Food and Wine Pairing : A Sensory Experience

134 Chapter 6 Salt, Bitterness, and Bubbles

Table 6.1 Varietals Used inMe ́ thode ChampenoiseProduction

Cool Regions Moderate Regions Warm Regions

Pinot Noir

Chardonnay

Meunier

Gamay

Pinot Blanc

Chenin Blanc

Chardonnay

Pinot Noir

Gamay

Meunier

Parallada

Chardonnay

Xarello

Mabaceo

Pinot Noir

Chenin Blanc

Meunier

Se ́millon

Source:B. Zoecklein, ‘‘A Review of Me ́thode Champenoise Production,’’ Virginia Cooperative Extension and Virginia Poly-

technic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, 2002.

Table 6.2 Body Style of a Few Champagnes

Light-Bodied and

Lovely

Medium-Bodied and

Rich

Full-Bodied and

Bodacious

Laurent-Perrier

Lanson

Duetz

G. H. Mumm

Perrier-Joue ̈t

Taittinger

Pommery

Charles Heidsieck

Piper-Heidsieck

Pol Roger

Henriot

Bruno Paillard

Paul Goerg

Moe ̈t et Chandon

Louis Roederer ‘‘Cristal’’

Bollinger ‘‘Special

Cuve ́e’’

A. Gratien

Krug ‘‘Grande Cuvee’’

Veuve Clicquot

Gosset

up to paˆte ́s, ham, beef, and game dishes. A unique sparkling wine is an Australian red made

from Shiraz (Bancock Station). The full body and off-dry sweetness level of this sparkler

make it a good choice with dishes such as lamb curry.

Body style in sparkling wine can have a substantial impact on wine and food matches.

More specific issues of the importance of texture and body in wine and food are presented

in the upcoming chapters. For now, be aware that sparkling wines vary substantially in body

weight, and these differences are an important consideration in pairing choices.

Acidity There are a number of environmental and viticultural factors that ultimately

impact the palatability of a finished sparkling wine, including canopy climate, meso- and

microclimates, rootstock, temperature, and pruning techniques. The complexity of these and

other relationships creates difficulties for producers of sparkling wine beyond those of still

wines.^10

Champagne, France, is the most northern region for sparkling wine other than Mosel,

Germany. As with still table wines, climate impacts the level of acidity in a finished product.

Warm-climate Chardonnay has a tendency to have a narrow flavor profile and lacks a sense

of freshness, liveliness, and length of finish. Sparkling wines that lack these factors will not

have the ability of higher-quality sparkling wines to cleanse and refresh the palate, especially

if foods are salty or bitter.

Sweetness Unlike many other wine categories, sparkling wines are available in a wide

range of sweetness levels from bone dry to very sweet. European countries have voluntary

standards for levels of residual sugar in sparkling wines. There are six basic levels of sweet-

ness, outlined in Table 6.3. Brut nature is less common, has a residual sugar level of 0–0.5