Wine With Food Pairing | Giggly Grapes

Miso and Wine: What to Pour (and What to Avoid)

23/08/2024

Bowl of miso soup beside a glass of white wine on a timber table

Miso is salty, sweet and full of umami, which is hard on red wine. What to pour with miso soup, miso black cod and miso ramen, and the reds to keep off the table.

Mushroom Ravioli and Wine: What to Pour (and What to Avoid)

17/08/2024

Bowl of mushroom ravioli beside a glass of red wine on a timber table

Mushroom ravioli flattens big reds. Here is why, plus the wines that actually work, what to avoid and one stock-checked bottle to try tonight.

Best Wine for Spicy Food: What to Pour (and What to Avoid)

13/08/2024

Spicy red curry with a cold glass of Riesling

The best wine for spicy food is low in alcohol, a little sweet and served cold. Off-dry Riesling leads, with Gewürztraminer, Moscato and chilled Gamay behind. What to avoid and why.

Cedar Plank Salmon Wine Pairing: What to Pour With the Smoke

31/07/2024

Salmon cooking on a cedar plank beside a glass of light red wine

The plank does half the cooking, and the smoke changes the wine. Pinot Noir, lightly oaked Chardonnay and dry rosé, plus one stock-checked Tasmanian pick.

Wine and Cheese Pairing: What to Pour with Every Cheese

29/07/2024

A wooden cheese board with brie, aged cheddar, blue cheese and goat's cheese beside a glass of sparkling wine and a glass of red wine

The safest wine and cheese pairing is dry sparkling or unoaked Chardonnay. Then it depends on the cheese: goat's, brie, cheddar, parmesan, washed rind and blue, each with the wine that works, a cheat-sheet table and one bottle to buy.

Cabernet Sauvignon Food Pairing: Best Dishes, Snacks and Cheese

25/07/2024

Glass of Cabernet Sauvignon beside sliced steak, aged cheddar and olives

Steak, lamb, aged cheddar, salami and dark chocolate: what to eat with Cabernet Sauvignon, the snacks to put out with a bottle, what to avoid, and a bottle to buy.

Stroganoff and Wine: What to Pour (and What to Avoid)

25/07/2024

Pan of creamy stroganoff beside a glass of light red wine on a timber table

Sour cream and mushrooms run this dish, not the beef, and both punish tannin. Why Pinot Noir wins, what to avoid, and one bottle for both versions.

Best Cheese With Red Wine (and the Best Red for Each)

22/07/2024

Cheeseboard with aged cheeses and a glass of red wine

Red wine and cheese works about half the time. Here is which cheese to buy for the bottle you have opened, which reds fight back, and why tannin is the whole story.

Wine Pairing With Salad: What to Pour (and What to Avoid)

15/07/2024

Glass of white wine beside a green salad and a jug of vinaigrette

Salad is not hard to match, the dressing just gets in the way. Here is what to pour, what to avoid, and why no wine can out-acid a vinaigrette.

Best Wine for Stuffed Mushrooms: What to Pour (and What to Avoid)

11/07/2024

Baked stuffed mushroom caps on a slate board beside a glass of light red wine

Pinot Noir most nights, lightly oaked Chardonnay when the filling is cheesy, and dry sparkling for a party tray. Here is why big reds fail with mushrooms.