I avoided this dangerous topic for a long time – after all, the choice of wine is a whole science that needs to be studied for a long time, but in this matter I am guided only by intuition and my own experience, which is not too extensive. And nevertheless, for someone my personal recommendations on how to choose wine for specific dishes may be useful – at least to avoid my mistakes.
So let’s start by praying. Wine is the most sophisticated and refined drink that mankind has created. Perhaps because the process of its making itself is not so complicated, but at the same time there are so many trifles and various nuances in it that trying to create the perfect wine is akin to searching for a philosopher’s stone.
What’s even more pleasant is that wine is a pleasure available to almost everyone, although our legislators are trying to make it more and more expensive and inaccessible. However, wine selection is a responsible process, and in order to get the most value for your money, you need to take it seriously.
My tips are those of an amateur and are intended for those who have little experience in wine selection. If you are good with wine, they may be useless and uninteresting to you. It happens.
Red wine
First, I’ll tell you about my own preferences in terms of various red wines. First of all, I note that to accompany lunch or dinner, the wine should be dry or semi-dry, but not sweet in any way – it is better to leave it for dessert.
It is better to exclude semi-sweet wines altogether – they are not popular almost anywhere except in our country, and producers (both ours and foreign ones) shamelessly use the most unsuccessful wine material for them. Red wines are generally characterized by the taste of black berries and a slightly astringent aftertaste, which the wine owes to the tannins contained in it. However, the tannin content of wines is very different – less tannin wines are called lighter.
Map
The leader of the wine industry, France, produces a recognizable red wine with a strong, intense flavor, but the wines produced in its different regions are very different. The most common in our country is Bordeaux – these are more tannic wines, Burgundy, Rhone-Alpes and Provence, as a rule, are distinguished by lighter wines, which in this sense are closer to Italian ones. However, Italy is another wine superpower, and the wines produced in its different regions are also very different, but describing the differences in wines according to their exact origin is not our task, so we will limit ourselves to specifying the country. In terms of popularity among the wines of the Old World, Spain closes the top three, which also produces wines with a unique character: I would describe it as a kind of balance between power and delicacy, although this, of course, does not exhaust it.
The wines of the New World are, first of all, Chile, Argentina, South Africa, Australia, which, finally, have won worldwide recognition for a long time, but are scarcely presented on our US counters. On the one hand, these wines tend to have a more powerful, energetic, somewhat rough taste than their European counterparts, while it is believed that good quality wines from the New World are cheaper than those from the Old. in general, the wine globe is limited – if we talk about CIS wines, then most of them cannot withstand any competition even with average European wines, and breakthroughs are rare and unexpected.
The main rule
The main rule when choosing a wine is as follows: red wine is served with red meat, white – with white meat, fish and seafood. Everything seems to be simple, but there are also rosé and sparkling wines, and there are more than enough exceptions in it, as in any rule … Therefore, we reason logically. Wine is served along with the food that they drink.
This means that the tastes of food and wine should be in harmony with each other, and not pull the blanket over themselves: food with a brighter and stronger taste needs the same wines, powerful, with character, but more delicate dishes require the same light wines. Therefore, aromatic, tannin wines like Bordeaux are the best for red meat – steaks, stews like Burgundy beef, roast beef, game.
By the way, if the wine participated in the preparation of the dish, it is appropriate to serve it with a glass or two of the same.Fish dishes, if spices were involved in their preparation, and their taste does not turn to be called delicate, they will put white wine on both blades, so that they , contrary to the rule, it is quite possible to serve light red wine. I accompany pasta and risotto with the same wine, cheeses go well with both bright, strong wines and more delicate ones – just remember the same simple rule: mature wine with pronounced tannins goes better with blue cheeses and hard mature cheeses , semi-hard and soft cheeses, on the other hand, are best accompanied by lighter and younger wine.
Well, if you serve cheese and pour a glass of wine produced in the same region to it, this will give you a fine connoisseur and a great specialist. 🙂 In general, everything is not so difficult, right?
How to choose a bottle?
Let’s move on to the practical part of our lesson – the most unobvious and the most difficult one. So, you are in the store, you have a certain budget and an understanding of what you are looking for. It’s good if you come across a smart salesperson who knows his business and is ready to help, but if not? Fortunately, a great guide has already been written on this subject, so I won’t even try to surpass it, but I’ll just send you here:
10 simple rules for choosing wine in the store
On my own I will add one small remark – if the grape variety (or varieties) is indicated on the label, this alone can tell you something about the taste of the purchased wine. The most common grape used in the production of red wine is Cabernet Sauvignon, which produces rich and tart wines. Merlot wines are slightly lighter and more fruity, Pinot Noir also gives a more subtle taste and aroma. Keep in mind that in general the taste of New World wines is more powerful, richer and more straightforward than wines from the same grape variety produced in the Old World.
For the rest, be guided by the simple rules outlined above, your intuition and an independent understanding of all the subtleties of wine selection will not keep you waiting. In the second part we will talk about white wine.
ВThe second part of the article How to choose wine: advice from an amateur