On
Wine and Food Matching:
There are no rules! Try everything and see what you like. Forget the
old "red with meat, white with fish"-it's completely irrelevant. Instead,
if you live in a climate like the Northeast, you might make a seasonal
choice: red in winter, white in summer. But a good wine will carry
any dish.
On Buying Wine:
The key is to find a wine shop where you feel comfortable-both
physically and in being able to communicate with the owner or salesperson
there. Tell him or her, "I don't care about wines with big names;
I'm interested in smaller producers." Buy an assorted case (to get
the normal 10-15% case discount), and make notes when you try each
wine-day, food, impression, whether you liked or didn't like it. Then
go back to the same store and the same salesperson, and tell her what
you liked and didn't like. This gives her a better idea of your palate,
and should yield better recommendations.
On What's Hot:
In America-Santa Barbara County's phenomenal Pinot Noirs and Syrahs.
In France-The Southern Rhone, Provence, and Languedoc. The quality
from the South is only getting better, and the current vintage,'98,
was the best vintage of the '90's. In Italy-Tuscan reds, particularly
Rosso di Montalcino; Barberas and Dolcettos coming out of Piedmont;
Friuli whites.
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