One of the key principles behind the best pairing is to understand both the food you are serving and the wine, by analysing their basic components in order to enhance your dining experience. You can pair them as you wish, by textures, flavours or aromas and even pairings by colours can be amazing and beautiful (Vinho Verde Rosé DOM DIOGO PADEIRO – Salmon).

The idea is to try to find the right balance where neither the food nor the wine overpowers the other. When you combine a dish with a wine, you wish to create harmony and by definition, harmony results from balance and to create a balance, you have to respect the intensities. In other words, the dish should not crush the wine, and the wine should not crush the dish.

But, before even reading about the best food and wine pairings, you should consider YOUR personal taste. If a combination pleases you then it is a good choice for you!

Nevertheless, you can always do some trials at home to learn how you can always keep the intensity of flavours in balance, for example:

Acids go with acids

If you’re eating a dish with a strong acidic content such as fresh cheese salad with rocket, apples and walnuts pair it with an acidic wine that can keep up with the acids in the food – such as DOM DIOGO 100% AZAL or RAZA WHITE.

Wine and spices

Pairing wine with Asian food can be very challenging as the strong spices can clash and destroy the flavours of the wine. A not fully dry wine like DOM DIOGO 100% ARINTO vinho verde will pair well with highly- spiced curry..

Pair with the most dominant flavours of the dish

It is common to think that we need to pair a certain wine with the meat or with the fish. However, in some cases the sauce or cooking method have more influence on the actual taste of the dish. For instance, when you serve duck with a fruit-based sauce such as cherry or orange, choose a tasty rose like  DOM DIOGO 100% PADEIRO.

A salty food like Oysters or Goose barnacles, pair really well with dryer mineral wines like ours Quinta da Raza with ALVARINHO and AVESSO grapes.

Play on contrasts

We can choose to play on contrasts. Sweet-salty, light-powerful, spicy-syrupy, fatty-bubbly, anything goes! In the end, there are no mistakes in food and wine pairing. If the wine doesn’t work with the dish that you decided to pair it with, then it shouldn’t be considered a mistake. It will only help you in making your decision next time you prepare the same dish.

We recommend trying new more adventurous pairings. You may discover a pairing that you like even if it is unconventional. That’s what makes food and wine pairing exciting! Red wines and cheeses do not always make the best duo. Find a balance! If you are not sure… it is often a safe bet to pair wine with foods that are from the same region. If you are eating an “Arroz de Sarrabulho” or “rojões” (a pork dish), is there a better match than a DOM DIOGO 100% VINHÃO?