Q: What are some kick-ass wine and vegetarian dish pairings?

So here it is...my very first blog post...evah!

I've decided that at least for now, I would like to organize this page as a wine Q&A. I am much more comfortable speaking than writing and this seems like the best way for me to get my creative juices flowing! Since you guys are the ones providing the topics, e-mail me jessica@ashevillewineconsulting.com with your all your wine queries! I'll try to answer at least one a day...here goes!

Q: What are some kick-ass wine and vegetarian dish pairings?
-Allie S. (@ashevilleallie via Twitter)

A: My dear Allie, what a beautiful question to begin my Q&A blog!

Folks ask me about wine pairing all the time, so here are some things to remember when choosing a wine (this goes for meat and seafood, too!)

1. To use a metaphor, I think the most important thing to remember about pairing wine is the canvas (rice, pasta, tofu, etc.) is often secondary to the paint colors (herbs, spices, fresh vegetables).

So, let’s choose polenta…say, of the creamy variety...as our “canvas” (which is a good example because it readily expresses whatever you choose to add). You have two basic options: to compare or to contrast flavors with your wine choice. So, if you were to add rosemary and thyme to your dish, you might want to choose a wine that displays herbal notes (like sauvignon blanc or Cotes du Rhone). Or you could contrast the earthiness of the dish with a fruity wine (like an albarino or Beaujolais).

2. The second thing to keep in mind (which I find really fun to play with) is texture! How do you want the food and wine to feel in your mouth? Let’s use the polenta again as our example: it’s creamy and soft. Maybe we’ve added some cheese, too. Why not choose a full-bodied wine that also displays a rich mouthfeel, like an oaked chardonnay, zinfandel or petit sirah? Or again, to contrast, we could pair a bright, high acid wine like pinot noir or New Zealand sauvignon blanc , which sort of “cuts through” the weight of the dish and brightens it up (kinda like squeezing a lemon over your grilled vegetables)!

3. Perhaps the easiest way to pair wine and food is to look at the regional origin of your dish and drink the wine that is made there!

If you’re making traditional Greek grape leaves stuffed with rice and herbs (Dolmathakia), why not seek out a Greek wine! Assyrtiko is a good example: it is a white grape that makes crisp, fruity wine that is commonly imported to the states.

Lots of fresh tomatoes on hand to make a sauce? The nice bright acids in tomatoes pair perfectly with the nice bright acids in Italian reds, especially the ones made from grapes grown in Tuscany like sangiovese (which is the main grape used in Chianti).

If you really love to make use of all these yummy locally grown veggies, maybe you should showcase a NC-made wine, too! That is an entirely separate topic, for sure, but some of my favorites include Rockhouse Vineyards Native Yeast Chardonnay and Cabernet Franc. They are in Tryon…not too far away!

So to sum it all up, the food and wine pairing experience is really just that – an experience. Have fun with it! Compare and contrast flavors, textures…play into regionality (I think I just made that word up!)…but mostly take a moment while you’re in the moment to really savor all of it – wine, food and friends!