Food and Wine Pairing : A Sensory Experience

138 Chapter 6 Salt, Bitterness, and Bubbles

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

1. What impact does high salt in foods have on the taste
   of wine?


2. Do food bitterness and wine bitterness cancel each
   other out when tasted together?


3. What are some of the wine elements that interact

with food saltiness to impact the overall level of

match?

4. What are the interacting factors in sparkling wine that
   impact the level of match with salty, bitter, and other
   types of foods?


5. What specific wines would you pair with a salad of
   frise ́e, radicchio, and Belgian endive?

EXERCISE 6.1

FOOD SALTINESS, BITTERNESS, AND WINE EFFERVESCENCE ANCHORS

In this exercise, you will test the impact
of three levels of effervescence on three
levels of saltiness and four levels of bit-
terness. To sort out the direct effects of
effervescence from the interacting effects
of acidity and residual sugar on food salt-
iness and bitterness, the three levels of
effervescence in this exercise are pro-
vided in three water samples and then
three wine samples.
As you taste the food items with
the water and wine samples, you will
evaluate the impact of effervescence on
salty and bitter foods. Does effervescence

cleanse away the negative effects of ex-

cessive salt or bitterness? Does the effer-

vescence do a partial job? Or does the

combination of high salt or high bitter-

ness with wine characteristics make both

items taste worse?

OBJECTIVES

The objective of this exercise is to train

students to identify various scale values

of food bitterness, food saltiness, bever-

age effervescence, and the interactions

between them.

Mise en Place: Things to Do Be-

fore the ExerciseEnsure that the wa-

ter, seltzer water, still white table wine,

Moscato d’Asti, and the fully sparkling

wine (Champagne, Cava, sparkling wine

from California, etc.) are properly chilled

for tasting. Also, since timing is very im-

portant for the samples with effervesc-

ence—if poured too early, the bubbles

will dissipate—do not pour the water or

wine samples with effervescence until

just before participants are ready to taste

and evaluate.