Octopus and Wine: What to Pour (and What to Avoid)
Grilled octopus is lean, salty and smoky, which rules out tannin. Here are the wines that work, what to avoid, and one stock-checked bottle.
Read moreWine Pairing With Lentils: The Tannin Problem Nobody Mentions
Lentils are not the blank canvas everyone claims. They bring their own drying astringency, mostly in the skins, and almost no fat to soften it. That changes the wine.
Read moreChicken Tikka Masala Wine Pairing: It Is Not About the Heat
Everyone pairs this dish as though it were a vindaloo. It is the mildest thing on the menu, built from cream and tomato to fix dry chicken, and that changes the wine completely.
Read moreWine With Salami: What Fat, Salt and That Tang Really Need
Salami is fermented, not just cured, so it brings its own acidity. That is why Sangiovese, Barbera and dry Lambrusco work and a big Cabernet does not.
Read moreAlfredo Sauce Wine Pairing: What Cuts Through All That Cream
A dry white with high acid and little oak is the best wine for Alfredo sauce. One cup carries 39 grams of fat and 1,404 milligrams of sodium.
Read moreBest Wine for French Onion Soup: Why Sweetness Is the Problem
A light, high acid red like Gamay is the best wine for French onion soup. The problem is not the beef stock, it is the sugar in all those onions.
Read moreLemon Chicken Wine Pairing: Two Dishes, Two Different Wines
Battered takeaway lemon chicken and roast Greek lemon chicken are not the same dish and do not want the same wine. Here is the split, plus one stocked dry Riesling.
Read moreMinestrone and Wine: What to Pour (and What to Avoid)
Minestrone needs a light red with fresh acidity and soft tannin. Sangiovese, pinot noir and vermentino all work, and here is why, plus one bottle to try.
Read moreBest Wine With Roast Chicken: Match the Skin, Not the Bird
Roast chicken is the most flexible main in the house. The wine is really matching the browned skin and the gravy, and that changes what you should pour.
Read moreWine With Eggplant Parmigiana: What to Pour and What to Avoid
You are not pairing the eggplant, you are pairing baked tomato, melted cheese and olive oil. Here is why Sangiovese wins, and what to do about lasagna.
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