L'amore Italian Restaurant

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How To Pair The Right Wine With Italian Dishes

When you go out to eat at an Italian restaurant, one of the most common phrases you hear is, “would you like to see the wine list?” Of course, you want to make sure that you select the best wine possible for your meal. If you are wondering how to pair the right wine with Italian food, there are several tips that you should keep in mind. Take a look at some of the advice that we have put together below!

Go With The Bubbly For Your Appetizers

First, make sure that you reach for a wine that has bubbles for your appetizers. Some of the most common Italian appetizers involve quite a bit of salt. This might include arancini, a salumi plate, or a charcuterie board. Therefore, the touch of wine that accompanies sparkling wines is a great way for you to provide a bit of a festive start to your meal.

Reach For The Pinot Noir for Earthy Flavors

What are the most popular options is Pinot Noir. This is a wine that has a light body but an immense amount of flavor at the end. Therefore, this is an incredibly versatile wine that you can use to pair with your Italian dishes. In particular, Pinot Noir is great with earthy food. For example, if you are going to go with wild mushroom risotto, Pinot Noir is a classic pairing option. 

Pick Chardonnay For A Seafood Dish

There is nothing quite like fresh-caught fish from the Italian Riviera. If this is what you are choosing for your meal, then it is a good idea to reach for chardonnay. Chardonnay is a bit silky but also has a slight bite at the end of it. The smooth acidity makes it ideal for cutting through the creamy sauces that come in late accompany fish, shellfish, and other seafood dishes. If you are going with lobster fra Diavolo, then you should definitely reach for Chardonnay. 

Select Cabernet For A Steak Dish

Finally, if you are going with State, then go with a Cabernet Sauvignon. This is an assertive wine that can stand up to Rich meat without overpowering the flavor. The memorable sensations that you are going to create when you mix your steak with Cabernet Sauvignon are going to have you coming back for this meal again and again.

 

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What Are The Defining Characteristics Of Italian Wine?

When you think about Italy, one of the first thoughts that probably comes to your mind involves the quality of the wine. Italy is known for its why diversity of wine. One of the biggest reasons why Italian wine is so varied is that there are plenty of grapes that grow up and down the peninsula. Due to the diversity of grapes, there is also a lot of diversity in terms of the wine that Italy produces. If you are wondering what the defining characteristics of Italian wine are, it is helpful to take a closer look at how the wine is produced by each region.

Wine From Northern Italy

First, it is a good idea to take a look at the wine that is produced by Northern Italy. Northern Italy is bordered by the alps. Therefore, the climate here is very different than the climate along the Italian Riviera. This region is known for its white grapes and white wines. For example, Pinot Grigio is produced in this area of Italy. Furthermore, if you travel to Trentino and Lombardy, you are going to find the Champagne of Italy, which is known for producing some of the best sparkling wine and all of Italy. 

Wine From Central Italy

Wine from Central Italy is incredibly familiar to most people in the United States. This line is commonly used with pasta dishes, meat sauces, and olive oil. Furthermore, a lot of the wine from this part of Italy is paired with some of the most popular cheeses in the world. Central Italy is known for its incredible diversity and Landscape. Tuscany is the standard-bearer of this region. What are the most popular wines in this area include Chianti Classico, San Gimignano, and Bolgheri. 

Wine From Southern Italy

Finally, it is also important to take a look at Italian wine that comes from Southern Italy and the islands. Wines from this part of the country are much brighter in terms of their flavor than their earthy, strong Northern counterparts. The volcanic soil produces some of the best fruit in the world. In addition to grapes, this part of Italy is also known for its oranges and lemons. Because the Mediterranean Sea provides a tremendous amount of warmth, the wines of southern Italy provide flavor profiles that match. Fiano and Greco di Tufo produced in Southern Italy.

 

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Everything You Need to Know About Using Red Wine in Pasta Sauce

Take a look at the ingredients listed on the jars of pasta sauce in your kitchen pantry and you will likely find red wine listed more often than not.  A small amount of the right red wine has the potential to transform an average Italian dish into a spectacular one.  Red wine contains a variety of important compounds that dramatically improve the flavor of sauce as well as other cooked dishes.

Alcohol’s Role in Flavorful Sauce

The alcohol in wine triggers the release of flavor molecules into sauce, making every ingredient it contacts taste that much better.  Alcohol also dissolves fats, empowering sauce ingredients to release their nuanced flavors.  Other liquids and fats such as broth, water, olive oil and butter do not trigger a similar dissolving and subsequent flavor release.

