At the start of each year, we often put forth resolutions, vowing to make changes – eat and cook better, exercise more, try new things. I refer to these declarations as intentions, which to me seem more directed and mindful. For me, one of those intentions has been to learn how to make various sauces, not doctoring up store-bought ones.
During the pandemic, I’ve been forced to cook more at home. I used new ingredients – maca powder, for example, totally unknown to me before the pandemic. I paired new wines with my new dishes. I incorporated learnings from my mother, and from my good friend Katie Roberts, an established chef in Providence.
This year, I look forward to pairing and sipping wine with my newly developed sauces, which are the key components of dishes when considering with which wine to pair. Here is my cheat sheet of various sauces and the best wines to pair with them. Important sauce considerations include acid, spice, herbs, body and cheese. Save it for future reference.
Primavera, herb and pesto sauces. The acid in these sauces is best paired with crisp, stainless-steel fermented whites or unoaked red wines. Try Italian whites – vernaccia, falanghina, vermentino or arneis or a French Loire Valley sauvignon blanc. For reds, pair with higher-acid Italian red options – unoaked Chianti, dolcetto or nebbiolo – or lighter unoaked cabernet franc, such as those from Rhode Island, upstate New York or France.
Creamy sauces. Carbonara sauces pair with whites that have a medium body and are not oaky. Try pinot blanc, pinot gris, unoaked chardonnay or the Italian white Soave. For a richer, cream-based dish, enjoy merlot or barbera.
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MATCHMAKER: The homemade meat sauce on this dish of pasta can be paired with a glass of primitivo or barbera. / COURTESY THE SAVORY GRAPE[/caption]
Tomato-based sauces. For fresh, whole tomato sauces, try crisp, dry, no-oak whites, like those from Switzerland, Slovenia and northern Italy’s Alto Adige. Unoaked, vibrant, fresh reds with acid work great, like sangiovese, nebbiolo or dolcetto. If you are having a slightly heavier tomato sauce, try montepulciano d’Abruzzo.
Seafood sauces – tomato- and butter-based. Red sauce with shellfish or fish or bouillabaisse are best with lighter, unoaked whites such as Portugal’s vinho verde (most are less than $10), France’s muscadet or picpoul de Pinet and dry Italian or French rosés. Light butter sauce with lobster or crab pair with whites such as viognier, chardonnay and aligoté from the Burgundy region of France and sauvignon blanc/semillon blends from Bordeaux.
Meat sauces. Bolognese, meatball and sausage-based sauces are great with primitivo or nero d’avola from Italy’s Sicily and Puglia, respectively, due to their higher acid levels and medium to full body. Likewise, red Bordeaux from France, comprised of cabernet sauvignon, merlot and cabernet franc, work great.
Mushroom sauces. Enjoy earthy or spicy-style wines such as riesling (local Newport Vineyards and Winery LLC makes a great one), gewürztraminer and chenin blanc for whites, and cabernet franc, gamay noir or barolo for reds.
Spicy sauces. A fruity wine is best for cooling down a spice’s heat, such as riesling and torrontes or reds such as zinfandel and Valpolicella ripasso. Stay away from high-alcohol wines; they will make the sauce taste spicier.
Teriyaki sauces. Teriyaki sauces can be salty, so try a low-tannin, fruity-style pinot noir, malbec or zinfandel. For whites, pair with a sweeter riesling or pinot gris.
Brown gravy. A classic brown gravy pairs well with light- or medium-bodied reds such as pinot noir, cotes du Rhone and even fruity zinfandel. For whites, try chardonnay or even a medium, off-dry sparkling.
Jessica Norris Granatiero is the founder of The Savory Grape, a wine, beer and spirits shop in East Greenwich.
