Six Modern Rules for Pairing Wine and Food

By Lori Kramer, Tasting Room Associate

Forget the old adage, “Serve red wine with meat and white with fish and poultry.” It’s a new day!

Ever heard that advice? If you have, did ignoring that edict make wine and food pairing any easier? I suspect not. Because if that’s not a rule to fall back on, then what is?

While I mourn the loss of the bedrock maxim of wine and food pairing, there’s a freedom that comes with it. While I stir an Asparagus Risotto on the stove, I consider uncorking my favorite chilled Albariño instead of a more conventional choice of Sauvignon Blanc or Pinot Grigio. Or dare I serve a low-tannin Grenache? Oh my!

All these choices can make one more uncertain, though, not less.

Understanding some principles—guardrails, if you will—might keep the stress out of pairing decisions, whether you are preparing the food yourself or being served.

Why the Old Rules Existed

The old adage was based on the logical attempt to match the intensity and body of a wine to a dish’s flavors.

Red wines can be tannic, for example, and those tannins bind with fats and proteins in meat in a desirable way. White wines, generally without tannins (which come primarily with contact with grape skins), are often lighter-bodied and more acidic. These aspects of white wine play well with chicken and fish.

So let’s imagine I finally put a small dinner party on the calendar and gently nagged my friends to RSVP. There’s only one dish I’m comfortable making (hmmm… could it be Lamb Shanks with White Beans? Yes!).

But my wine closet, which yearns to be called a wine cellar, is short on conventional choices of Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon, the latter because I drink it as soon as it arrives. And a Pinot Noir might not “stand up.”

What to do?

I could serve a Spanish Tempranillo, a nice earthy alternative, with its inherent acidity able to balance the richness of the lamb. It’s still a fairly conventional choice, though. So I’m back considering the aforementioned floral Grenache. Yes, really! It’s a versatile red wine that pairs well with my Risotto and also stands up to the braised lamb.

A Modern Wine Pairing Process

To prevent worries that your guests will question your sanity, if you’re like me, you still want some “process.” And I have one to pass along, after taking a class at the Central Coast School of Wine. Titled “The Fundamentals of Food & Wine Pairing: Revealing the Sommelier’s Secrets,” school owner and instructor Sam Schmitt gave us easy-to-understand basics. 

Now, I start by asking myself these two questions:

1. What are the standout ingredients in the dish (lamb, white beans, mirepoix, tomatoes)?

2. Do I lean toward complementing these ingredients or contrasting them?

In my yet-to-be-scheduled dinner party, I chose to pair the savory lamb with the fruity Grenache—in other words, the Contrast Approach. Regardless of your choice, the result is that the wine is considered just another ingredient in whatever you’re cooking or being served.

1. The Complement Approach

If you lean toward complements (and who doesn’t?), you might consider pairing an acidic dish, such as Lemon Chicken, with an acidic wine such as Chardonnay.

Chardonnay often has notes of citrus or lemon, particularly if it hasn’t been over-oaked. And if a food is intensely flavored, such as a marbled ribeye steak, lean toward an intensely flavored wine, such as Cabernet Sauvignon. Does the dish go well with butter?

Here’s your chance to look for a buttery wine, such as a Chardonnay that’s gone through malolactic fermentation. Bring on the lobster and scallops!

 

2. The Contrast Approach

If you prefer to contrast, or to “balance”, then you might pair a savory dish, such as roasted duck, with a fruity wine like Pinot Noir.

Remember that opposites can attract, meaning if a food is sweet, consider an acidic wine, and vice versa. 

If the dish is fatty or oily, lean toward a highly acidic wine. A classic example is pairing potato chips with a sparkling wine like Champagne, particularly if the chips are topped with crème fraîche and caviar.

Or pair the bubbly with fried chicken. Now I don’t have to worry about what to serve on New Year’s Eve!

Within those approaches, texture is as important to consider as flavor. For example, with a flaky fish (dense protein), avoid a wine high in tannins, such as Cabernet. Tannins bind to protein, and the resulting combination would risk the fish seeming rubbery.

 

3. Consider Climate

Of course, it’s ideal to understand the climate's influence on the wine. 

Cooler climates often result in white wines with aromas of green fruits (apple and pear), citrus, and asparagus flavors. These tend to pair well with lighter dishes, like salads, seafood, and light pasta dishes.

Red wines from cooler regions taste of red fruits (strawberry, cherry, raspberry) and often have herbaceous notes. If it’s a Cabernet Sauvignon, there may be pronounced aromas of green bell pepper, particularly if the grapes were grown without much sun.

For a dish like duck, consider a Cab from a cooler region, particularly if you like green bell pepper. And check the dominant herbs in a dish to see if you can match them to similar herbaceous notes in the wine.

Warmer climates can result in more intense wines—think white wines with tropical flavors (mango, pineapple, and peach) and red wines tasting of darker black fruits. These tend to pair well with heavier dishes, like beef steak.

 

4. Let Geography Guide You

Expanding on another adage, “What grows together, goes together,” several examples come to mind.

If it’s a seafood dish, consider pairing it with a wine from the same coastal area, such as Albariño from Rías Baixas, Spain.

Likewise, if it’s a rustic game dish, look for wine from grapes that grow in areas where those meats are hunted. Looking at areas close to home here in San Luis Obispo, examples are boar and elk hunted in Santa Margarita that can be paired with wines grown here, too, such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Syrah.

 

5. And When All Else Fails…

Fall back on red with red wine and white with white.

I know, I just contradicted myself.

But think pasta with red sauce and a nice medium-bodied Pinot Noir. A good-quality Chianti is still a favored pairing for red pasta sauce for good reason. It works! No one can argue with its high acidity harmonizing with high-acid foods like tomatoes.

And a light entrée of poached chicken would be elevated with an unoaked Chardonnay or Sauvignon Blanc.

 

6. A Final Note on Pairing Chocolate Desserts with Wine

After years of training myself to enjoy dark chocolate more than milk chocolate, there’s finally a reason more compelling than “it’s healthier.”

Pairing dark, or even bitter, chocolate with a full-bodied red wine like a Cabernet Sauvignon can yield delicious results.

The combination removes any bitterness from both. Dark chocolate works because its cocoa butter softens tannins, and its slight bitterness balances with a dry red.

But avoid pairing any red wine with milk chocolate, no matter how mouthwatering it might look. Milk chocolate is too sweet and creamy, so it makes dry wines taste bitter. The wine should always be as sweet or sweeter than the dessert.

So if you had to pair something with a milk chocolate or very sweet dish, consider something like a Spanish sweet vermouth.

Happy pairing!

— Lori Kramer, Croma Vera Wines Tasting Room Associate

Pizza and wine photo by Jessie Maxwell.