As the weather cools, we enjoy heartier dishes, including comfort food. But which wines should you pair with them? Here with her tips is Maritimer Natalie MacLean who offers Canada’s most popular online wine classes at nataliemaclean.com.
Welcome Natalie. First off, are there such things as comfort wines?
After much research on this topic, I concluded there were no “uncomfortable wines” since I found them all of great comfort ;) However, I found that certain wines tend to pair better with comfort food than others.
Great! Tell us about your first pairing.
Comfort food tends to have rich, robust flavours. For these dishes, I’d pair full-bodied red wines, such as these two:
Benziger Family Winery Sonoma County Merlot
Sonoma County, California, United States
Benziger Merlot is a robust Californian red with aromas of fleshy ripe blackberry and dark plums.
Peller Estates Family Reserve Winemaker’s Red
Ontario V.Q.A., Canada
Peller Winemaker’s Red, from Niagara, is a blend of Cabernet and Merlot, with notes of cassis and smoke. They’d be perfect with a hearty beef stew or pepperoni pizza.
Looks delicious. What do you suggest next?
Thanksgiving is right around the corner, so I’d suggest having a couple of celebratory sparkling wines from Nova Scotia, like these two:
Blomidon Cuvée L’Acadie Brut Sparkling
Annapolis Valley, Nova Scotia, Canada
Blomidon Cuvée l’Acadie is a crisp, refreshing sparkling wine from the Annapolis Valley with notes of green apple and freshly baked bread.
Benjamin Bridge Méthode Classique Brut Rosé
Nova Scotia, Canada
Benjamin Bridge Brut Rosé from the Gaspereau Valley is such a pretty bubbly that’s juicy with aromas of field strawberries. They’d be perfect with roast turkey or chicken as well as all the comforting side dishes, from cranberry sauce to mashed potatoes.
What are your final pairings?
I don’t want to leave out white wine lovers. For rich, creamy dishes, you could either go with:
Lightfoot & Wolfville Ancienne Chardonnay
Annapolis Valley, Nova Scotia, Canada
A full-bodied, luxuriously layered white wine like the Lightfoot & Wolfville Ancienne Chardonnay, which has gorgeous aromas of toasted almonds and peach.
St. Supéry Dollarhide Vineyard Sauvignon Blanc
Napa Valley, California, United States
Or you could try this Sauvignon Blanc from St. Supery in California that has the racy acidity to cut through a cream sauce as well as lifted notes of lemon zest. These would pair beautifully with a pasta penne with feta cheese or a creamy mushroom risotto
Southbrook Vineyards Vidal Skin Fermented Orange Wine
Ontario V.Q.A., Canada
Thank you, Natalie. You can find all the wines Natalie mentioned today, plus her courses at nataliemaclean.com.
Posted with permission of CTV.
