Why red wine with red meat, and white wine with white meats?
P.J. O’Rourke would say it’s so your vomit doesn’t clash. I suspect it has to do with the greater amount of tannins in red working better with the heavier flavors of meat dishes.
I really don’t think this rule applies any more. Drink what you like along with the food that you like.
That is an overly simplified rule, that will generally give you good results. The idea is that a red wine it typically more full bodied and that whites are of less body. What ought to be the case is that you pair wines with food so that the taste of the wine doesn’t overpower the food. Or vice versa.
It is just a simplification anyway. Most red wines have a fuller more robust flavour, as such they go well with robust flavoured foods. Red meat dishes are often robust enough to go well with red wine.
Red wine can go very well with smoked salmon or other smoked fish based dishes, white wine can go very well with beef cooked in cream based sauces. But generally a strong red wine can easily overpower a gently flavoured meal and that would be best avoided.
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It all depends upon your appetite
'Cause you can get anything you want
At Our Italian Restaurant. 
I thought this might have been about Billy Joel too…
I like Blue Nun, so I drink that with everything… Like the ice cream I ate it with last night. 
Yes, please.
It’s very simple. Red wine is drunk at room temp so it doesn’t congeal the fat from red meat in your mouth.
White is serve cold, with food that have less descrete fat.
Unlike other beverages, wine should be held in the mouth for a moment, allowing it to flow over all parts of the tongue. This is because wines have subtle flavors that are tasted with different parts of the tongue.
Holding a sip of cold, white wine after a bite of marbled beef is not a pleasing sensation.
What I want to know (not picking on you personally picunurse) is exactly what temperatures do you consider “room” for a red and “cold” for a white?
From wine.com
From wineloverspage.com
Admittedly it’s two very layman cites, but I think it illustrates an important point: Red wine “room temperature” is not necessarily room temperature. Personally, I get much more out of a red (and I’m not talking some miserable rotgut) if I take it off my rack and put it in the fridge for ten minutes before drinking. It tightens up the flavor a bit before it hits your palate, so that when you let the wine roll over your entire tongue (and breathe it a bit), the flavor absolutely explodes as it reacts to your mouth’s heat.
For white (which I admittedly choose very infrequently), I’m happy with any temperature that will hold its chill in my mouth.
You’re quite right, I should have been more specific. I should have said red wine approaches room temperature when served.
For scientific purposes, room temperature is 72°F. While red wine is stored at around 55°F, it should be brought out and opened, at least an hour before serving. Letting the wine “breathe,” also allows its temperature to rise. I’m partial to about 65°or a little cooler. My “snobby” friends say I’d be better off with a “soda pop wine”.
This site recommends a bit cooler.
I can’t wait to show them!
I’m not a wine snob, I have friends who are, and some of their rituals are plain silly. I guess, its like art, I don’t know much about it, but i know what I like.
So to address your comment, I think we agree, I just wasn’t very clear.
What would one drink with a vegetarian meal?
I can’t drink reds. I’m one of those people who has some kind of sensitivity to the tannens or whatever. I’m good for tasting, and that’s about it. Anything more than 1/2 glass is a puke fest for me.
Refrigeration absolutely kills the flavor of a red wine. My girlfriend does it all the time and it makes me crazy.
And real “wine guys” will tell you that white wine doesn’t count. I, however, drink lots of it.
Blue Nun goes everywhere…Bluuue Nun.
Do you have a cite for this info please? I would have thought it would indicate that you can’t have white wine with any butter based sauce if this was the main reason.
It’s not quite that simple, although it does play a part in a good pairing. And like you said Bippy, this is just a guideline that usually works, a simplification. There are classic combinations that use this rule, and classic combinations that don’t. And it really all comes down to what you like.
There are 3 main factors to consider (swiped from here):
* Weight/Body – The feel and intensity of a food or beverage.
* Total Acidity – The tartness of a food or beverage.
* Flavor/Complexity – The combined taste and aroma of a food or beverage.
I’d say acidity is the main factor to consider, but there’s just so much more to it.
This website does an excellent job of explaining the concepts behind wine and food pairings.
Since temperature is one factor that contributes to the mouthfeel/texture/body of the wine, picnurse’s observation is true, although very simplified, and not entirely complete. There’s much more to consider.
Wine snobs and wannabe “wine guys” might say white wine doesn’t count. The master sommeliers I used to work with would tell you that white wine very, very much counts.
People need to learn to trust their own taste buds. If it tastes good, drink it. If it tastes good by itself but takes on a funky taste when you eat it with your cheerios, then it doesn’t go with cheerios. “Red wine with meat” might be an OK guideline, but there are certainly exceptions, and a lot depends on the wine itself.
Merely removing the cork does around 3/5ths of jack all to letting the wine breathe. If you really want to breathe wine, then you need to pour it out into a decanter.
I would love to experience a really fine red wine that is worthy of being served label up. Any suggestions?
Nevermind. I forgot what forum I am in. Another time, another place.