Become a Pro Chef at Your Next Dinner Party With These Food and Wine Pairings

With this helpful guide of food and wine parings, your guests will assume that you’ve been hosting dinner parties for ages.

15:17 01 August 2022

If you’ve found yourself hosting your first dinner party and you’re still new to the fancy living lifestyle, don’t fret! Learning the basics is easy and can be quite interesting as well. With this helpful guide of food and wine parings, your guests will assume that you’ve been hosting dinner parties for ages. Even if you’re not the host, being aware of and memorizing these popular parings will help guide your next conversation with a fellow dinner party attendee. If you come across a wine that you’re interested in, search online “Liquor store near me” to find a great place to go to speak with a wine professional about what is best for you and your event. 

 

Charcuterie board appetizer with Pinot Noir 

Cheese boards and wine go together like peanut butter and jelly, chips and salsa, wasabi and ginger, or rum and coke. It’s one of the most classic pairings of food and beverage and can be modified to fit any party’s aesthetic or a certain person’s taste. If you like sweeter tastes, this can be served as a dessert with sweet cheeses with a sweet wine like a moscato or tokaij. However, it’s recommended that this be served hors d'oeuvres style with savory additions like olives, pickles, and smoked cheeses. These savory additions will pair unbelievably well with Pinot Noir. 

 

Unoaked Chardonnay and Mahi Mahi

White wine paired with fish is a no brainer, but what is the best wine for a popular fish? Seafood is an acquired taste for many, with some people avoiding the cuisine altogether. Consider the taste palettes of your guests when developing a dinner party menu. If most of your party is ok with seafood, but others are slightly on the fence, consider serving up a dish that includes Mahi Mahi. This is a popular fish that many in your group may have had before and has a very mild fishy flavor that is sure to be a hit with your dinner party group. The best pairing for Mahi Mahi is an unoaked chardonnay. This is a rather unusual flavor that is sure to impress even the snobbiest wine aficionado. 

 

Cabernet Franc and Beef Wellington

Beef wellington. It’s one of the most popular and classic dinner party entrees. From the intricacies on the lattice and the juiciness of the beef – this is a showstopper for sure. If this is your first time serving up a beef wellington and unsure what wine will expertly accompany the dancing flavors of this dish – consider a cabernet franc. This is a lesser known wine, but it is a blend of cabernet sauvignon and merlot in the Bordeaux style. This French wine is also commonly referred to as Bouchet, Bouchy, and Breton. 

 

Rose and a summer salad

If you’re in charge of a quick girls brunch, you simply can’t go wrong with a fresh summer salad and a chilled Rosé. If you’re already feeling refreshed, you may be wondering why it is such a great pair. Without getting technical, the acidity in vinaigrette commonly used to dress salads combined with a dry and fruity rosè makes an interesting, refreshing and irresistible flavor. If you want to change things up, but still stay on the refreshing route, consider offering an orange wine for your guests to try. It’s still as refreshing as rosé, but adds a new layer of sophistication that many have yet to experience.

 

Cheesecake and sauternes

If you’re struggling to come up with a proper dessert course for your dinner party, or you’re in charge of bringing the sweets to your in-laws get together – you’re in the right place. A high-level, yet effortlessly simple pairing is New York style cheesecake paired with a chilled glass of sauternes. This dessert wine was made famous thanks to the noble rot – called the dotrytis cinerea mold – which makes the wine very sweet and complex. Don’t get a funky flavor from your favorite bakery, keep it simple with classic cheesecake to ensure the pairing is evident to your guests. Taking a gamble on a crazy cheesecake flavor without testing if the pairing will work is risky. Consider trying a unique flavor in the comfort of your own home before bringing it to your next dinner party. This way you can explain why the flavors blend so beautifully.

 

Roast pineapple and Tokaji

Another great dessert option is to roast pineapple slices and serve with cremé and tokaji. Tokaji is a Hungarian dessert wine that is very sweet with strong notes of fruit and caramel. The cremé served with the dish will add a layer of sophistication to the bare fruit. You can also choose to substitute the cremé for ice cream if you’d prefer something a little more traditional.