Wine With Food

‘A meal without wine is like a day without sunshine’ is a well-known old French saying. But which wine goes with which type of food? We Brits have tended to get our knickers in a twist about this. In most of the world’s wine producing areas, the local wine, be it red, white or rosé, is drunk with the local staple foods.

However the variety of wines available in the U.K. is probably greater than anywhere else in the world. Some basic guidelines have emerged over time which we have tried to present in a helpful way. Do not be surprised to see more than one style of wine paired with more than one type of food or cuisine. Just as life is too short to have to drink bad wine, it is also too short to agonise which particular claret goes best with shoulder of lamb as compared to shank. The answer is they all do. On the other hand, sauces and gravies can influence the match; usually the richer the sauce, the more aromatic the wine required.

What we have tried to do is match wine styles as per the Taste Guide to some well known foods. Then we have listed the most commonly found styles of cuisine and matched them to specific wines.

Many wines are blends but their character is likely to come from the major grape variety. Above all, our customers and your customers are always right- we can only emphasise that this is a guide based on our wine team’s extensive food and wine experience!!

Style of Cuisine

English
It is not surprising that traditionally English cuisine was matched to French wine. After all, they were next door and our biggest supplier even when we were fighting them. So the Roast Beef was served with Claret which was known as ‘The Englishman’s Wine’ as so much was imported. Game accompanied Burgundy and Champagne was the drink for celebrations. Not much has changed - the U.K. is still Champagne’s No. 1 export market and the wines served with roast beef, lamb, pheasant etc. are the same but their origin is not just France. Australia supplies the reds as do Spain and New Zealand for English cuisine and very well they go too. Shiraz and Steak and Kidney is almost as heavenly a pairing as Bangers and Mash (try Chilean Merlot with the sausages!).

French
If the French cuisine is provided by a French chef and sommelier, the vast majority of the wines will be French. But it would be wrong to think that nothing has changed. Most of France’s classic and peasant cuisines are the same as the classic wine areas. Yes - Chablis and Sancerre remain the most popular examples of Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc to be drunk with fish, chicken and the like. But there are a host of wines from the South to be considered which are made with Old World structure and New World fruit. They are perfect food wines and French food wines at that. To make Coq au Vin traditionally, one used a bottle of Burgundy in the casserole and drank the same wine with the dish. With Burgundy at a minimum £20, that is expensive gravy!

Italian
If the French can be described as parochial, Italians used to have 100% of their lists coming from Italy. This was then not particularly good news. The winemaking was very variable and the selection did not always set off the food as well as it might. The EU’s investment in Italian viniculture has improved matters immeasurably. Not only have grapes and styles been exported - our Argentine Sangiovese is a good example - but they have been allowed to be imported – Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc from Italy all being available in our Selection. Whether Pizza, Pasta, Antepasti or heavier dishes are being served, Italy does now have the wines. The recent stunning success of Pinot Grigio demonstrates how Italian wine can now be served with Italian cuisine or before it or with anything else.

German/East European
Rich foods and sauces predominate which are helped by rich and aromatic wines which may come from the Old World or from Australia and New Zealand in particular as well as South America. Riesling (dry as well as traditional), Pinot Grigio and Gris, Torrontes, Viognier and Gewurztraminer are all worth trying.

Spanish
Trout, quails, partridge, chorizo sausage, mushrooms and tasty stews are all features of Spanish cuisine which can be drunk with Reds made from Tempranillo or Rueda whites. They can be drunk with most other reds and whites as well - Spanish cuisine is not fussy. There are problems - eggs, artichokes, asparagus and bitter chocolate all feature too. The first three go well with Sauvignon Blanc which is not Spain’s most common grape for whites. Bitter chocolate sauces with meat do illustrate another food and wine principle: when in doubt, drink the local wine. Fruity, not too heavily oaked Rioja is a good match.

Chinese
Rosé wine is too often overlooked and Pinot Grigio, Pinot Gris and Chenin Blanc are good whites. As well as rosé, another wine not drunk enough with nearly all types of Chinese Cuisine is Spanish Cava, both Brut and Rosé. Traditional and New World Riesling and Gewurztraminer styles match the ginger and spicy dishes from Szechuan.

Indian
Not surprisingly, whites have to be colder than normal. Again Chenin Blanc and Pinot Grigio are excellent. Torrontes, Viognier and Verdelho are more unusual but well worth trying. Reds need to be full-bodied but soft; hard or medium tannins must be avoided.

Thai
Sauvignon Blanc, Riesling, Gewurztraminer and classy Chardonnay from Chablis or from the New World taste very well. Full-bodied Shiraz and Shiraz blends for reds as well as rosés and bubbles especially pink ones.

For more details contact:

	Sales Director	01924 373328	07801 922478
	Sales Director - Pub Groups	01924 373328	07801 922480
David Robertson	Wine Development Manager	01924 373328	07813 662863
	Wine Key Account Manager	01924 373328	07837 193677
Peter Skuse	Pricing and Sourcing Manager	01924 373328	07801 922461
	Wine Administrator	01924 373328