As long as the alcohol is given sufficient time to cook off, it really will make the sauce taste that much better.  The best chefs in the business cook wine-infused sauce to the point that half the wine is cooked away.  Once the alcohol burns to this level, the sauce’s flavor begins to concentrate, providing quite the delicious taste.

Red Wine Acidity

Ask anyone who has paired a red wine such as Merlot with a dish featuring red tomato sauce about the experience and you will find the tomatoes burn straight through the wine, giving it a flat taste.  Low-acid wines like Merlot are overpowered by the highly-acidic tomato sauce used in pasta dishes, pizzas, etc.

This is precisely why truly elite chefs rely on wines like Chianti Classico for dishes featuring tomato sauce.  Chianti’s primary grape, the sangiovese, has the precise level of acid necessary to perfectly jive with that found in tomato sauce.

Perform a Taste Test

If you are still undecided as to whether red wine belongs in tomato sauce, perform a blind taste test.  Have a family member or friend prepare two separate pasta dishes: one with red wine-infused sauce and the other with plain sauce.  Give each a try and you will likely notice the pasta, pizza or other entrees topped with a sauce containing red wine tastes superior.  Red wine’s bold flavor really is the x-factor of the world’s best tomato sauces.

However, any old red wine will not suffice for truly tasty tomato sauce.  Our chefs abide by this mantra when it comes to using red wine in tomato sauce: “If we won’t drink it, we won’t eat it.”  This means you won’t find any table wine, wine from a box or any other subpar wine in our tomato sauce.  Our tomato sauce contains only the highest quality, most palate-pleasing red wine guaranteed to please your taste buds.

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Rosso or Bianco? Veneto or Toscana? How to Pair an Italian Wine with Your Dinner

10405143_SThe food and wine pairings that often appear at the bottom of a restaurant menu might seem like a difficult thing to dream up, but the reality of an elegant and unforgettable dinner party does not have to be hard to execute. If you’re organizing a dinner soon and are considering food and wine pairings that will be sure to impress, here are a few guidelines that will make for a successful evening replete with a meal your guests won’t soon forget.

Start Out with Sparkling

There are few more impressive ways to begin an evening than with a good glass of sparkling, so if you’re offering up olives and an antipasti tray, reach for a Prosecco or Spumante that will pair great with this first course. It’s a great way to get conversation flowing and will quickly engage your guests in the excitement of the evening.

Following with White Fish or Seafood?

There’s a standard rule that white wine is the best option if you’re serving a main dish like fish, seafood or anything that includes a cream sauce. While the crisp finish of a white will pair ideally with almost any food in these categories, a chardonnay or pinot bianco will provide further compliment.

If You’re Indulging in Red Sauce

If fish and cream sauce are not on the menu and you’re planning for traditional tomato sauce, it would be wise to reach for a bottle of light or medium-bodied red. While this type of wine will do well with tomato sauce, if you’re also serving veal or chicken, a merlot or chianti will be among the most perfect of pairings.

Go Bold with Game or Roast

The choice of a meaty main dish that is carried off without a hitch will likely impress your guests on its own, but a wine pairing that goes well will be sure to make it truly sing. You’ll want to stick with red for an entrée of roast or game, but make sure it’s something full-bodied like a rich cabernet sauvignon.

Aged Cheese and Amarone

If you plan to finish off the meal before the final course with a selection of cheeses, stick with a full-bodied red of the Amarone or Montepulciano varietal. It might seem like these would overpower each other, but the boldness of wine and cheese actually works in the favor of the other.

The Final Course

It’s in keeping with the tradition of dessert to offer coffee, but you may want to consider one last wine pairing to finish off the evening. Instead of something heavy, go back to the beginning with a sparkling wine like Asti Spumante or something sweet like Vin Santo.

There are many easy rules to follow that will make for an impressive dinner party wine pairing, but if there’s a bottle you’ve been waiting to try this can be a good guideline for taking a risk! Whatever the occasion, a wine pairing is an easy way to kick up your party a notch and impress upon your guests your menu-making savvy.

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3159 E Lincoln Dr
Phoenix , AZ 85016
Phone: 602.381.3159

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Credit for most photos: Kay W. Eskridge: Images By Kay

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Lunch
TBD.
Dinner
Mon – Sat: 4pm–9pm
Saturday Dinner: 4pm–9pm

Sunday Closed

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Mon – Fri: 4:00pm–6:00pm
No happy hour on Saturdays

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