Weekend wine with Blake Creedon
Broadly, the old rule of thumb won’t let you down: light dishes tend to go best with white wines while red meat pairs best with reds.
But remember the key thing is the overall ‘weight’ and predominant flavours of the dish you’re matching, and not the ingredients. Take seafood for instance: the simplest shellfish dishes would certainly chime with a zingy white; but you could happily put a light red like a Beaujolais Cru with a spicy, tomatoey fish dish.
Below I’ve taken inspiration from lighter starters which will thrive alongside a light crisp unoaked white — particularly sauvignon blanc or riesling; or regions such as Bordeaux blanc or Muscadet Sèvre et Maine sur lie. Main courses tend to be a rich smorgasbord of flavours which could sit very well alongside an elegant red that isn’t too tannic, or a dense rich white such as a plumpish chardonnay. And if you’ve the numbers at the table to justify it, why not both?
* As I pointed out here recently, one addition to your wine shopping list could turn that dinner into a banquet — unctuous, sweet dessert wines. European dessert wine traditions such as botrytised semillon have been taken up with gusto by fine winemakers in the new world too and one of them, Chris Pfeiffer, is presenting an inspirational tasting of dessert and fortified wines as follows: Hayfield Manor, Cork, on Tuesday, December 6, at 7pm. For bookings contact ireland@wineaustralia.com or 065-7077264. Ely at IFSC, Dublin, on Wednesday, December 7, at 7pm. Book on wineclub@elywinebar.com or 01-676 8986. Tastings in both venues cost €20 per person.
* On the blog (blakecreedon.wordpress.com) now is a comprehensive line-up of Irish online wine shops which I’ll be updating with final dates for guaranteed delivery before Christmas as they are announced.
Made well, the sauv blanc grape makes a great entrance with mouth-watering scents — in this instance like a crunchy green apple. A fab foil to shellfish.
Despite the high regard wine fans have for Burgundy, this smashing fizz is priced well below of its equivalent from Champagne, merely because we foolishly associate Champagne with good fizz. Bizarre, I know.
The riesling grape (and particularly ones such as this fresh, mouth-watering beauty from Alsace on the French-German border) ought to be a staple for light starters on Christmas day.
Sort-of half way between wine and port, the uniquely Italian Amarone style is made with semi-desiccated grapes for a long lingering glass of raisiny richness at dinner’s end — and this is a very good value example of the style.
Sicily produces excellent whites (such as fiano) but this black grape is the jewel in the crown. Leave it breathe a good hour or so and it develops into a poised, crisp and elegant mouthful, savoury with a touch of liquorice.
So reds are the big bossy wines and whites are softly spoken? Try this side-by-side with the nero d'Avola above — it'll upend your perception: an enormous buttery chardonnay that beautifully sets all that weight off against zinging acidity and spice.
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