For milleniums, Man has cultivated the vine; he has learned to choose grape varieties and to adapt them to the soil, to the climate. This close relationship between Man and Nature has given birth to wines, a drink appreciated by gods and kings... In Paris, in the bistrots, the restaurants, the brasseries, the neighbourhood cafés, wines are there, already familiar or to be discovered, throughout the year... This guide will lead you through this extremely rich world.
(Prepared with the collaboration of the Musée du Vin and Mme Josse)
Harmonies and savours
 France, a country with a worldwide reputation for its gastronomy, proves that dishes and wines cannot be separated, and that quite to the contrary, their harmony makes a truly beautiful combination. The great many French appellations make it possible to harmonize a dish and the wine, to make what wine specialists call: 1 +1 = 3; that is, that the dish has its savour, the wine its taste and its aromas, and that the two of them combined together provide a third entity, a flavour different from the two others that we will enjoy.
The combinations of dishes and red wines are infinite but a rule stands out: the heavier the dish, the stronger the wine must be. In this way, pâtés, game and meats in sauce combine perfectly with robust wine. Cheese combine perfectly with full-bodied wines, but the flavour of the cheese must not kill that of the wine accompanying them.
Dry, fruity wines are the best before-dinner drinks that one can serve. In France there is a wide choice: Chablis, Petit Chablis, Saint-Véran, Pouilly Fuissé, Sancerre, Pouilly Fumé, Muscat… be they rounded, dry, with a nice bouquet or rather sweet or mellow such as Gaillac, Chaumes, Bergerac or other Sauternes… depending on their freshness or their stength, they will be able to meet your tastes.
Dry white wines, with their wide margin of adaptability, can go with a meal from the start, to be complementary to the dishes served: an Entre Deux Mers, a Pouilly Fumé, a Menetou Salon, all combine with a platter of shellfish. Wines from Alsace, more aromatic, will go with quiches and saurkrauts. The wines with the most bouquet, the great white Burgundies, the Graves de Pessac Léognan, real wines for tasting will harmonize with the most sophisticated recipes, with fish in sauce, with escargots, with lobster...
It should not be forgotten that white wines are a marvel with cheeses and a crottin de Chavignol (goat cheese) is a classic combination; for a more surprising one, a Livarot with a Condriue creates wonderful sensations.
As for sweet, mellow or syrupy wines, for some years now they have come to hold an important place in wine tastings: a Pacherinc du Vic Bilh, a Jurançon, a Sauternes, a Saussignac, a Quart de Chaumes, Vendanges Tardives or Grains Nobles d’Alsace will be an elegant partner for foies gras, for Roquefort, for chocolate desserts…
|
