“Many people have no idea where to begin when selecting a wine, because the rule for buying wine is there are no rules,” said Amy Dixon, Stew Leonard’s Wine Specialist. “The adage that you have to stick to white wine when eating fish or poultry is no longer true,” said Amy.
Stew Leonard’s wine experts have put together some guidelines for making holiday wine purchases based on customers’ most frequently asked questions.
Pairing Holiday Food with Wine
Guideline: Serve lighter wines before full-bodied wines
- Leave the heavier wines for dinner, and serve Champagne or Sauvignon Blanc or a food-friendly, well-balanced wine such as Pinot Noir with hors d’oeuvres.
Guideline: Balance the weight and texture of the food with the body of the wine
- A delicate food such as a fish is complimented with a lighter bodied wine, whereas heartier, richer beef dishes call for a more robust wine like Cabernet Sauvignon. For example, a delicate fish such as sole goes well with a Pinot Grigio, whereas Chardonnay or Pinot Noir can stand up to a substantial fish like salmon.
Guideline: Match the wine with the sauce, not the meat
- Use the sauce served with the dish as the basis for selecting the wine.
- Citrus-based sauces pair with lemony Pinot Grigio or Sauvignon Blanc;
- Cream or buttery sauces call for a buttery Chardonnay;
- Mushroom sauces: Mushroom’s earthy flavor works well with a Pinot Noir or Syrah;
- Tomato sauces: To balance the acidity of the tomatoes, choose a fruity, acidic wine such as a Barbera or Sangiovese;
- Berries or spices: A sweet or spicy sauce works well with a red Zinfandel or Syrah, or a semi- sweet white such as Gewürztraminer.
- Another tip is that if the sauce is made with a particular wine, drink that wine with the dish. For example, a bordelaise sauce contains a dry red wine such as Bordeaux, which is a good pairing for the filet mignon it is typically served with.
Guideline: When in Rome...Pick a wine from the same region as the food
- This guideline works only if the dish is based from a wine-producing region, such as France, Spain or Italy, but it does hold true.
Guideline: Never let your food be sweeter than your wine
- For vanilla (think crème brulee) or hazelnut based cookies and pastries, pair with a tawny Port or cream Sherry
- Chocolate desserts pair perfectly with ruby Port or late harvest Zinfandel.
- Fruit-based pies and tarts call for a sparkling dessert wine such as a muscato d’asti such as Michele Chiarlo Nivole.
Giving Wine as a Gift
For the hostess: The only guideline here is to never show up empty-handed. Stew Leonard’s wine specialist Amy Dixon recommends bringing a Champagne or sparkling wine because “it is goes with everything, is nice to have on hand and is elegant.” Her other recommendation would be a Pinot Noir, since it is food-friendly and a “crowd pleaser.”
For the Wine Collector or Boss: “Any wine that is on Wine Spectator’s Top 100 wine list is always a great wine to give as a gift,” said Dixon. “However, these wines can be difficult to find or sellout quickly, so at Stew Leonard’s Wines, we developed our own ‘top 100’ list of highly rated, good value wines.”
Amy’s top three wines from Stew’s Top 100 list are:
- Beringer Private Reserve 2002 Cabernet, a big California Cabernet Sauvignon
- Antinori Tignanello 2003, a Super Tuscan
- Forts de Latour Pauillac 2003, a rich, full-bodied Bordeaux
For the Wine Beginner: “A terrific gift for someone who is new to wine or just beginning to build their cellar is to get them a variety of wines from around the world. We are offering a six-bottle wine gift that includes a Spanish red, Chilean white, white Bordeaux, Tuscan red, Piedmont red and Aussie Shiraz packaged with a wine opener with foil cutter and bottle stopper for $59.99,” said Dixon.
Sparkling Wines to Ring in the New Year
A good guideline to remember is to know how dry or sweet Champagne or sparkling wine is. From the driest to sweetest, the order is: Extra Brut, Brut, Extra Dry, Sec and Demi Sec. Vintage Champagnes cost more because they are made only from grapes of a single harvest, and from the best years, called the cuvée de prestige or cuvée specialé. One bottle of Champagne will fill five glasses.
Buying Wines for a Party
“For a party of less than 20 people, having a couple of bottles each of red and white wines should suffice,” said Dixon. “I’d recommend a Pinot Grigio, Riesling, Cotes du Rhone and Pinot Noir.”
About Stew Leonard’s Wine Stores
Stew Leonard’s Wines has a great selection of wines from every day values to hard to find wines. They hold several charitable and educational wine tasting events throughout the year. Sign up for future events by filling out a wine e-line form located at the wine shop entrance. **Each wine store is independently owned and operated and is not part of a cooperative buying group, or affiliated with the Stew Leonard’s food stores
RICH BELADINO
Rich got excited about wines while he attended college in Florida! He has over 12 years
experience in the wine business while managing a chain of wine stores. He has extensive
experience in the business and specializes in California wines. Rich has attended many
classes in the wine industry and regularly attends wine tasting seminars. Rich loves to
help customers get excited about different wines! Friday and Saturday 9am - 9pm