Superbowl Sunday can be a fun day for wine lovers, too! If you're looking for vino for the big game that will taste good with all of the delicious Super Bowl grub, look no further.
A general rule of thumb I have learned for food and wine pairing is to pair the intensity of the food with the intensity of the wine. However, that can be difficult with so many food options to snack on, all at once!
White wines: Verdejo from Rueda, Spain, Albariño from Rias Baixas, Spain, or Torrontés from Argentina. These wines are aromatic, zesty, citrusy, crisp and refreshing. All of these white wines have high levels of acidity, which match well with salty and fatty food, balancing out the richness. They are also nice and light and very wallet friendly.
If you're feeling bold, try a sweeter white, such as a Riesling, with either spicy food, like buffalo wings, for contrast, or to pair with dessert. If you decide to pair with dessert, take a sip of the wine first, then a bite of the dessert- suddenly the wine does not taste as sweet!
Look for: Torrontés from the Salta region of Argentina. These wines tend to be drier than those from Mendoza, which tend to be sweeter. Also look for Vino Verde, a wine from Portugal made mostly with Albariño grapes. The Italian Vermentino is also an excellent choice and highly under-rated!
Sparkling wines: Sparkling wine is very food friendly all around, and great to drink by itself too! Dry sparkling goes great with salty food and the bubbles cleanse the palate, similar to the way that beer does. I would suggest Champagne from the region in France, or for real bang for your buck, Cremant (sparkling wines made like Champagne but technically from other French regions) or Cava, a sparkling wine from Spain, made with native Spanish grapes, also in the same method.
Look for: Brut, Extra Brut or Brut Nature (the driest) on the label. I would go with a Blanc de blancs, because those are made only from Chardonnay grapes and tend to be lighter. With Cava, look for 'Reserva' on the label, and a green sticker on the bottle. The aging requirements are similar to Champagne, producing a higher quality wine. Also, as always, a rose sparkling is a great choice!
Red wines: A great pairing for red wines is beef based dishes like burgers, or they also pair well with barbecue. Reds go great with pizza, too!
Look for: A Garnacha, from Spain, or a Grenache, the same grape varietal, from France. A Syrah would also work well. All of these reds have smokey undertones making this a perfect pairing. Barbera d’Alba is a great red choice from Italy, which would pair perfectly with pizza.
Rosé wines: In the same way that Champagne is not just for special occasions, rosé is not just for summer! Salty dishes and almost all kind of cheeses pair well with a dry rosé, which makes this wine a great go-to choice. Since rosé is made using red wine grapes (and less skin contact than red wine), the grape varietal does matter when it comes to the body of the wine, among other things.
Look for: For a lighter choice, look at those made from Pinot Noir, the Provence region of France. Light to medium bodied, I'd go with an Italian rose made from Sangiovese grapes. Medium bodied Rosados from Spain, made with Garnacha are also excellent, as is Tempranillo rose or rose of Malbec from Argentina. Heavier roses tend to be made with Cabernet Sauvignon, or Syrah grapes.
Keep in mind, these are just a few suggestions...there is a much bigger world of wine out there- so start drinking. Cheers!
Tips sourced from Vivino, VinePair, Wine for Normal People, Wine Folly and myself. Cheers!
A general rule of thumb I have learned for food and wine pairing is to pair the intensity of the food with the intensity of the wine. However, that can be difficult with so many food options to snack on, all at once!
Recommendations
White wines: Verdejo from Rueda, Spain, Albariño from Rias Baixas, Spain, or Torrontés from Argentina. These wines are aromatic, zesty, citrusy, crisp and refreshing. All of these white wines have high levels of acidity, which match well with salty and fatty food, balancing out the richness. They are also nice and light and very wallet friendly.
If you're feeling bold, try a sweeter white, such as a Riesling, with either spicy food, like buffalo wings, for contrast, or to pair with dessert. If you decide to pair with dessert, take a sip of the wine first, then a bite of the dessert- suddenly the wine does not taste as sweet!
Look for: Torrontés from the Salta region of Argentina. These wines tend to be drier than those from Mendoza, which tend to be sweeter. Also look for Vino Verde, a wine from Portugal made mostly with Albariño grapes. The Italian Vermentino is also an excellent choice and highly under-rated!
Sparkling wines: Sparkling wine is very food friendly all around, and great to drink by itself too! Dry sparkling goes great with salty food and the bubbles cleanse the palate, similar to the way that beer does. I would suggest Champagne from the region in France, or for real bang for your buck, Cremant (sparkling wines made like Champagne but technically from other French regions) or Cava, a sparkling wine from Spain, made with native Spanish grapes, also in the same method.
Look for: Brut, Extra Brut or Brut Nature (the driest) on the label. I would go with a Blanc de blancs, because those are made only from Chardonnay grapes and tend to be lighter. With Cava, look for 'Reserva' on the label, and a green sticker on the bottle. The aging requirements are similar to Champagne, producing a higher quality wine. Also, as always, a rose sparkling is a great choice!
Red wines: A great pairing for red wines is beef based dishes like burgers, or they also pair well with barbecue. Reds go great with pizza, too!
Look for: A Garnacha, from Spain, or a Grenache, the same grape varietal, from France. A Syrah would also work well. All of these reds have smokey undertones making this a perfect pairing. Barbera d’Alba is a great red choice from Italy, which would pair perfectly with pizza.
Rosé wines: In the same way that Champagne is not just for special occasions, rosé is not just for summer! Salty dishes and almost all kind of cheeses pair well with a dry rosé, which makes this wine a great go-to choice. Since rosé is made using red wine grapes (and less skin contact than red wine), the grape varietal does matter when it comes to the body of the wine, among other things.
Look for: For a lighter choice, look at those made from Pinot Noir, the Provence region of France. Light to medium bodied, I'd go with an Italian rose made from Sangiovese grapes. Medium bodied Rosados from Spain, made with Garnacha are also excellent, as is Tempranillo rose or rose of Malbec from Argentina. Heavier roses tend to be made with Cabernet Sauvignon, or Syrah grapes.
Keep in mind, these are just a few suggestions...there is a much bigger world of wine out there- so start drinking. Cheers!
Tips sourced from Vivino, VinePair, Wine for Normal People, Wine Folly and myself. Cheers!
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