Suitable options to pair with your wine

Wine and food pairing is not that difficult as it sounds. One just needs to keep in mind that the selection of wine must compliment the taste of food ordered, say experts.

Sweta Mohanty, Wine and Spirits Trainer at Aspri Spirit and Dipesh Sinha, Mixologist and wine enthusiast in Sahara Star, Mumbai, share tips on most suitable options to pair with your wine.

One can pair their favourite wine with other delicious food too. The most common food items that you can pair your wine with is pizzas, pastas, salads, burgers, pies, seafoods to name a few. These are some of the food items that we eat on any normal day, so we should also be thinking of pairing our wines with them.

One must remember the thumb rule for wine and food pairing; white wine compliments white meat and red wine is great with red meat.

* Cabernet Sauvignon is indeed the undisputed King of red wines. France, Italy and Napa Valley are the best producers. You can pair your spicy meat pizza with a Cabernet Sauvignon or a Pinotage and is also best paired with red meats like black peppered tenderloin and lamb chops in five spices.

* Veg pizza would brilliantly go with Merlot. The idea is to not overpower the wine but to blend in. One can also try pork loin, slow cooked lamb stew and shepherd's pie with a good Merlot. Merlots are normally light to medium bodied and often are blended with other grapes. France and Italy are top producers.

* Pinot Noir, one of the most versatile red grapes, best produced in France, United States and Germany. It is generally paired with food having strong earthy flavours. Try it with mushroom and greens with tofu in soya sauce, spaghetti bolognaise or a grilled salmon.

* Similarly, you could have your red sauce pasta with a Shiraz, medium bodied grape with a hint of tannin is best produced in France, Australia and Spain. This can also be paired with roast lamb, grilled beef and lamb chops.

* Sauvignon Blanc or Rose would go well with salads and also with mussels, char grilled lobsters, tajine and creamy tuscan chicken.

* If seafood is your soul food, then the go to wine is Chardonnay, one of the most popular white grapes, or a riesling or a sparkling.

* Another favourite food and wine pairing is the Indian street food. Try a pani puri with a Chenin Blanc or a samosa with Riesling. Try the quintessential tikki chat with a Cabernet Sauvignon or Pinot Noir.

* Chenin Blanc has floral aromas, mostly young wines are produced in Loire Valley and South Africa. Have it with shish taouk or risotto with chicken lemon and scallions.

--IANS

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