Wine & food pairings
12 canonical wine + food pairings. From Champagne with oysters and Sauternes with Roquefort to Barolo with white truffle, Bordeaux Médoc with rack of lamb, and Sancerre with goât cheese — each combination explained by the editorial logic of why it works.
Sparkling
1 pairingSparkling-wine pairings — the bubbles cut, the acid refreshes, the lees-aging complexity matches umami. Champagne is the canonical reference but traditional-method sparkling (Cava, Franciacorta, English Sparkling) extends the pattern.
White still
2 pairingsWhite still wine pairings — high acid for fat cutting, mineral character for shared terroir, varietal aromatics matching cuisine register. Loire whites with goât cheese, Mosel Riesling with spicy Asian, white Burgundy with shellfish.
Red still
4 pairingsRed still wine pairings — tannin for fat cutting, dark-fruit aromatic complexity for meat richness, structural elegance for serious cuisine. The traditional European meat-and-red-wine combinations developed alongside the wines themselves.
Sweet
2 pairingsSweet wine pairings — the canonical sweet-versus-salty oppositions. Sauternes with foie gras + blue cheese; Tokaji with similar; the dessert wines extending the same logic across continents.
Fortified
3 pairingsFortified wine pairings — sherry with cured meats and shellfish; port with blue cheese and dark chocolate. The fortification raises alcohol enough to handle intense food without overwhelming.