This had me reflecting on food and wine pairings for the Christmas season and what wines I should be thinking of getting in. Like Thanksgiving, Christmas is a time for rich foods and you need to find wines to match. That doesn't limit your options though; instead it increases the range of food and wine pairings you can come up with.
food & wine
Pairing food and wine is taken very seriously by some, with extremely specific recommendations offered. Trying to match flavours in both wine and food is great up to a point, but it's difficult to find such exact matches. It's much more fun experimenting and you'll discover surprisingly successful pairings. However, there are some guidelines that are useful to follow. Don't try and match the flavours, but think instead about their intensity: neither the wine nor the dish should overwhelm the other. Likewise, think about acidity and sweetness: the two should roughly correspond.
the line-up from Thursday's Thanksgiving, showing just how many styles of wine fit this kind of meal |
turkey
Turkey is a food high in acidity, so you need a wine to match. But with all the sauces and side dishes that come with it at Christmas, the wine has to have enough depth of flavour. For whites, think of a dry Riesling: the crisp acidity and lively citrus flavours will cut into the turkey's richness. We had Billi Billi Riesling from Mt. Langi Ghiran in Victoria, Australia (hangingditch, £12.50); although delicate, its fresh acidity provided an invigorating contrast to the heaviness of the food. Alternatively, a full-bodied white will fit in with a weighty Christmas meal. For the second Thanksgiving celebration, we tried an aromatic blend from Prieuré de St-Jean-de-Bébian, Languedoc (Spirited Wines, Deansgate, around £18); rich, creamy, and nutty, it went well with the mash and béchamel sauce.
For reds, Pinot Noir is a classic pairing. With its high acidity and red fruits, Pinot Noir is not just a great match for turkey but also for the accompanying cranberry sauce. We tried two very different Pinot Noirs, which demonstrated how two wines can interact with food in varying ways. I brought one that I had tried on a recent trip to Oregon. White Rose Estate (unavailable UK; $60) describe themselves as "neo-classical"; the combination of upfront red fruits (New World style) and grainy tannins (Old World style) paired deliciously well with the turkey: like adding a juicy sauce to add on to the cranberry. The Digioia-Royer Chambolle-Musigny Vieille Vignes 2004 was a maturer, more reflective wine and quite a contrast (hangingditch, £35). Here, the earthy flavours acted more like a mushroom sauce. When choosing a wine, do think of its age: a youthful, fruity wine will be quite a different match than an older wine.
Oregon 2011 v Burgundy 2004 |
No comments:
Post a Comment