Channeling Neil DeGrasse Tyson - or Red Wine with Fish
There are some principles in the universe that are simply immutable - concepts so basic and powerful that everything else flows from them, kind of like echoes in a canyon. I suppose that really smart people spend their days thinking about what all that means.
I mostly spend my time thinking about how glad I am that there are no universal laws like that about wine. OK, sure, there are guidelines to follow but nothing that could affect the space/time conintuum. In fact, I was backed into a corner at a friend’s house recently and forced to admit that I happily drank red wine with fish tacos. And grilled salmon. And a Chicken Caesar Salad.
You shouldn’t get the idea that I don’t love white wines though. I started in the restaurant business in college and had the good fortune to find myself invited to join a weekly tasting panel that sampled 50-75 wines each Thursday night for months. These were serious restaurant professionals – the wines were grouped by origin, grape variety, vintage, alcoholic content, etc. For a 19 year old kid, it was mind boggling. Needless to say, at the end of 6 months, I had tried thousands of wines and there was no looking back.
What never happened, however, was a discussion of how or when to serve the wines. They were strictly being judged on their own merit, as though there was some unwritten rule that food conversation was off limits. I didn’t know why this was at the time, but it definitely allowed me to focus on the task at hand. It was only years later that I realized if you are considering specific dishes as you taste wine, you will find it impossible to be impartial, as you brain starts sifting and comparing, looking for taste memories, scents from the past, elusive flavors that aren’t present in the glass in front of you, causing you to miss a potentially amazing discovery. So, keep it simple.
Like I said, there is no shortage of books, websites, sommelier classes, etc. to teach you about the proper balance and weight of matching food to wine. There is a warm place in my heart for the multi course dinner with perfectly paired wines all along the way. But remember that sometimes the issue is simpler than all that. Appreciate something that is right in front of you and spend your time drinking and eating what you like.
Particularly if that something is a Fish Taco & Ridge Lytton Springs Zinfandel.