Food & Wine, Simplified

 In the past, I've made suggestions of food to have with Sangiovese or wines to have with your grilled burgers, for example. I once attempted a more all-inclusive post on wine and food pairing guidelines. I said "attempted" because it got so confusing that I gave up and it was never published. It doesn't help that I'm not an expert on the subject. This time I'll try to get the basics right.

A simple, delicate meal best with a similar wine

What to think about

As many have said before, since you're preparing a meal you like, you should at least have a wine you like with it. That is, if you don't like Sauvignon Blanc, don't pair it with your meal just because you read somewhere how well your dish will go with SB.

I also look at the weather. If it's hot, then heavy wines like Cabernet Sauvignon don't work for me, whereas on a chilly night it would be great.

How to choose a wine

The simplest way to look at pairings is light and delicate vs. heavy and/or strong meals. Light and delicate meals like most seafood prepared simply should have a light wine. Big, heavy meals with big flavors go best with the heavier, more complex wines. If you take a fish and rice dish prepared simply, then it qualifies as a lighter dish. Once you prepare it in a garlic cream sauce, it's no longer delicate. Heavy dishes are things like a beef stew or a pasta dish in a creamy tomato sauce with lots of meat.

There's nothing here about white wine with white meat and red wine with red meat.

The wines

Lighter wine examples
Pay attention to alcohol levels. The lower the alcohol, the lighter the wine. Once you get to about 14% these lighter wines become medium-bodied.
Whites: Off-dry Riesling, Pinot Gris, unoaked Chardonnay, Italian Prosecco and other off-dry sparkling wines
Reds: Gamay, Grenache, Pinot Noir

Medium wine examples
Once any of these wines reach the upper 14% range, they become heavier bodied.
Whites: Chenin Blanc, Sauvignon Blanc, dry Riesling, lightly-oaked Chardonnay, rosé
Reds: Merlot, Tempranillo, Sangiovese, Shiraz (a lighter, lower alcohol version of Syrah)

Heavier wine examples
Whites: Oaked Chardonnay, Viognier
Reds: Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec, Zinfandel, Syrah.

Hearty beef stew. Made for a hearty wine, like Syrah