5-MINUTE WINE EXPERT with

PART 4: FOOD MATCHING BASICS

Kate Hawkings

Get the most out of what you’re drinking with our monthly crash course in wine. Next up, why matching food with wine is easier than you think

Oysters and chablis; steak and a beefy malbec; blue cheese with sauternes. Just a few of the classic food and wine combinations that become more than a sum of their parts.

While I think we should all drink what we like rather than sticking to rigid rules, it’s true that some things make much happier marriages than others. Matchmaking is often instinctive – we reach for fresh, dry whites with a zip of acidity for light, fresh food, especially if it’s lifted with a squeeze of lemon, or anything deep-fried and salty, whereas if you like heavy, tannic reds you’ll know they’ll go better with red meat, earthy pulses and hot spices.

Think about how the food is cooked, rather than the base ingredient, and try to balance the flavours and weight with the wine. Creamy sauces go well with whites with some richness – an oaked chardonnay or barrel-fermented white rioja, perhaps – while dishes involving cooked tomatoes are better with a bright young red like sangiovese or an unoaked tempranillo.

Anything with a bit of sweetness, such as the nectarine and chilli maple halloumi quinoa salad on p92 pairs well with a fruity chenin blanc or an off-dry riesling, which are both also really good with Thai and Vietnamese cuisines, while sweeter whites such as sauternes set off the saltiness of blue cheese brilliantly.

Barbecue wines should be versatile to go with whatever’s cooking. I’d reach for a fruity rosé or a light red such as a pinot noir or gamay, served a bit chilled, which would be good with meaty things as well as fish and veggie burgers.

My latest discovery for a left-field wine that goes with robust, flavoursome dishes such as the fried stuffed vine leaves (p15) and flatbread meze pizza (p16) is retsina, a Greek wine flavoured with pine resin. Kourtaki is the most famous brand, and is an affordable introduction to the style at £6 from Sainsbury’s, but it’s worth seeking out retsinas from more boutique wineries, too.

Omagazine.com

Ara Zero Sauvignon Blanc (£9, ocado.com) This scooped a gold medal at the World Alcohol-Free Awards. Lots of the tropical fruit and grapefruit zestiness that characterise the New Zealand sauvignon blancs that are perennially popular, it’s a great summery wine for non-drinkers – try it with the herby broad beans with fried eggs on p24.

Bulgarian Heritage

Dimyat Orange

Wine, Via Vinera 2020 (£8.50, thewinesociety.com)

Markou Schinopefko Retsina (£13, Amathus)

A modern retsina where the pine sits delicately against the floral and fruity aromatics of the native Savatiano grapes that make the base wine. Elegant and refreshing but with enough body to stand up to a variety of food. Serve it at a barbecue along with the peach and basil focaccia on p38.