Unlike beer and ice tea with PH over 4.0, wine has a PH of 2.95 - 3.65 which makes it the perfect food beverage.  The lower PH cleanses the palate preparing the tongue for each bite of food.  The last bite tastes as flavorful as the first. 

Food and wine pairing is one of the most fun and challenging hobby’s that lasts a lifetime.  Every meal is a new experience.  Tastes, flavors, textures, and aromas are all elements that effect the combinations of food and wine.  Have you ever been to a restaurant and experienced a fabulous meal with a wonderful wine and then gone back to that same restaurant ordered the same bottle of wine with a different dish expecting the previous WOW only to be disappointed?  Who hasn’t?  The wine most likely did not change.  The variable was the food. 

Some pairings are spectacular and others are not.  The challenge is to experience as many WOWS as possible.  Visit the following links in the order in which they occur to learn more about pairing food and wine.

Wine Descriptors
Typical Varietal Flavor Characteristics
Pairing Tips by Taste
Pairing Tips by Weight

Enjoy,
Merrill Bonarrigo Messina Hof Winery and Resort
Texas Wine and Grape Growers Association Member Since 1988


Wine Descriptors

Big	Strong flavor, high alcohol and high acidity.
Body	The feeling of weight in the mouth, distinguishing heavy/full from light wines.
Character	Taste complexity that shows unmistakable and distinctive features.
Delicate	A light and agreeable balance of flavor and quality.
Depth	Subtle richness giving a feeling of many flavor-layers.
Dry	Complete absence of sweetness.
Earthy	A mineral or organic taste of the soil or terrain.
Flinty	The metallic smell of struck flint, typical of wines from high mineral soil.
Fruity	A pleasantly ripe, but not necessarily grapy smell.
Full-bodied	Thick/heavy feeling in the mouth.
Grapy	A rich, sweet aroma produced by certain grape varieties.
Luscious	All the balance qualities of softness, sweetness, fruitiness and ripeness.
Tannin	What coats the mouth and causes pucker when a very dry wine is sipped.

Typical Varietal Flavor Characteristics

Whites
Chardonnay	Apple, lemon, pineapple, peach, vanilla, buttery, oaky
Sauvignon Blanc	Grass, hay, herbs, citrus, woody, vegetal
Riesling	Pear, peach, citrus, floral, honey, apricots
Gewurztraminer	Melon, peach, apricot, cloves
Chenin Blanc	Spicy, floral, fruity, apples, pears, peaches
Muscat Canelli	Floral, nectary, apricot

Reds
Cabernet Sauvignon	Black current, cassis, herbal, mint, eucalyptus, green pepper
Merlot	Cassis, Black cherry
Pinot Noir	Black cherry, plum, raisin, grapy, earthy
Gamay	Strawberry jam
Zinfandel	Raspberry, spicy, black pepper
Lenoir/Black Spanish	Wood, blackberry, chocolate, raspberry

The UC Davis Aroma Wheel breaks down the various smells and tastes in wine.   Visit Link to learn more about the Aroma Wheel.


Pairing Tips by Taste                       
1.  High acid foods such as tomatoes, citrus, and vinegar are best suited to high-acid wines, such as Pinot Grigio, Gewurztraminer, or Chenin Blanc. 

2.  Sweetness masks bitterness and saltiness.  So if you accidentally add too much salt, serve a sweeter wine like the Muscat Canelli, Riesling, or blush/rose’ wines.

3.  Rich fatty foods such as cheese, oil based sauces, fatty meats, and pate’ match best with crisp more acidic wines that will cut through the oily texture to cleanse the palate.  Buttery or oily wines will tend to coat the mouth.

4.  Foods with sweetness are best paired with wines of the same sweetness.  If the food is sweeter than the wine, it will make the wine taste dry or more tart than it tastes on its own.

5.  Dishes prepared with the same wine to accompany the meal are better married to that wine in flavor.

6.  Food should never overwhelm the wine, and wine should never overwhelm the food.  You are looking for balance.

7.  Wines with crisp acidity, dry or slightly sweet, light or medium body, low to moderate alcohol, smooth tannins, and neutral flavor are more likely to combine well with foods.

8.  Once you have achieved the thickness you desire in your sauce, you may add more wine to enrich the flavor of the sauce and better pair the like flavors.

Pairing Tips by Weight