Pages

Wednesday, July 28, 2010

Bring a Chill to the Grill



Summer is in full swing and the opportunity to enjoy rosé wines is at its peak. During the warmer months, unfussy rosés are bursting with red fruit flavors and pair with a variety of foods especially foods from the grill. If I had to choose but one summer wine to accompany a variety of lighter grilled foods, I know what I’d choose in a heartbeat. I’m happy to chill out and grill out with a glass of cold rosé.

Here’s a primer to get you into top rosé shape.

Rosé 101
Rosé wines are made from red wine grapes fermented just a short time with their skins. Colors range from light salmon to bright pink to medium-deep rose. The length of time the juice is in contact with the crushed skins determines not only the final color of the wine, but to a certain extent the amount of tannin extracted from the skins and seeds as well.

A Rosé By Any Other Name…
Rosé spans the style spectrum. Because rosé refers to the color of the wine, as opposed to a specific grape variety, the wine can be made from a variety of red grapes and their blends, including Mourvédre, Sangiovese, Grenache, Syrah, Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. With the variety of grapes used to make rosé, the character of the wine ranges from light and fruity to medium bodied with hints of tannin. Try rosé wines from California or Italy, but especially from Spain or from Provence, France.

Food Pairings
Rosés are wonderful food wines and are especially suited to dishes featuring bold Mediterranean flavors. These pink beauties can pair with a wide variety of foods depending on the varietal and style of the wine; fruit-forward wines with an impression of sweetness can be paired with foods that would also go with dry Rieslings, Gewurztraminer or Pinot Gris, and the more light to medium bodied wines pair better with foods with an affinity for light reds.

Rosés are becoming more popular as people discover the joys of drinking pink.

Saturday, July 10, 2010

A Pairing Lesson


One of my favorite wine classes to teach is Wine & Food Pairing 101. I try to demystify wine and food relationships one ingredient at a time and provide some pairing strategies. The simple formula – white wine with fish, red wine with meat – once dictated all wine and food pairings, but times have changed. Rules like this just don’t fit the way we eat today. Well matched, even the simplest food and the humblest wine can create instant magic. If a wine and food pairing work well together, it’s usually due to one or sometimes both of the following principles:

• The wine and food are in some way similar - which usually diminishes the taste impression of that similar component.

• The wine and food contrast in someway - which usually leaves either the wine or the food as the dominant partner.

When pairing wine and food, several things can happen:

• Sweetness in food can increase the perception of bitterness and astringency in wine

• Foods with high amounts of acidity can erase the perception of acidity and make the wine taste richer and mellower

• Saltiness in the food can suppress bitter taste in some wines

• Finally the Golden Rule; You can't beat bubbles. When in doubt drink sparkling wine. The tingling acidity makes most sparklers a perfect match for a wide variety of food.

Taking a class is a great way to explore new wine and food pairing combinations, or picking up a wine and food pairing book for summer reading can be fun too. Some of my favorites include:
• Perfect Pairings by Evan Goldstein
• Great Tastes Made Simple by Andrea Immer Robinson
• Williams-Sonoma Wine & Food - A New Look at Flavor by Joshua Wesson
• The Wine Lover's Cookbook by Sid Goldstein

Create instant magic this summer with these pairing tips and have fun researching the perfect match.