It is good to have a glass of wine while eating a nice meal. However, you have to be careful when choosing your wine: the wrong match can ruin the taste of your food and transform the yummiest meal into an horrible food experience!
We are not “in the bottle” so it is not always easy to chose the right wine, but there are some basic tips and rules that you can follow.
With appetizers: serve a dry or sparkling White Wine for making traditional or royal kirs (aperitif made of cassis or peach liqueur and white wine). You can also serve sweet wines such as Muscat or Porto, or a glass of champagne for celebrations.
With starters : wine doesn’t go well with vinegear, so, to accompagn salads, it is better to chose a dry white wine or a rosé in the summer.
With fois gras: Christmas is approaching and foi gras is a must-have in any French dinner during the winter period. To appreciate it the best way, serves it with sweet white wine like Muscat or Sauterne.
With meat: red wine is definitely the more recommended to go with meat (specially red), as well as charcuterie and ragouts. In the summer, you can also serve rosé, which is a special guest in every French barbecue.
With fish: white wine is the best drink with fish and seafood. You can also use it to cook your meal.
With desert : a sweet white wine will be perfect with your desert, unless you prefer to serve it champagne. However, be careful with mixing champagne and chocolate as it affect its taste.
In general, try to serve a wine coming from the region of your dish. Alsace with choucroute, Bourgogne with Bourguignon beef, Chianti with lasagne. Trust the local savoir-faire!
Take also into consideration your guests. Don’t spend too much on a bottle for friends that doesn’t feel the difference between a Chateau Margot and a cheap wine! Once you have chose with wine colour you are going for, check the label: a modern label for friends, a traditional one for family or more expert guests, and a more girly one for girls night.
Finally, take into account the season. Red wine needs to be served at room temperature so it is more recommended in the winter, whereas rosé is a light wine that needs to be served cool, ideal for the summer.
Cheers!!!!
