Pairing Wine and Food: Tips from the Pros

There are many views on how to properly pair your wine and food for the most enjoyable dining experience. Three experts illustrate this while offering advice. Chef: Mark Molinaro, Northern Arizona University at the W. A. Franke College of Business’ School of Hotel and Restaurant Management professor The most basic principle in wine pairing is pairing like tastes — sour wines crave sour foods and rich wines crave rich foods. If you have a dish like trout meunière that has an acidic lemon and vinegar butter sauce then an acidic fresh Alsatian Trimbach Riesling would pair up properly. If you served a sweet German Spätlese, the sour in the sauce would be heightened due to the sweetness of the wine and seem out of place. The more you learn about the wines you drink, the more information you’ll have in your wine rolodex. This makes choosing the best wine for the occasion much more enjoyable. So experiment and take notes — ultimately there are guidelines on what works and doesn’t but some of the fun is in the trying. I