In the wine world, the function of sommelier is often wrongly attributed. Is the author of these lines, for example, a sommelier? Yes, but without an apron, given the experience acquired over the decades, but no, because he has not done any studies certifying this status. Obsessed, among other things, by the optimal fusion of a wine and a dish, the sommelier is a strange fanatic, never quite satisfied. His search for the gastronomic Grail certainly evokes the myth of Sisyphus, but also this kind of relentlessness in wanting to hold himself personally responsible in the event of coitus gastronomicus interruptus. The man or the woman of mouth does not have any more but to shower his pride in the stride.
Like a couple, aiming for the least bad marriage possible should already be the beginning of an approach to harmony. Afterwards, everything is discussed, even if nothing is ever quite settled. A simple variable in the condiments (feelings) and everything goes in another direction. A last minute garnish, for example, is enough to ennoble or, on the contrary, to sink an agreement which, however, should have remained beyond the waterline of good taste. Rules and principles exist. Yes, but which ones?
Food or wine first?
The former French starred chef Alain Senderens, met at Lucas Carton 20 years ago in the company of the Alsatian winemaker Étienne Hugel and the gentleman sommelier Georges Lepré (the equivalent of our gift Jean Léandri here), prefers for his part “to build” a dish around a drink. A fine taster, but above all a skilled “dream sealer”, the man quickly agrees that a great red on a rib of beef goes without saying, even if there is always something missing. Adding a simple béarnaise (egg, vinegar, tarragon, butter) as a garnish will take the animal fiber to another level, but allows Senderens to “cook” the food and wine pairing more thoroughly. Romorantin and Vermentino in white then become possible compared to the traditional Pomerol, Pic Saint-Loup or Madiran.
Let’s agree, to come back to the bottom line, that a simple dish requires an equally simple wine. A poutine from Victoriaville, PQ, as tasty as it is, will still make the soft fries in front of a Meursault from Burgundy, France. Conversely, a dish worked in detail will require the sommelier to cross-check several parameters (colour, acidity, texture, tannicity, etc.), wine side as well as dish side, to create not one but happy synergies allowing , as sommelier François Chartier suggests — through the effect of “aromatic synergy” — the equation “1 + 1 = 3, and sometimes even 4”.
Some tracks ? Whether it is a question of enhancing the wine or the dish, going there according to the color, the density and the aromatic framework of one and/or the other remains a good starting point.
Poultry, fish, veal, oysters, cheese, etc., already lean towards white, on the chromatic side, while duck, grilled flank steak and other stews will polymerize the tannins of red wines by integrating them as naturally as possible. Rosés, orange wines and barely sweet whites will go hand in hand with Thai, Chinese or Indian cuisine, where curries dominate. This general and non-exhaustive approach should also take into account the complexity of the dish and the context, the atmosphere where the wine and food reunion will take place.
As practical work, some useful agreement proposals… Furmint 2020, Disznókő, Tokaji Sec, Hungary ($20.80 – 13440700 – (5) ★★ 1/2). Reblochon, cheese soufflé. Picpoul 2019, Domaine Felines Jourdan, Languedoc, France ($17.95 – 14173084 – (5) ★★ 1/2). Salad, oysters, mussels. Cinsault 2019 “Forgive me”, South Africa ($16.95 – 14221349 – (5) ★★ 1/2). Brie, mushroom risotto, burger. Chateau Ferrande 2018, Graves, Bordeaux, France ($28.35 – 14147329 – (5) ★★★). Grilled tab, medium cheddar. Pinot Grigio “Ilramato”, Scarbolo, Friuli, Italy ($24.35 – 14467891 – ★★ 1/2). Raw ham, Indian curry, county. Banyuls Rimage 2019, Domaine La Tour Vieille, France ($27.30 for 500ml – 884908 – (10+) ★★★ 1/2). Bleu d’Élizabeth, lightly sweetened chocolate fondant.