The complete guide to pairing food and wine (part 1)

Let’s start with a basic premise: the science of pairing food and wine is anything but simple. Otherwise it wouldn’t be called a science, right?

It requires knowledge of the characteristics of the dish – something which, all things considered, is familiar to us – and of the characteristics of the wine – something which is extremely difficult, even for experts.

Therefore, what we propose isn’t to get into the details of each wine, but rather to understand the general dynamics of pairing so that you don’t make any “unforgiveable mistakes” and, above all, so that you have fun experimenting.

If you’re a free spirit, that feels an overwhelming repulsion at the mere mention of “rules”, then we recommend focusing on our first three suggestions, which we consider to be the cornerstones of food pairing.

Otherwise read the whole article, because it really is one of the most complete free guides you’ll find on the internet. 

THE THREE CORNERSTONES OF PAIRING

1. BALANCE IS KEY 

Food and wine must have the same flavor intensity so that they don’t overpower each other. 

2. BIRDS OF A FEATHER FLOCK TOGETHER  

Explore regional pairings. Especially if you try a traditional recipe, pair it with a local wine. Very often the wines produced in a certain place are, in fact, produced to accompany the food in that area.

3. ARMOCROMIA: IN FASHION AS WELL AS IN WINE PAIRING

This advice is a bit simplistic, but it’s a lifesaver if you find yourself paralyzed by doubt. White wines pair with “white” plates (white meat, eggs, fish, white sauces) and red wines pair with “red” plates (red meat, any dish made with tomato sauce).

HOW TO BUILD A PAIRING

The pairing between food and wine (or any other beverage) is like a marriage: couples have some things in common and others that put them at opposite ends of the human spectrum, but which help to compensate their excesses and shortcomings. 

Food and wine pairing is also based on the concepts of harmony and contrast, which seek to find a balance between the sensations of the food and those of the wine.

Every dish has predominant characteristics which, once identified, make it possible to choose and pair it with the right wine, whether because of its contrasts or similarities.

For example, spicy dishes should be paired with a soft wine while fried fish needs an acidic or sparkling wine that cleanses the palate.

But let’s not get ahead of ourselves.

Let’s first start by analyzing the predominant characteristics of food, which we are certainly more familiar with.

WHAT DO I NEED TO ANALYZE IN A DISH?

I know that while you’re thinking about what wine to pair, the least natural thing in the world is to start scientifically breaking down the plate of pasta carbonara that you’re preparing.

But it’s not as bad as it sounds.

The art of pairing food and wine is a cross between deliberate choice and “gut instinct”. But before you trust your intuition, let’s try to understand the theory.

Food sensations can be divided into two macro categories:

SOFT SENSATIONS

• Fattiness: is the sensation that solid fat, like butter, gives. It’s also present in lard and chocolate, for example.
• Slight Sweetness: this is not to be confused with sweetness due to the presence of sugars, but rather is the kind found in foods like pasta, bread, potatoes, fruit, and cheeses and is associated with a more bland flavor.
• Succulence: is caused by the presence of liquids both in the preparation, such as braised meats, and from saliva that is produced during the chewing of certain foods like cheeses.
• Greasiness: is caused by the presence of liquid fats in the preparation of the food, like for example olive oil. A fried dish is a greasy dish.

HARD SENSATIONS

• Savoriness: is caused by the presence of added salt, for example during the aging of cured meats and cheeses.
• Slight Bitterness: is typical of vegetables like radicchio and artichokes. It’s also present in dishes with a lot of aromatic herbs or in scorched grilled meat.
• Slight Acidity: this can be perceived to a greater or lesser degree in all milk-based products (perhaps dishes made with a yogurt sauce) and in dishes that use vinegar or lemon.
• Spice or Aroma: are perceived primarily by the sense of smell and are derived from the presence of spices or aromas in the preparation. The most obvious example is that of ethnic cuisine.

Other things to be evaluated in a dish are:

• Structure: which refers to the “CHEWABILITY” of the dish (for example, a wild boar stew is more structured than a steamed bass) as well as its flavor intensity.
• Presence of carbohydrates: which tend to soften the consistency of a dish. Returning to the example of wild boar stew, if this is used as a pasta sauce, the dish will become less “structured” overall and the flavor will be milder.
• Cooking time: normally during long and complex cooking processes, flavors become more complex and dishes more succulent.
• Aging time: obviously needs to be considered if one is pairing wine with cheeses or cured meats.

ELEMENTS TO BE EVALUATED IN A WINE

Structure – refers to the mellowness and body of a wine. In the mouth it feels like density and produces a sort of “grip” on the tongue. Structured wines are generally alcoholic. But be careful, not all alcoholic wines are necessarily structured.

Acidity – is the sensation of freshness that a wine leaves and is greater in white and sparkling wines. 

Fragrance / olfactory intensity – every wine can be fragrant to a varying degree. Aromatic wines like Gewurztraminer or Moscato provide an explosion of scents. But aged wines, with their tertiary fragrances, also have a lot to offer.

Softness – is both a tactile and a gustatory sensation and is caused by the “soft” components of the wine, like alcohol, residual sugar, and very mature tannins.

Savoriness – comes from the terrain and the briny sea air. It’s typical of wines from coastal areas and those produced in volcanic soil, like the Etna Docs.

Effervescence – the little bubbles, together with the acidity, increase the wines ability to cut through grease.

Sweetness – characterizes all dessert wines, both raisin wines and sparkling wines, but is actually also subtly present in wines that we normally define as fruity. 

Flavor intensity, or persistence – is caused by a set of factors and measured in seconds. From the moment we swallow, we begin counting to see how long we are able to clearly taste the flavor of the wine. The more seconds the flavor lasts, the more the wine is considered persistent.

You can find the rest of the guide in the next article.