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I Drink Zinfandel With Fish…

By Tim on Mar 13, 2008 in Wine News

…and not that “white” off-dry drek either, but the real deal from Lytton Springs, Geyserville and Hayne Vineyard.

Red Wine With Fish, The Book Why do I match fish with a rich red wine when all the experts might suggest something lighter?

Because I like it.

This is at the core of a post over at Vinography about wine and food matching. Alder makes a compelling argument that wine and food matching is a “scam” to sell more, and presumably higher priced, wine perpetuated by restaurants and other wine wonks. And while I think there is some common sense to matching food and wine, I agree that much of the advice on the street is bunk. Drink what you like with whatever food you want.

Kudos to Alder for another provocative and educational post. This underscores the unique value of wine blogs as I don’t think we’d see an article like this in Wine Spectator or Decanter.

Read the entire article here.

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5 Comment(s)

Brian Ross | Mar 13, 2008 | Reply

Great article, in the vein of Vaynerchuk et al., who tell everyone to trust their own palates. And I agree, although I also try to learn from those who are more experienced than me. My favorite quote in the article:

“There are no right answers. Even the crisp white with fish is bullshit if you don’t like crisp white wines.”
Tim | Mar 13, 2008 | Reply

Although I like crisp white wine, I still mostly drink reds with fish… and with most anything else

Thanks for the comment, Brain.
Andrew | Mar 14, 2008 | Reply

Drink what you like with whatever food you want - basically I think you are wrong!

The basis of wine and food matching is to emphasise the flavours and provide a harmonious combination. If you have splashed out on a decent wine or spent hours preparing a top-notch dish you don’t want to ruin it by serving a totally wrong wine. OK, so you can have an ‘OK’ moment but why not go for the full ‘wow’ moment. This applies to both pricey wines and cheaper under a fiver bottles too.

You only live once so why not make the most of it rather than settling for something that is just ‘OK’!
Tim | Mar 15, 2008 | Reply

I knew someone would say I was wrong so why am I surprised it’s you, Andrew?

As I said in the post, there is a certain amount of common sense applied here but I think acidity is the only factor to consider in a food match. And I’d much rather enjoy a wine I like a lot with my food than a wine I only fine OK that might be considered the “best” match by conventional wisdom.

But to each their own, as they say…
Bradley | Mar 15, 2008 | Reply

Rather than a plot to sell more expensive wine and such to unsuspecting customers, I think the restaurants of yore (and today) were probably trying to retain customers ($$$) rather than create an experience that jarred their senses.
Safety first! When the baby is ready to walk, let it. In the meantime, lots of handholding and guidance will develop into a trusting relationship. Drink what you want with what you will when you’re ready.