How do you pair wine with food?

The basic rule for pairing wine with food is to match wine colors to the heaviness of foods, such as champagne with appetizers, white wines with fish and poultry and red wines with beef or lamb. This also applies to the course servings; start light, and progress toward dark wines.

Specific types of white and red wines can be paired with foods based on sweetness or tartness of the wines. Pairing sweet wines with salty or spicy foods works well, as does pairing a dry wine with an earthy or hearty food. Cheesy dishes mix well with rose wines, whereas Cabernet and Bordeaux wines nicely complement beef and pork.