How to Pair Food and Wine at Your Next Dinner Party

Chances are, if you are reading a post on a kitchenware website, you already know a thing or two about wine. I dare say you might be a bit of an enthusiast, in that you love to drink the stuff (obviously), you have some firm favourite types and brands, and you know a thing or two about pairing your wines with certain foods. Even if you consider yourself to be quite the wine connoisseur, it's always helpful to go back over the basics. Here are some tips for pairing, preparing and serving wine featuring our most popular wine glasses.

Food Pairing

We all know that whites go best with seafood and white meats, and reds pair better with meats and spicy foods, but let’s delve a little deeper with these handy tips: Wine Should be Sweeter Aim for the wine to be sweeter than the food. This brings out the best flavour in the wine. This is why Port is perfect with dessert. If the food is sweeter than the wine, the wine will come across as bitter and overly tart. Wine Should be More Tart Wine that is more acidic than the food will be cleansing and refreshing. So for example, a sour Thai curry would be better served with a Sauvignon Blanc than a rich Chardonnay. Earthy Wines for Earthy Foods Old world wines are often described as earthy, and when so they taste better with earthy foods, such as mushrooms, beetroot, new potatoes and freshwater fish. Be mindful of any outstanding characteristics of the food, and match a wine which will bring balance to that, not work against it or compete with it. For example, very salty foods would not pair well with a very acidic wine, as the overall balance would be too sharp. Fatty foods do work well with wines higher in acid or alcohol content, as this balances the palette and cuts through the fat. Example, fried food and champagne match very well together!

A basic wine pairing chart. Credit: Winefolly.com

Wine Temperatures

Wines can be stored at the same temperature regardless of colour, however red and white wines should be consumed at different temperatures. Many people make the mistake of consuming white wine too cold, and red wine too warm. White wine will lose some of its taste when too cold, and red wine might have a slight harshness if too warm.

Temperature	Types of Wines
13°C	Storage of all wines
5-6°C	Sparkling wine, Champagne, dessert wine, Rose
7-9°C	Crisp wine such as Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Gris
11°C	Fuller whites such as Chardonnay, Viognier
15-16°C	Light reds such as Pinot Noir
17-18°C	Full-bodied reds such as Cabernet, Shiraz, Merlot

You can manage this easily if you have a wine fridge, but if not, a good rule of thumb is to store your wine at room temperature and then use the fridge to achieve the temperature you desire. Place whites in the fridge for 24 hours before serving, then out of the fridge for the last 30 minutes. Place reds in the fridge from room temperature for 20 minutes before serving.

Wine Glass Choices

The shape of a glass will really alter the taste and smell of wine. Riedel glasses are the hospitality industry go-to for bringing out the best in the wine. There is a large selection of several shapes, each one designed differently to bring out the characteristics of each particular wine. The shape of the glass highlights the fruit and allows the supporting notes to come through in the best possible way.

The Oaked Chardonnay glasses by Riedel have a rounded bowl to allow the oak influence to breathe and come through

Riedel's Old World Shiraz glass’ long bowl allows the 4 flavour contributors to be best delivered: oak influence, fermentation of grapes, maceration (skin and fruit) and the flavor of yeast. How much to spend on wine glasses? Riedel has a simple guideline that states for quality glassware. You should look to spend around as much per glass as you would one bottle of wine. My top tip: If you have kids, low on space or generally a clumsy type of person, check out Riedel’s stemless glassware. They have tumblers with the same specific bowl shapes for optimal delivery of the aromas and wine characteristics. Riedel's stemless wine glasses have the same quality you can expect of their classic stemmed wine glasses. Not only are these easier to store without the stems they make fantastic water and Scotch glasses too! Note: Riedel glasses are dishwasher proof, however, I have learned the hard way that stemware, in general, does not bode well in the dishwasher. Our stemless Riedel glasses wash beautifully in our dishwasher but I recommend cleaning stemmed glasses by hand. Miele dishwashers, however, are designed for stem glassware. To view the fantastic range of crystal glassware by Riedel click here

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Becky Gilhespie is a food writer and former Masterchef semi-finalist. Her blog, www.eatwhatweeat.com provides inspiration for meals that both kids and adults love. They are elegant yet simple, easy to follow recipes that are fast to get on the table and use everyday ingredients. Becky is originally from the US but lived in London for 15 years and now resides in Sydney with her husband and two little boys. Her food is inspired a lot by her travels (and desire to travel more).