What's Going On in the World of French Wines

This has been a bit of a busy week. Wednesday was the Satellite Media Tour for Wines of France and so I spent most of the day in a studio in New York doing tv and radio interviews. I got to talk about French wines with folks from all over the US, and it was quite a lot of fun. It was also an interesting way to spend Bastille Day!

There were two main themes that I discussed during my interviews – the first was some thoughts on summer entertaining ideas and the second had to do with the idea of pairing French wines with all-American foods. In reality, these two themes are actually part of one larger idea – the notion of how to make wine (and really, it could be ANY wine) a part of a meal or occasion. For anyone who has read this blog in the past, you know where I stand on the idea that French wines are only appropriate for French foods. Of course, yes, it is nice when you have a situation where a traditional dish from a region is paired with a wine from that same region, but the idea that certain wines can ONLY be paired with fancy French dishes is actually a bit silly. I pair wine with just about everything – including macaroni and cheese, hamburgers, chili, roast chicken and pizza. And why not? Wine is, at its core, a beverage, and a tasty one at that.

But of course, there is the follow-up question which is, ok, well what wine should I pair with my hamburgers (or pizza or roast chicken)? This is a two part answer in my mind. One of the wonderful things about wine, and French wine in particular, is the amazing amount of diversity one can find. But sometimes we find this diversity overwhelming instead of exciting, and I think that is one reason why there are various “rules” that are out there about wine. Whether it is the idea that you should only pair white wines with seafood and red wines with meat, or the notion that you should only stick to a certain type or style of wine because of your “palate profile,” I find these types of rules too restricting for my tastes. There’s nothing wrong with having preferences – after all, when it comes to foods everyone has an opinion as to what they like and don’t like – but I do think there is something wrong with not being open to trying different wines or experimenting/playing with food and wine combinations. Think about it this way, if we all only stuck to one kind of food, how boring would eating be? And as a parent, you wouldn’t have a leg to stand on when you tell your child, you have to at least TASTE it before you decide you won’t eat it.

But back to the question – how do you know what wine to pair with certain foods? Well, if you are starting from the beginning, food and wine pairing suggestions, and there are many to be found on this website, can be helpful. But you shouldn’t look at them as set guide – they are usually just a starting off point. One of the things that I talked about on Wednesday as a fun way to handle this challenge was to turn a summer cookout into a wine tasting party. Choose several wines from my Wines of France list (that way you aren’t breaking the bank with your party budget) and have everyone bring a favorite summer dish to share. Throw some different types of meats and vegetables on the grill and then have some fun playing with different food and wine combinations. Try some wines that are new to you and see what you think. You might find an exciting new pairing you love, or you might decide that your old standby is still your favorite choice. Who knows? But that’s the exciting part – you won’t know until you try it!