Food and wine matching is an excellent opportunity to sell wine. It can create a more enjoyable experience for your customers as well as encourage them to trade up. However, the whole subject of food and wine matching can be a minefield to navigate. The most important thing to remember is there are no set rules – and the customer is always right, even if they like drinking vintage Port with oysters. That said, here are a few simple guidelines that will help you create your own perfect matches:

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Food & Wine Matching - The Guidelines
The whole subject of food and wine matching can be a minefield to
navigate. The most important thing to remember is there are no set
rules – and the customer is always right, even if they like drinking vintage
Port with oysters. That said, here are a few simple guidelines that will
help you create your own perfect matches:
Match the Intensity
Foods that are intensely flavoured can overpower the flavour of wines, and intensely
flavoured wines can overpower lightly flavoured foods. Try to match the intensity of
flavours in both so that you can taste both the wine and the food, without one
overpowering the other.
Match Acids with Acids
If you have a dish with strong acidic content such as pasta with tomato sauce or a salad
with vinaigrette, match the food with a wine that has high acidity too. The acid in the food
will balance the wine, making the wine taste fruitier and less acidic.
Oiliness
In the same way that lemon cuts through the oiliness of smoked salmon, acidic wines work
well with oily and fatty foods by cutting through the richness.
Chilli Heat
When you put chilli heat and tannin together, they accentuate each other, making the
food seem spicier and the wine more tannic and alcoholic. Chilli heat can also make a
wine taste less sweet and fruity.
Local food likes local wine
In many regions of the world, traditional foods have developed alongside the local wine
styles, which is why regional dishes are often best paired with wine from the same region.
Try for example, Chianti with a big bowl of Tuscan pasta, or dry Fino Sherry with salty tapas.
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Match the Weight
Match the weight of the wine with the weight of the food. Heavy dishes like braised red
meat casserole will need a full-bodied wine. Light dishes like a salad needs a more
delicate light-bodied wine.
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Sweetness
Sweetness in food can make a wine taste drier, so when it comes to desserts, it’s a good
idea to make sure the wine is sweeter than the food. Sweet wines are also a good
contrast for salty foods, for example, try pairing blue cheese with Sauternes (a sweet
dessert wine from Bordeaux in France).