Food & Wine Pairing

It happened again a few weeks ago: I was exploring the wine section at a new local supermarket where I was taking notes on unfamiliar wines and comparing prices. You know, just minding my own business when another shopper came up to me looking quite desperate, and started asking me questions about wine. Now, I was dressed in my summer khakis, white linen shirt and sandals, definitely not the store uniform, but that made no difference to him. “What’s a white wine?” he asked me. Several replies came to mind, so I took a moment to study him.

Last month, we touched on some basics around dessert wines and their terminology. This month – as dinner party season fast approaches with the holidays – let’s wow your guests with some basics around dessert wine and cheese pairings. I recently spoke to a well-traveled epicurean friend of mine, Carrie Voorhis , who used to manage a cheese and wine shop in Indianapolis, Indiana. Every day she’d help folks like us find the perfect compliments to wines from all over the world.

Planning a trip to wine country takes some doing. There are decisions to make about what day to go, which valley to visit, which wineries to see and where to make your appointments, not to mention the wrangling required to figure out who’s going to drive and whose car gets donated for the occasion. On top of all this, one can easily overlook perhaps the day’s second most important decision: where to eat.

CULINARY PROFESSIONALS OFFER SAVVY SOLUTIONS TO WINE-FOOD PAIRING PUZZLES Ever sit around munching on a snack and think to yourself, “Boy, it would be great to be drinking a nice glass of wine with this,” but you haven’t the darnedest idea what would go with it? Or you’re eating a nice steak , and the wine you’re drinking tastes terrific with it, but when you take a bite of the side dish and another sip of wine, something in you goes BOING because something isn’t quite right?

Enjoying wine is as much a hands on experience as is anything. The history of the wine –the grapes, the region, the winemaker, the vintage- and the people with whom you drink it are the variables that shape the wine drinking experience from one of simple consumption to something of deeper impact in our daily lives. Award winning writer Natalie MacLean has carved out a career by skipping past the pretensions of wine and food and embracing the personalities, emotions, and simple human curiosity that make wine and food a sensual obsession rather than just basic sustenance. IntoWine recently caught up with Natalie to discuss her new book, Red, White and Drunk All Over: A Wine-Soaked Journey from Grape to Glass , as well as her views on wine.

I learned to cook from my Mom, cooking programs on PBS, and a wide range of authors whose books perched on the kitchen shelves, patiently waiting for the moment they were needed. We reached for these books frequently, usually three and four at a time, spreading them across the kitchen table to compare ingredients and techniques. We had a rule – always follow the recipe as it was written the first time, then we could improvise. Of course, we broke this rule frequently,

CHEFS AND OTHER WINE PROFESSIONALS REVEAL THEIR FAVORITE PAIRINGS Locating wineries that offer wine and food pairings, especially in their tasting rooms, is not easy. But when you light on such an establishment, you are in for a treat. My first such discovery was when I was casually wine tasting with a friend a few years ago and stumbled on J Winery.

It’s the start of the Silly Season, typified by the populace uprooting en masse for vacation haunts, a slowdown of serious news, and the last hurrahs of the lazy days of summer before we all return to the grind of work and school. In my mind, the best drink for the Silly Season is Sangria. I know it’s blasphemy for serious wine lovers, but what’s wrong with taking a break from all that sniffing and swirling and just having some fun?

Wine doesn't immediately pop to mind when you think of Halloween. IntoWine.com asked a panel of wine experts their thoughts on what wine is a good fit for what is one of the most celebrated holidays: "I can't think of a better Halloween wine than Poizin by Armida Winery . This wine is perfect to serve if you are throwing a Halloween party or to gift as a guest when attending one. The label is etched with a blood red skull and cross-bones while the bottle top is dipped in in a haunting blood-red candle wax. The bottle itself comes delivered in its own miniature bottle-sized wooden coffin (count on the coffin being quickly claimed by the closest youngster as it's ideal for any kid with even the slightest Halloween inspired imagination). The wine itself is a Reserve Zinfandel, at 15% alcohol it's not your everyday drinking wine but it's fruit forward and will surely be a hit with any Halloween party crowd. Downsides to this wine are that Armida only produces a few dozen cases so it may be hard to find and at $25 a bottle it may be pricey for the the average Halloween party budget. If you are going all out for your Halloween party though, this IS the wine to serve." - Brad Prescott , Founder, IntoWine.com