not so early that the wine gets too warm. Timing is crucial if you plan on serving the wine with the food rather than ten minuets later. Other wines can be served right from the bottle, but they still need to be opened before hand and kept at the correct temperature for serving.

Don’t Forget Dessert

A good dessert wine can be the perfect ending to a good meal. They can be served alone or with a bit of fruit and cheese. A good quick option for a dessert to pair with any dessert wine is to take Mascarpone cheese topped with some fruit and drizzled with honey. Other desserts that match well are cheesecake or bread pudding. A little port caramel sauce over the bread pudding is nice in combination with a glass of port.

Whatever you choose just bear in mind that when it comes to dessert, the food should never be sweeter than the wine.

Serving Wine with Food

When serving wine with food, the main thing to keep in mind is the balance of flavors. Avoid serving foods with flavors that overpower the wine just as much as you avoid serving wine to overpower the flavor of the food. When wine and food are paired correctly, the results can be heavenly.