The Debate and Argument

There are some decent arguments about whether it is okay to trust wine critics’ recommendations and whether various kinds of food and wine matching bodes well. The debate is still on going on social media and in food magazines.

But does the topic really has any scientific worth or is it only a heap of pretentious rubbish? Let’s find out!

It’s a well-known fact that wine ought to be enjoyed. On the off chance that you happen to like drinking light-bodied Chardonnay with both light and rich-tasting pasta, it is perfectly fine.

However, certain pairings may taste better than others while some can be extremely unpleasant.

Let’s consider the following scenario:

You go to an American eatery and order the rich, cheesy pasta with a heavier, buttery (full-bodied) wine. When you bite into a piece of pasta and take a sip of wine, the combination mingles perfectly and highlights the creaminess of ricotta in your mouth!

Conversely, if you decide to eat creamy mushroom (light) pasta with a full-bodied Chardonnay, then what do you think- what would it taste like; luscious or savory? Would it create a congruent pairing? No – the combination won’t taste good because the light pasta loses its flavors when paired with rich and strong wine.

This can’t be only a subjective perception. According to many taste test surveys, a big chunk of people think the same and arrive at a similar conclusion.So, maybe it’s not wrong to say that there is a more scientific reason behind this.

The Science Bit

Ghrelin, a kind of hormone that enters into our brain and helps to increase the activity of the hunger-causing nerve cells,thus making us feel hungry. In fact, when our brain senses hunger or knows that we will eat food soon, at that time our stomach secrete Gastric acid. The gastric cells activate digestive enzymes that help in digestion of proteins and other food components. Whereas, amylase enzymes that are present in our saliva help in the breaking down of starches.

Even when we consume any kind of food or beverage, there are thousands of biochemical and metabolic reactions going on in our body. As far as wine and food are concerned, you will find that each type of wine contains different characteristics such as alcohol level, tartness, sweetness, and tannin (polyphenol). Tannin is a textural element that is most commonly used in wines. It can be easily found in bark, wood, plants, fruit skin & seeds, and it precipitates proteins, amino acids, and other organic compounds.That’s the reason why the high level of tannin wines pair perfectly with dense food such as red meat. The tannin present in red wine helps in the breakdown of proteins. And, it elegantly smoothens the texture of the meat and brings out more flavor of the dish.

On the other hand, red wine doesn’t pair well with oily fish such as salmon. It is because the tannin and fat counteract each other, which may leave an unpleasant bitter taste and residual fishy flavor in your mouth.

If you learn to understand the various characteristics of wines and think them as flavor ingredients, it will become easy to combine them with a supper.

The Personal Opinion

Wine has a long history of being served as an accompaniment to any cuisine. To have some leisure time with your friends and family, it seems a great idea to try some local wine with local dishes at an American eatery in Rancho Cucamonga. While pairing various types of wines and food perfectly,can be a walk in the park scenario for many, it can be a difficult and an unpleasant experience (as the combination can go horribly wrong) for others.

Here’s a simple tip for you:Pair lighter food with subtle or more delicate wines and heavy delicacies with full-bodied or strong flavored wines.

Doing so is better than making intuitive decisions that you might regret later. As long as the flavor of wine doesn’t destroy the flavor of food and vice versa, there won’t be any problem.

That’s all for now. We hope it gave a brief explanation of arguments over wine and science of food and wine pairing. In our next blog, we will talk about different wines and principles of wine and food matching. So, stay tuned!!