Helpful Tips To Select The Ideal Wines For Your Meals

21 Oct Helpful Tips To Select The Ideal Wines For Your Meals

Those throwing a dinner party have likely already decided on the menu’s three main components: the entrée, the appetizers, and the dessert. You’ve also crossed off “entertainment” and “music” from your to-do list. The only thing left is selecting the ideal wine for the upcoming festivities.

Feeling a bit lost in the decision-making process? Don’t be worried. Here are a few guidelines to help you select the ideal wine for your dinner:

1. Identify The Wine Experience Of Your Guests

Take a moment to consider your audience before you zero in on specifics. How much knowledge do they have about wine? Are they just starting and don’t yet know the incredible market depth? Or perhaps they are connoisseurs of the grape who’ve already spent years amassing a cellar full of rare bottles bearing prestigious labels.

People starting in the wine world may not understand the price difference between a $100 and a $20 bottle or the nuances of old-world versus new-world wines. Those with more wine-tasting experience are likely to be among the guests. They will be familiar with grape varieties and might even be able to tell them apart based on where they were grown.

Choose wines from a range of price points, including both well-known labels and those from smaller, more intimate wineries, if your guests’ wine knowledge ranges from beginner to expert.

2. Get To Know Their Tastes

Now that you understand your guests’ wine expertise, you can cater to their tastes better. Consider these four issues:

• What kind of wine do they prefer, red or white?
• What sort of wine do they like best?
• Is there a preference for a specific country of origin?
• Can you tell if they have a taste for wines from a particular region?

If you get a wide range of answers, or if your guests lack wine knowledge, try choosing two bottles representing as much of the spectrum as possible. One easy way to please a wide range of palates is to offer red and white wine.

3. Choose A Wine Whose Intensity Is Comparable To That Of The Dish

Pairing wines with food? Consider the intensity of the wine first. For example, a dish with a light texture or subtle flavors can get lost in the mix when paired with a bold, full-bodied red.

Similarly, a light, floral white wine would be overwhelmed by a hearty, robust dish with strong flavours. The rule of thumb is to serve white wines with appetizers and dessert and red wines with the main course.

4. When Eating Acidic Foods, Drink An Acidic Wine

Champagne, Riesling, Pinot Noir from a cooler climate, Sauvignon Blanc, and Albarino are all wines with higher acidity levels that go well with foods high in acidity, such as citrus, tomatoes, and fish. Wines with a high acidity level are ideal for fatty or oily meals because they help cleanse the palate after consuming the oil.

5. A Salty Dish Should Be Paired With A Sweet Or Semi-Sweet Wine

If you’re serving something salty, look for a sweet or semi-sweet wine to go with it. Combining sweet and salty flavours makes for a harmonious combination. You can’t go wrong with a Riesling, Moscato, Champagne, Chardonnay, or Sauternes. Beaujolais and Pinot Noir, dry reds with low tannin levels, also work, as do rosé wines.

6. Try Serving Regional Wines With Regional Dishes

Select a wine from a famous wine region to wow your guests. In general, it’s wise to pair regional foods and wines. For instance, a bottle of crisp, dry Austrian Riesling pairs splendidly with a plate of hot Wiener schnitzel, a bottle of Sauvignon Blanc from the Loire Valley goes wonderfully with a wedge of Chavignol goat cheese, and a bottle of hearty Italian Chianti highlights the best in a plate of homemade pappardelle. However, as with everything, variety and experimentation often result in novel combinations.

7. Pick Sparkling Wine Or Rosé If You Want To Be Extra Cautious

It’s hard to go wrong with either sparkling wine or rosé when it comes to food. Neither option is terrible. To be on the safe side, pick a bottle of bubbly that strikes a good balance between sweet and dry flavours. The wine should match the sweetness of the desert.

Serve the wine at the proper temperature. You must store your wines in a climate-controlled wine cellar. For details about custom wine cellar designing and installation services, call Signature Cellars at this number- 1300 570 636. Our skilled and creative designers are here to help with your wine cellar requirements from the ground up.

Thanks for reading,
Signature Cellars
1300 570 636