You don’t need to be a wine expert to appreciate wine. In fact, enhancing your meal with the right choice can be wine simplified.
I have created an easy-to-use chart to help you find the perfect complement to the food you’re serving. So, use the table below and look for the corresponding variety of wine to pair with your favorite meal. Cheers!
White Wine
- Light-bodied and sweet white wine is best for summer casual picnics and appetizers.
- Fruity, Light-bodied white wine, that is crisp, delicate and with no oak, pairs best with simple seafood, salads and vegetables.
- White wine that is Medium-bodied, mild, fruity and smooth, pairs nicely with seafood and chicken dishes.
BLUSHES
- Blush wines are light-bodied and sweet, which are best paired with anything you would take to a picnic or have as an appetizer.
REDS
- Red wine that has a light body and sweet, is great for summer casual picnics and appetizers.
- Light-bodied and fruity red wine best pairs with pasta, sandwiches, fish and chicken
- A medium-bodied, fruit-driven, smooth and mild red wine, tastes well with red meats, aged cheeses and braised dishes.
- The sweet, full-bodied red dessert wine, which is lusciously rich and concentrated, is the perfect pairing for fruits, cheeses and desserts, such as chocolate.
Wine Simplified | Meet Your Match
W=White B=Blush R=Red
| Match | Sweet | Fruity | Medium | Full-Bodied | Sparkling or Dessert |
| Dips | B, R | W, R | W, R | W | W |
| Appetizers | W, B, R | W, R | W, R | W | W, R |
| Mild Cheeses | W, B, R | W, R | W, R | W | W |
| Strong Cheeses | W, R | W, R | R | ||
| Sandwiches | W, B, R | W, R | W, R | W | |
| Asian Foods | W, B, R | W, R | R | W | |
| Beef & BBQ | W | R | W, R | W, R | |
| Pork & Veal | B | R | W, R | W, R | |
| Lamb | R | W, R | W, R | ||
| Light Pasta | B, R | W, R | W | W | |
| Heavy Pasta | R | W, R | |||
| Poultry | B, R | W, R | W, R | W | |
| Salmon/Tuna | B, R | R | W, R | W | |
| Seafood Other Fish | B | W, R | W, R | W | |
| Seafood & Shellfish | B, R | W, R | W, R | W | W |
| Fruit Desserts | W, B, R | W | W, R |
How much do you need?
First of all, if you have no idea how many bottles of wine to have available for your next gathering, keep this in mind. Although, extra bottles can always be saved for another occasion. A 750-ml bottle serves 5 and a 1.5-L bottle serves 10. Furthermore, it’s best to have too many, than not enough. So, stock up!
Special Shaped Glasses
Although, an all-purpose wine glass is fine for both red and white wines, specially shaped glasses do offer additional advantages. Surprisingly, special shaped wine glasses help maintain a sparkling wine’s effervescence. Also, enhancing the bouquet and flavor of different varieties of wine as well. See the chart below for guidance.
Speak the Language
- aroma/bouquet – aroma is the fruity scent in a young wine, whereas bouquet is the complex scent of older wines.
- body – the substance of a wine in your mouth (light, full, or medium).
- crisp/soft – crispness refers to the sharp taste of a wine, whereas a soft wine is smooth.
- fruity – having ripe flavors of fruit.
- finish – the impression a wine leaves on your palate.
- oaky – characteristic style of oak barrel aging.
- tannin – a natural preservative found in grape skins, stems, and seeds, which in high levels will make your mouth pucker.
Rack Up the Savings!
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