Welcome to Drink & Pair where I write articles about food and wine pairings. Most of my content is directed to those new at drinking wine and thus I try to keep my pairings simple, while still going into enough detail as to why that food and wine pairing works.
The beautiful thing about Food and Wine Pairing is that it can be as simple or complex as you want it to be. With Drink & Pair, my goal has always been to keep it simple, while dropping enough hints to allow you to get more in-depth with your pairings if you wish. I do this by writing blogs that explain the more advanced nuances of Food and Wine Pairings, yet I offer tables with Food and Wine scores to keep it easy for those of you in a rush.
My blogs are from a North American view, with my most popular wine pairings being ham, chicken alfredo, filet mignon, turkey and roast beef.
I refuse to embrace Artificial Intelligence, and I assure you, all of my pairings do not use AI like I am seeing many other newer wine pairing websites use. This site and wine pairing database have been around in one form or anther since 2010 and has been built slowly over the years. Pairings have either been tried out by myself, with others in a restaurant/gathering, or heavily researched by consulting other sommeliers. (certain food allergies prevent me from trying every dish)
The food and wine pairing database above is a great tool to find an excellent wine pairing match. A 3.5 star match means the pairing is good, and your guests will enjoy it. Also at a 3.5, either the wine or food will taste better (or taste enhanced) in the company of one another, but not both. For example, at a 3.5 your burger loaded with ketchup and Dijon mustard might taste better with a Rioja Reserva, however, the wine’s flavour will not improve with this pairing.
A rating of 4 means we are starting to see the food and wine influence one another, and you’ll taste notable improvements for both when they are paired together
A 5 star ranking means the pairing is a Holy Grail and you are in for a meal you will never forget.
The matching tool does not specifically use branded wines, so you need to type in the type of wine (Chardonnay, Pinot Grigio, Chianti, Shiraz, Bordeaux, Cabernet Sauvignon, etc). You can also use the filters at the bottom of the tool to narrow down your searches.
Latest Food & Wine Pairings
Corn Dogs & Wine Pairing
Acidic white wines like Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc, Vouvray and Sparkling wine are essential when pairing with a corn dog. The greasy corn battered breading can easily overwhelm your taste buds, making the corn dog [...]
Venison & Wine Pairing
Venison pairs best with rich, earthy red wines such as Syrah, Barolo, Bordeaux, and Nero D'Avola. Deer meat is not high in fat when compared to beef, thus, it is not as flavourful, and [...]
Calamari & Wine Pairing
Calamari pairs best with crisp white wines such as Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Grigio, and Sparkling Wine. If you are not a white wine drinker, Rosé or Cold Beer will make for beautiful pairings [...]
Pinotage & Food Pairing
A South African Pinotage pairs best with barbecued beef, roasted pork, bacon, venison burgers, and Chorizo sausage. Pinotage is a wine that is a cross between the Cinsault Grape and Pinot Noir Grape. Loaded [...]
Wild Boar & Wine Pairings
Wild Boar requires red wine with a lot of personality, such as Shiraz, Amarone, Barolo, Super Tuscan, and Brunello di Montalcino. Younger Wild Boar has more fat, is more flavourful and is much more tender [...]
Super Tuscan & Food Pairing
A Super Tuscan pairs best with rich and meaty foods such as Wild Boar Stew, Venison, Steak, Pasta with Meat Sauce and Truffles, Roasted Lamb and Roast Beef. There is an incredible amount of [...]
Vino Nobile di Montepulciano & Food Pairing
Vino Nobile di Montepulciano pairs best with aged, medium-cooked steaks, game birds, mushroom dishes, rich pastas, stews, and wild boar. Vino Nobile di Montepulciano is a medium to full-bodied red wine with high acidity [...]
Brachetto d’Acqui & Food Pairing
Naturally sweet, Brachetto d'Acqui is fantastic with fruity, creamy, or chocolaty desserts, such as fruit tarts, strawberry ice cream, brownies, chocolate mousse, or Crème Brûlée. The fizzy and light fruity flavours of Brachetto d'Acqui also [...]
Muscadet & Food Pairing
Muscadet pairs best with clams, chicken, grilled fish, goat cheese, mussels and oysters. Muscadet is a light white wine which is dry, crisp and refreshing. Muscadet should be drunk while it's young. When it [...]
Pecan Pie & Wine Pairing
Pecan pie pairs best with sweeter fortified or dessert-styled wines such as Marsala, Vin Santo, Tawny Port, Oloroso Sherry and Muscat De Beumes De Venise. Best Wine with Pecan Pie Marsala & Pecan Pie [...]
Chili Dogs & Wine Pairing
Chili dogs pair best with light to medium-bodied reds such as Beaujolais, Pinot Noir, Zinfandel, Malbec and Rosé. With their savoury, spicy, and satisfying flavours, Chilii dogs are a classic staple at ball games, fairs, [...]
White Vacqueyras & Food Pairing
White Vacqueyras pairs best with grilled seafood and shellfish dishes, along with lighter meat dishes like chicken satay, pork tenderloin medallions stuffed with dried fruit and veal chops. White Vacqueyras is a wine from [...]