Acid against fat, tannin against protein, sweet with sweet: the four rules that solve ninety percent of the wine list, and the exceptions worth knowing.
Rule one: acid cuts fat
Butter, cream, fried coats and oily fish want a wine with acidity to refresh the palate: Chablis with sole meunière, Riesling with a Wiener Schnitzel, Champagne with fried anything. The wine should feel like a squeeze of lemon.
Rule two: tannin loves protein
Red wines with grip, Bordeaux, Barolo, Rioja, soften against the protein and fat of red meat. A côte de bœuf makes a young Pauillac taste older and rounder; the same wine with fish tastes of metal. This is why steakhouses have the deepest red lists.
Rule three: weight matches weight
A delicate dish needs a delicate wine, a rich one a rich wine. Oysters with Muscadet, lobster in butter with Meursault, truffle pasta with Nebbiolo, a spiced curry with Gewürztraminer. The mistake is not the colour; it is the weight.
Rule four: sweet with sweet, and with heat
A dessert wine must be at least as sweet as the dessert or it tastes sour: Sauternes with tarte Tatin, Moscato with fruit. Sweetness also tames chilli, which is why an off-dry Riesling is the answer to spicy Asian food and to black cod with miso.
The exceptions worth knowing
Champagne with steak is a legitimate pleasure; Pinot Noir with salmon breaks the colour rule and wins; sake with umami-rich dishes beats most wines. And when in doubt, order what the region drinks: Grüner in Vienna, Albariño in Galicia, Barolo in the Alps. The Wine Pairing Finder applies these rules to any dish you describe.
Try it
Wine Pairing FinderChoose the main ingredient, how it is cooked and how rich the dish is.Dinner BudgetTasting menu or à la carte, wine by the glass or the pairing, two people or eight: the Dinner Budget estimates the bill per person in your city and compares it with the other eighteen..Frequently asked questions
Is the sommelier’s pairing worth it?
At the great houses, yes; it is designed course by course and often includes wines you could not order by the glass.
Red wine with fish: ever?
Light, low-tannin reds like Pinot Noir or Beaujolais with salmon, tuna or fish in red wine sauce work beautifully.
What do I order when the table wants different things?
Champagne or a dry Riesling; both cross more dishes than any other bottle.
