IX.  FOOD AND WINE<

This subject is enormous. Perhaps as time goes by I'll develop a listing, but we'll start with some basics:

"Drink red wines with meat, white wines with fish."

Wrong!

Drink whatever wine you like that you think goes with whatever you are eating. There aren't any rules. The fact that there are some combinations that "many" people think best complement food and wine is a good guide, but if you don't like it, or you like something else, do it! And red wine goes very well with a lot of fish, thank you.

From a chemical standpoint, what you do when drinking wine can have an enormous impact on what you drink (or whether you should drink at all).

Try an experiment. Dissolve 1/8th teaspoon salt in a gallon of water. Do the same with sugar and another gallon of water. Take a sip of one then taste a wine. Try it with the other. You may be very surprised. Since your taste buds are extremely sensitive, eating food radically changes the way a wine can taste. This is why tasting wine without eating the food you intend to eat it with may steer you wrong when it comes to what you really like.

FOOD COMBINATIONS PEOPLE HAVE LIKED

I don't necessarily agree with or have tried the food and wine combinations that are related in this section. In fact, it is such an overwhelming area, I don't even know if it is a good idea to start. But since a FAQ should answer Frequently Asked Questions, here are some of the ones that have come up a lot.

Wine and Chocolate

Some will say this isn't possible. I think they're wrong. You'll find chocolate notes in Cabernet and this can make it a decent match. Also try Merlot or Zinfandel. A correspondent tells me that there is a chocolatier near the Musee D'Orsay in Paris that has a whole sheet of suggestions for wine with chocolate. Some of the best ideas are, he thinks: Vin Jaune, an "incredible, almost sherried wine" from the Jura; Chateau Chalon; fine solera Malaga; or an assertive young white port.

Wine and Duck

Peking Duck (with sweet sauce): White Hermitage, Pinot Gris, Sancerre or Pouilly Fume

Plain Roast Duck: Bordeaux, Cabernet, Australian Chardonnay, California Pinot Noir, Madiran, Cotes de Buzet Misc.: Spanish Rioja, preferably and Reserva or Gran Reserva