How to choose the right white wine?

What is your ideal dinner? Surely it should be something unusual, a light dish accompanied, for example, by a glass of wine. Today we will tell you how to choose the right white wine and what dishes this wonderful drink goes with.

Let's start with the aperitif. You can prepare and “warm up” your body before a meal with either fresh juice or juice (citrus, pomegranate, birch), or a glass of white wine. Let's focus on wine. For lovers of sparkling wine, we recommend Prosecco (Italy). This is a fruity, clear wine with little acidity, drinkable, gentle and refreshing. It will perfectly set you up for the upcoming dinner, quenching your thirst and whetting your appetite.

If you prefer “still” wines, try light young dry ones, for example, New Zealand “Sauvignon Blanc” - fresh, sour, mineral it will simply “crunch” in your mouth. Or the Italian Soave.

If you plan to drink wine only with the main course, but want something “with a degree” right now, the best aperitif would be vermouth or a spritz cocktail - this is Prosecco, to which Campari bitters are added in a ratio of 1:7. or Aperol, some soda and ice.

Now you need to decide: what do you want to enjoy - wine or food? If it’s food, then there’s no point in spending money on a drink and you can safely take inexpensive light wines. If it’s wine, then you should give preference to those that are “more powerful”, for which you will have to pay a certain amount of money. It should also be remembered that the richer and spicier the wine, the richer and spicier the cuisine should be for it.

Stewed or steamed fish will be complemented by unsaturated wines, such as Bordeaux Sauvignon Blanc and Italian Gavi. Wines from the French Loire Valley, such as Sancerre Blanc and Pouilly-Fumé, go well with grilled fish. These are light mineral wines with good acidity.

Fish generously seasoned with herbs or “bright” spices is best combined with “Spaniards” of the “Verdejo” and “Alboriño” grape varieties. They are distinguished by a good dense body (density, viscosity), bitterness and sourness present - while all the wines remain refreshing. Alsatian Gewürztraminer also complements spicy fish well.

Meat dishes flavored with cream sauce will be accompanied by white Bordeaux wines, white Burgundy and barrel-aged, oily, minimally acidic Chardonnay (if you take it young, it is better to use it with seafood).

What to serve for dessert? Late harvest wines (on the label in French - vendange tardive, English - late harvest), from raisined grapes (typical representatives are Italian “Richetto” and “Vinsanto”), from grapes affected by noble mold (for example, “Sauternes”), or fortified (“Sherry”, “Port”).

Late-harvested Gewürztraminer goes well with pear or peach drizzled with caramel syrup. If you want to add a touch of classics to your dinner, you can serve an inseparable pair for dessert - Sauternes and French Roquefort cheese. “Sauternes” will also perfectly highlight the taste of your baked goods, and if you serve it with fresh fruit, it will simply “explode” in your mouth with a juicy summer palette of flavors.

“Sherry” is favorable to dried fruits, it will also go well with the Swiss aromatic cheese with washed rind - “Tete de Moine”.

Alas, there is no wine that alone could accompany an entire meal (from aperitif to dessert). Dinner prepared for a group will not cause any trouble - with each change of dish you can pamper your guests with a new “accompaniment”. If the dinner is for two, then for reasons of economy and moderation you can limit yourself to a bottle of your favorite white wine, which, in accordance with our advice, will complement your culinary masterpieces. Bon appetit!