Unexpected Pairings
Written By: Brian Freedman on Fri, Mar 7th 2008
If there is a better budget pairing than fennel-sausage pizza and Las Rocas de San Alejandro Garnacha, I have not yet found it. Sure, it's nothing near as profound as a silky old bottle of Bordeaux with roasted lamb chops. Or a plate of egg-rich pasta dusted with white-truffle shavings and buttressed by a bottle of Barbaresco.
But on a budget, and as an everyday treat, that inexpensive Spanish red, fragrant with the perfume of dried herbs and something almost olive-like, is nothing short of magic when enjoyed alongside a decent pizza pie. In the under-$20 category, it is a match made in heaven.
This category, in fact, is one that even most wine connoisseurs don't think about often enough. The big boys, after all--the most famous producers from the most highly-esteemed regions--are the ones that tend to garner the most attention. And among wine devotees, the conversation far too often turns to the kind of trophy bottles that create all kinds of pressure in terms of pairing them perfectly.
If you've spent $1,000 on a bottle of Pétrus, in other words, you'd better make sure that the dish you pair it with is spot-on.
Which is where less-expensive wines come in. Because with them, you're more likely to play around a bit with the pairings, which means that you're more likely to discover combinations that you otherwise would not have.
In fact, I've discovered some of my favorite food-and-wine combinations as a result of experimenting with inexpensive bottles. And more than anything else, what I've come to believe is this: Supposedly low-brow food, or dishes that you ordinarily wouldn't think of as wine-friendly, are more often than not made far better than they otherwise would have been when enjoyed in the presence of a creatively paired wine.
Lo mein, for example--a good oily, salty, preferably pork-studded take-out box of it--is delicious with a decent bottle of sparkling wine. It has to do with the high acid of the wine cutting through the oil and richness and the food, with the bubbles scrubbing your palate clean after each bite.
Champagne or a good Méthode Champenoise sparkler from California has the added benefit of a pronounced yeastiness, which matches up beautifully with the soy sauce, though a solid Prosecco works perfectly well at a fraction of the price. And there's nothing quite so naughty as popping open a bottle of bubbly with a box of take-out.
Prosecco, as well as Cava, also work wonders with sushi. Though depending on what kind of fish you'll be enjoying, you might want to look for a wine with a bit more weight to it. If, for example, you're going to be eating a lot of tuna, you might want to reach for a bottle of blanc de noirs: The richness provided by the pinot noir in the blend will really pair up with the flavors and textures of the tuna well.
And before moving on beyond bubbles, there is one last combination that every serious wine person is absolutely required to try: Fried chicken and Champagne. Don't question it; don't overthink it. Just get a bucket of golden-crusted legs and breasts and a bottle of Champagne, and make no plans for the rest of the evening: It might take awhile.
When it comes to spicy foods, the tendency is to gravitate toward a cold bottle of beer. And, of course, that is one of the great pairings--no one in their right mind would argue with that. But you don't have to stick only with beer, as low-alcohol wines, preferably with a hint of sweetness, work wonders in conjunction with them. Riesling, for example, is tough to beat as a pairing partner for spicier Indian dishes.
For fragrant preparations like pad thai, you cannot go wrong with a bottle of gewürztraminer, whose own perfume matches up exquisitely with the tangy, sweet, sour, and salty components of the dish.
Summer-barbecue food is a natural partner for rich, fruity, peppery wines. At my own summer get-togethers, for example, I love to pair ribs, which I prefer smoky and just the slightest bit sweet, with a bold, dramatic California red zinfandel. And a simple hamburger with a bottle of Cotes du Rhone is nothing short of revelatory.
The options are limitless--or, rather, they are only limited by your imagination and your willingness to experiment. That, in the end, is what wine is all about.
