Wine-Knows will visit Chateau Yquem, one of the world's greatest sweet wines,
on the Bordeaux tour in September 2016
Sweet wines are not just for
dessert. I was reminded on Christmas Eve
how versatile a sweet wine can be. I
paired a 20 year old Grand Cru Alsatian Gewurztraminer with a salad of Stilton
cheese. Salads are one of the most
difficult foods to work with wine because of the acid in their vinaigrette. Further complicating matters was the strong
blue cheese, but it all worked
beautifully. Here are some guiding
principles for pairing sweet wines in 2016 with courses other than desserts.
Salt loves sweet. Sweet wines can be a great match
for certain cheeses. Salty cheeses such as Parmigiano-Reggiano, Feta, Manchego,
or a blue such as Stilton pair well with a late harvest wine, Port, Sherry, or Sauternes.
Spicy begs for sweet. Spicy foods
are a match made in heaven for slightly sweet wine such as a Moscato or a German
Riesling. The cool temperature, as well
as the sweetness of the wine, helps mitigate the effect of the capsicum heat of
the food.
High alcohol pairs with high fat. Sweet wines have higher alcohol levels than
table wines. That’s why a Sauternes or
Tokaj is often served with foie gras, even as an appetizer. (That’s also why highly marbled beef works
best with a high alcohol red such as a Zinfandel.) The principle is the
same. Rich with rich. Heaven with heaven.
Wishing you a sweet 2016.
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