The art of wine pairing may be daunting to many people, but knowing a few basics can make you seem like the expert at any dinner party.
A creamy broccoli soup will pair well with a bottle of chardonnay. Crisp, lively white wines tend to pair well with broccoli and broccoli-based dishes. You could also pair a Sauvignon Blanc or a Pinot Noir.
The Pinot Noir is red wine but will still pair well.
Having only a little bit of information can go a long way to help you seem like the expert you aspire to be. Adding the correct wine to your dish could turn your dinner into the meal of your dreams, a real fine dining experience.
What Wine Goes with Broccoli Soup?
A crisp, lively white wine such as sauvignon blanc or chardonnay pairs well with a creamy broccoli soup. A Pinot Noir would also pair well, even though it is red wine.
The flavors and aromas of the wine react to the flavors and aromas of the food to create a sensational experience of flavors exploding in your mouth.
Suppose you have never paired the correct wine with a dish before; it is something that should be on your to-do list. Even if you only try it once, you need to know what all the fuss is about when it comes to the flavor explosion and dining experience.
Pairing the correct wine with a meal creates a burst of new flavors, and it is beneficial to your health. Having some wine slightly before your meal, about an hour before you eat, would significantly enhance your appetite and enable you to consume more meals.
Having a glass of wine with your meal also aids in the digestion process. It does this by the nutrients in the wine, lessening the damage that the oxidation process can do.
Studies have also found that if you indulge in wine while eating contaminated food, the wine can assist you not to have a bad reaction to the contaminated food.
The wine had always been paired with food randomly, with no specific pairing in mind. However, in the middle ages, this started to change.
The wine was more carefully selected to go with the specific food being consumed. Wine pairing has evolved quite a lot since the practice first started.
The most important thing to remember when it comes to wine pairing is that the main goal of pairing the right wine with the right food is enjoyable for the meal and dining experience.
It may be time to grow your pallet; if you have not yet acquired a taste for certain wines, this could be a learning curve for you.
Suggestions for Wine Pairing
I mentioned above that wine pairing can be a daunting task; however, there are some rules you can keep in mind when you attempt to pair wine with food. Many online sources suggest that you keep the flavor levels of the wine and the food at the same level of intensity.
Something else to bear in thought is the acidity levels of both the wine and the food, as the wine needs to be more acidic than the food.
Wine with a high acidity will have a crisper taste than wine with a lower acidity which would have a smoother taste. It would be beneficial to have tasted the wine you would like to pair before you use it.
The following thing to consider is how sweet your wine is compared to the meal you are having. The wine you are having always needs to be sweeter than the meal you are eating. Having a bitter or dry wine with a very sweet dish might make the meal less than enjoyable.
Red wines pair best with heavy flavored meals, like steak and lamb. The thought process behind this is that the bitterness of the wine will be balanced out by the rich flavors, saltiness, and fat of the meat.
Sauces made with red wine also pair well with red meat; please do if you have not yet tried it.
White wine pairs best with lighter flavors like chicken or fish or broccoli soup, like in this case.
The smoothness and dryness of the white wine enhance the flavors of the lighter meats with which you would generally pair white wine. White wine also goes well with sushi, good to know if you enjoy sushi.
Wine Pairing Evenings
If you are new to wine pairing and want to learn more quickly and in a very fun way, you have some options.
If you have the honor of living near wine country, you could frequent their wine pairing or wine tasting evenings. Wine farms tend to have events where you pay a fee, and they pair their wines with the appropriate flavors of food.
If you aren’t close enough to wine country and don’t have the time for a road trip to experience one of these events, you can turn to your local food establishments.
Many restaurants have their wine pairing or tasting evenings. You would be required to pay a fee and get your wine and food for the evening.
Attending one of these evenings can be a great and fun way to get to know wine pairings without attending mountains of seminars to explain the ins and outs. After all, the best way to know which wine pairs best with which meal is to try them.
Read more: What Wine Goes with Broccoli Cheese Soup | Camelot Vineyards 2011 Chardonnay | LaStella 2013 Moscato D’Osoyoos | What Protein Goes with Broccoli Cheddar Soup | What Bread Goes with Broccoli Cheese Soup
Conclusion
Wine pairing does not have to be a scary task; there are some basic guidelines to follow. The most important of these guidelines to remember is that red wine goes with heavy flavors such as steak, and white wine pairs better with foods such as chicken, fish, or broccoli soup.
The main aspect of wine pairing remains that you need to enjoy the meal.
Suppose you are interested in educating yourself in the art of wine tasting. In that case, many wine farms and restaurants host wine pairing evenings which would be the perfect opportunity to learn and try out different flavors.
References:
Wine Folly: Wine with Fish Pairing Guide
Wine Folly: Getting Started with Food and Wine Pairing
Wine Enthusiast: What is Acidity in Wine?
Wine Spectator: For Maximum Health Benefits Have Your Wine With a Meal
Food and Wine: Creamy Broccoli Soup Croutons
The New York times: The Claim: A Glass of Wine With Dinner Aids Digestion
Bustle: 9 Ways Even One Glass of Wine Can Affect Your Gut Health