Matching wines with Chinese cuisine
Exploring Chinese cuisine is a triple happiness for wine and food lovers.
First happiness: With a wealth of full-service restaurants, storefront BYOB's and takeout, your Chinese culinary adventure can fit many schedules and budgets.
Second happiness: Because Chinese recipes rely on freshly cooked ingredients, spice, herbs and sweetness - not fat - for flavor, wine that pairs successfully is generally meant for early consumption, without the tannin, barrel-ageing and expense of wine crafted for long maturation.
Third happiness: The combination of wine with Chinese cuisine is delicious.
It would be as misleading to recommend one wine with Chinese cuisine just as I couldn't recommend one wine with American cuisine such as New Orleans' jambalaya, Chicago-style steak and New England lobster. But the same general guidelines apply when pairing wine with Chinese food as they do with all other cuisines.
First, look for common denominators of flavor. Pair light dishes with light wine, richer dishes with richer wine. The earthy, soy flavors of Shanghai's "red cooking" pair with an earthy red, like Petite Sirah. Lighter Cantonese dishes, such as steamed seafood and poultry, call for light whites, especially aromatic styles such as Tocai (from northern Italy), Gruner Veltliner (Austria), Albarino (Spain) or international Riesling.
This "common denominators" guideline applies except when serving salty, smoked or spicy dishes. With fiery Kung Pao Chicken or Tea Smoked Duck of Sichuan, serve a sweet or very fruity wine such as Riesling, Vouvray (from France) or a light, fruit-forward Pinot Noir.
Third, remember the biochemistry of Bacchus. Red wine contains tannin, an acid that creates bitter, astringent sensations on the palate. (For a nonvinous example of tannin, taste black coffee, also high in tannin.) This bitter astringency transforms to rich, smooth sensations when tannin binds with fat - steak paired with red wine for instance, or cream added to coffee.
With little fat to bind, tannin remains bitter and astringent paired with Chinese cuisine. Save your richly tannic Napa Cab or First Growth Bordeaux for all-American steak. If you prefer to drink red with Chinese dishes, choose low-tannin styles such as fruity Pinot Noir (from California or Oregon), Beaujolais-Villages (France) or a lighter Malbec (Argentina.)
China's family-style dining with everyone sharing many dishes can make for an easy culinary adventure for two or 20. Ask each guest to bring their own bottle to join the fun.
Some wines to recommend include:
Riesling, "Kung Fu Girl", Charles Smith - Produced specifically for Asian cuisine, this light white is barely sweet but bursts with apricot, pear, lime, and vibrant minerality. ($14) Another canny wine marketer - Bonny Doon Vineyards - bottles "Pacific Rim Riesling" with peach and citrus flavors. ($10)
Pinot Noir, Block No. 45 - Dry-ish with cherry flavors accented with brown spice and silky tannin, this good-value Pinot pairs with duck, pork and the richest seafood dishes. ($14) Look also for Block No. 45 Petite Sirah ($10) for richer meat dishes.
Merlot, Mandolin - Nearly sweet with berry and cherry flavors and soft tannin, this light merlot was preferred over more lofty labels when paired with meaty dishes such as twice-cooked pork, spare ribs and beef with black bean sauce. ($10)
Finally, if there is one wine style that pairs with all foods, it's sparkling wine. My favorite Chinese wine and food memory involves a family-run Chinese restaurant in Paris, a crabmeat-stuffed lobster tail and Champagne Jean Laurent Blanc de Noirs Non-Vintage, made from 100 percent Pinot Noir and bursting with summer fruit flavors. (Limited availability in area stores, about $50. Distributed by Louis Glunz Wines.) For an easier find, choose an American Blanc de Noirs, such as Chandon or Gruet, both about $15.
An excuse to keep the New Year festivities going with delicious food and bubbly? That's quadruple happiness!
• Contact Advanced Sommelier and Certified Wine Educator Mary Ross at food@dailyherald.
Ross' choice
Viognier Tepusquet Vineyard
2007
Cambria Estate Wines
Santa Maria Valley, Calif.
• Suggested retail and availability: mid-$20s at boutique shops and wine and liquor stores. (Distributed by Judge & Dolph, Wood Dale)
Luscious mouthfeel, concentrated flavor and lingering finish makes this white wine a satisfying complement for stick-to-the-ribs winter cuisine.
Santa Maria Valley's cool climate adds vibrant acidity to Viognier's (vee-ohn-YAY) characteristic grapefruit and tangerine accents. Enjoy with spicy Indian and Asian dishes (such as coconut milk curry or stir-fried pork with ginger and basil) and the richest seafood or poultry, especially prepared with fruity sauce (such as grilled sea bass with mango salsa).