What wine goes with chicken? Filet Mignon? Find the perfect match here! Wine Search It’s all a matter of taste….and while we can offer you some suggestions with our search, you might want to consider the following from winery chef Jeffrey Star: As printed in the Union Leader, Executive Chef Jeffrey Star of the Trinchero Family Vineyards in Napa Valley, notes that, “…there are guidelines, but no absolutes when it comes to a marriage between wine and food. Basically, anything goes. Starr feels three components are necessary for a successful marriage between wine and food—body, taste and flavor. “In considering body, the old adage about serving white wine with seafood and red wine with meat can still hold true,” said Starr who was interviewed at The Union Leader offices while touring New England. If you are planning to serve a light seafood dish, he recommends a light-bodied, very fruity and crisp wine like a white Sauvignon Blanc. If the menu calls for a medium-bodied tenderloin roast, Starr suggests a pinot noir. And if your guests are dining on a big grilled steak, he proposes a heavy-bodied wine, perhaps a cabernet sauvignon.

Starr said the second step in matching food and wine is to balance the five basic tastes, sweet, sour, salty, butter and umami. Umami is often described as “deliciousness or savoriness.” It was discovered by Japanese researchers who traced it to the presence of high concentrations of the amino acid L-glutamate in mushrooms, fresh clams and certain other foods. He said salty and sour tastes cause wine to taste milder and fruitier. Sweet, bitter and umami tastes make wine appear to be stronger and more tannic (bitter). “If the food appears to make the wine taste somewhat sour or bitter,” he said, “try adding a little salt and a dash of lemon.” Pairing wine and food flavors is the third component in a successful marriage. For example, he said, if you are serving a cherry sauce with grilled duck, match the flavor elements with the cherry in the wine. Starr, who has been a chef for 15 years, established the original Coyote Café restaurant in Santa Fe, NM. “A light crisp wine like a white Zinfandel tames the fire in a spicy Mexican dish, but is light enough so as not to interfere with the delicate flavor of the dish.”