The art & evolution of pairing food with wine

While food and wine have a long and synergistic history, the “art” of pairing wine with a specific dish is a more recent practice. Thousands of years ago, and for centuries since, wine was paired with meals simply because drinking wine was safer than drinking water from the local stream, lake or river. From there, the connection became largely regional as winemaking and cuisines evolved. What are now considered classic pairings stem from winemakers looking to make food friendly wines. An Italian Chianti might be too tart on its own, but pair it with an acidic tomato sauce and you’ve achieved a balanced and harmonious meal. 
 
In recent years, an entire industry has developed around the perfect pairing complete with guidelines (focus on flavor interactions or look for contrasts like sweet wine with spicy dishes) and cliches (white with fish/red with meat). Much of the advice is solid, but what the industry tends to overlook is personal preferences. The connection between food and wine is all about enhancing your dining experience by pairing them in a way that complements and elevates the flavors of both. And since taste is subjective, you should feel free to ignore conventional advice if you are a fan of one style of wine. (Watch this video to see Eric Ripert, chef of New York’s legendary Le Bernadin restaurant, argue that red Bordeaux wines go with anything, even fish.) 
 
The next evolutionary step in wine and food pairing, of course, is technology. As they say, there is an app for that. Lots of them in fact, but one website we just came across stands out. Vi is a collaboration between food, wine and data scientist professionals and its mission is to help users “discover new, interesting wines from around the world – and incredible, diverse wine and food pairings.” 
 
You can search by cuisine, country or even ingredient and the site will recommend a grouping of wines to consider along with a detailed explanation for each wine chosen. For example, a search for Indian Chickpea Curry yielded Pinot Gris and Gewürztraminer from Alsace, Albariño from Spain, and Condrieu from the Northern Rhône. Click on Pinto Gris and you get background on the varietal and a further list of recommended parings. 
 
The great thing about Vi is that it allows you filter by country, color, budget and taste, and they don’t recommend specific producers, just wine styles. Plus, if you’re a wine and food geek, it’s just fun. Give it a try to find the perfect pairing for your upcoming holiday meals.