In this article we will explore pasta and wine pairing. Pasta and wine is something you can never get tired of. Pasta is so such a versatile food and with a quick google search it reveals that there are more than 350 pasta varieties.
Believe it or not, Pasta has had a strong effect on literature and art for the good and the bad. For instance in December 1930, the futurist artist F. T Marinetti declared war on pasta with the publication of ‘The Manifesto of Futurist Cuisine’. When I think of wine & pasta in positive terms, Sophia Loren comes to mind with her famous quote:
I’d much rather eat pasta and drink wine than be size 0. Everything you see I owe to spaghetti
The pasta tradition goes a long way in film as well. When it comes to famous food scenes in movies. Over the decades, pasta has found a niche in plots with familiar and crisp characters including some bloodshed. Some of the most famous movies including pasta are: The Godfather, Big Night, Tampopo, Lady and the Tramp, Miseria e Nobiltà , Goodfellas and the infamous Sopranos series.
From large gatherings over the holidays to intimate, romantic evenings, you can’t go wrong with a warm plate of delicious pasta and a bottle of wine. The culinary combination of wine and pasta is the foundation for everyone. Pasta can be the foundation of extremely labor-intensive dishes or part of easy classics like spaghetti. Whether the saucy meal is vegan or loaded with meat and seafood, pasta and wine are delightful accompaniments when paired correctly.
This column has a Spanish wine influence. Having lived in both countries in the past, I love their wines and gastronomy but must confess a slight preference for the wines of The Iberian Peninsula.
Great wines to go with pasta
Bodegas Valdemar Conde Valdemar rosado 2019 – SAQ # 12217821 – $14.40
Pretty aromas of redcurrants with pleasant hints of strawberry sauce. On the palate, fresh and quite floral with nuances of raspberry, violets and lead pencil hints. Elegant with a fruity finale. Food pairing: pasta with sardines
Bodegas Valdemar Conde Valdemar blanco Rioja 2019 – SAQ # 13385309 – $15.25
Hey and grassy notes mingled with pineapple and other tropical fruit notes. Quite fresh, long, harmonious with a fresh finale. Food pairing: Pasta with sauteed Calamari.
Laguna de Nava Tempranillo Rosado 2019 – SAQ # 12238008 – $11.85
Lots of red fruit nuances such as cranberries, spicy cherry and raspberries complemented by rhubarb and watermelon. Medium and a bit spicy as well with retronasal bringing to mind floral undertones and spices as well. Pretty cleansing finale. A hit with pasta with garlic, green olives with lots of grated Parmigiano cheese
Gran Vina del Sol Chardonnay Torres 2018 – SAQ # 64774 – $16.95
Citric fruit background with tones of pear nectar and Licorice candy. On the palate, dry, structured and very long. Refined with an elegant herbal bitterish finale. Long floral aftertaste with a sublime mineral tone. Great pairing idea with pasta with scampi.
Testing the New Riedel Pinot Noir-Rose winewings
Review stemware? This is something that I seldom do but when a new wine glass comes along, it grabs my attention.
The Riedel Winewings Pinot Noir glass from the new wing series is one of the best wine glasses in the marketplace at the moment. It might not be the most aesthetically pleasing but it does a fine job in enhancing the wine aromatics. At the end, thats whats is all about in wine drinking
This Riedel Winewings Pinot Noir glass is not only perfect for Pinot Noir but also For Nebbiolo and rose made wines. It has plenty of space to accentuate the wine aromas, minerality and acidity of the wine. This glass makes me feel comfortable to serve a Grand Cru Burgundy but also an inexpensive rose or a modest Pinot Noir
to test the glass, I did a comparative tasting with the roses of this column and a modest Pinot Noir from the Loire. I tasted each wine with a standard Ouverture Riedel glass and afterwards with the Riedel Winewings Pinot Noir glass. Frankly, the results were quite remarkable.
The Rose wines and Pinot Noir seem quite shy served with the Ouverture glass. At one point, I thought they were quite ordinary wines. On the other hand, served in the Riedel Winewings Pinot Noir glass, it was a totally different experience. All the wines seemed quite enhanced aromatically and my perception was they were 30$+ wines. Until today, I never thought, a wine glass could make such a big difference.
The Riedel Winewings Pinot Noir glass has a retail price of $42.45( tax and shipping not included). You can acquire yours via riedel.com . Please let us know your thoughts on our pasta and wine pairing article.
Other wine articles from mtltimes.ca and totimes.ca
Perfect wines for picnics
