Wine Pairing 101

Today, we find our hero brooding in the inner most sanctum of his secret headquarters. No, not that inner most sanctum. The other one---the kitchen. Our hero has been acquired a new bottle of wine, a very nice bottle of Bueno Vista Chardonnay, 2004. Alone, the Captain ponders the possible pairings such for such an exquisite bottle of this white wine. He is so lost in thought that nothing can distract him---not the low, steady buzz of the rotisserie oven slowly roasting a garlic rosemary chicken to crispy skinned perfection; not the roar of the power burner of the stove bringing water to a boil for the pasta accompaniment; not the kettle starting to whistle to signal that it's time to steep the Blood Orange tea he just got from family in California. No. Nothing breaks our hero's concentration during his mental combat with his repertoire of recipes trying to find the dish that will be be unleashed by the Bueno Vista treasure resting just mere feet away from him, almost taunting him. The casual observer would not be able to easily see the epic battle being waged internally within out hero, nor could they see how he almost falters before he snatches victory from the unfeeling jaws of defeat declaring this his fruit and pine nut stuffed roast pork loin with tarragon butter sauce recipe would be exactly what this wine calls for. Wiping the sweat from his brow and returning to the external world now heavy with the smell of roasting chicken, Captain Gourmet begins to plan when to prepare this pork recipe and whom should partake of it with him.

Knowing that the true culinary battle of rounding up ingredients and actually preparing the dish is yet to come, our hero is content to savor his recent triumph, and begins to reflect on what could be learned from it.

Now, we must be completely honest here with you, true believer. Though a hero of epic proportions, our beloved Captain Gourmet is certainly no expert in wine. Wine related battles such as this still prove to be rather difficult struggles for him, and dare it be said..... He has even lost a few precious battles. But our hero, once started learning how to defeat the vile villain of Wine Pairing somewhere. To keep the good citizens of our city from falling victim to similar dastardly plans of Wine Pairing, he begins to chronicle the very first tip in wine pairing as part of his sworn duty to protect innocent civilians from the pitfalls of bad gourmet experiences.

Brian Johnson, a catering chef in Columbus, Ohio, started our hero on the road to fine wine pairings several years ago. He taught our Captain to try to start slow and basic...keep things simple. Here, we can apply a rule of three.

The Captain encourages you, good citizen, to try starting simple as well and begin with your wine. Describe it with three qualities you feel that wine has. For instance, you might say that a given wine is light, acidic, fruity. Then, take those qualities and find something that matches well with it. For lightness, contrast it with something heavy, like a cream. Saltiness works well for acidic wines. Fruity? Well, the Captain has always been a fan of pairing pork with fruit. So, what does that give? Perhaps a Roast Pork Loin, stuffed with candied fruits and proscuitto with a Cream Sauce. What's more, our beloved hero would even suggest that you can go simpler. Pick just two qualities of the wine to match with. If you're feeling particularly daring and adventurous, pick a single quality of the wine and try to pair that quality with something that would really enhance it. Of course, the Captain needs to remind you that sometimes simple can be too simple.

Not everyone is going to have the same sense of taste or smell. So, Captain Gourmet does encourage you to try anyhow, good citizen. Make the wine rating experience into something that is personal to you, and be damned with what experts and sommeliers say. Who's to say that they're right? Not the Captain. However, some smaller wine stores provide some of this information for you. Our Captain purchases his wine from a local store to him, Vino 100. Now, it's important to note that the Captain trusts the folks at Vino, so it's easy for him to accept the word of those fine citizens. So, if you can find a place like this, it actually is quite possible to prepare a meal or come up with a wine pairing without ever having tasted the wine.

The Captain's very first tip in wine pairing is quite simplistic, but it was enough to get him started. Our hero feels that it will certainly help you as well, true believer. As your skill progresses, perhaps you may end up locked within the grips of internal struggle over how to serve a fine quality bottle of wine. The right basics and foundations in wine tasting and pairing will help you, too, to be victorious in such endeavers.

Warm weather has already started to make recurring appearances, and clear blue skies are covering the Captain's beloved home city of Austin, Texas. All of you civilians know what that means....BBQ weather. Stay tuned to as soon the Cap Files begin to chronicle our Captain's epic adventures with grilling and smoking. Captain Gourmet plans a campaign of eclectic gourmet BBQ this summer. Let's see what types of interesting recipes he can create in his pursuit, of truth, justice, and the gourmet way.