Hello!Today, we set a beautiful table and start a new series. I am on your screens with Food &amp; Wine Pairings Season 1 Episode 1.&nbsp;In this series, we discover the chemical and physical effects behind pairings. You can stop asking why does red meat come with red wine? Can't cheese pair with white wine? What's the reason for the acidity; where does this bitterness come from?&nbsp;Even though our food and wine choices are completely personal, I am sure that our discovery will deepen once we understand the reasons behind our choices by milling around the chemical and physical aspects of wine. This issue is a little long, but bare with me. Because you will get out of your endless loop of ordering Cabernet Sauvignon; a véraison promise! Now, we are starting with three plates in this epidose; in the upcoming months, we will continue on.Attention! This post is about wine, a fermented grape juice from alcoholic beverages. For readers under 18, non-fermented grape juice may be more suitable.Cheers,<a fr-original-style="" href="https://link.aposto.com/click?uri=aHR0cHM6Ly9saW5rLmFwb3N0by5jb20vY2xpY2s/c291cmNlPXdlYiZuZXdzbGV0dGVyPTYyYTFkOGNjZTIxOTU3MDAwNzU5ODlkYyZpc3N1ZT02MmEzMzgxNDU1NWIzNzAwMDZhMzYzYWMmc3Vic2NyaWJlcj11bmRlZmluZWQmdXJsPWh0dHBzJTI1M0ElMjUyRiUyNTJGd3d3Lmluc3RhZ3JhbS5jb20lMjUyRnNlbGlub3NtYW5vZ2x1dSUyNTJG" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(9, 9, 9); text-decoration: none; background-color: transparent; outline: none; cursor: pointer; transition: color 0.3s ease 0s; touch-action: manipulation; user-select: auto; box-sizing: border-box;" target="_blank">Selin</a>

I am starting the article by giving a small heads up. There are many takes, even rules on food-wine compatibility. There are absolutely no rules in this issue, only suggestions. There are no absolutes, only personal commentary. There are examples and cause-and-effect so that we understand where this compatibility comes from, image it, and interpret it for ourselves. I don't like generalizations, but I don't mind imagining a little or flying high for a little while for a better understanding. I'll give some examples to better understand the sensory experience of the pairings, heads up.

AMUSE-BOUCHE

Not everyone likes the same wine, and not everyone may prefer the same pairings. Yes, individual preferences come into play. You might want to drink a light red with a fruity flavor, and you might prefer a dish that brings out the fruit even more. Or I might want to feel the tannins and find my balance with some protein. So palates are different, preferences are different. But through both physical and chemical interactions, we can increase the pleasure factor in food-wine pairings.I will divide the sensory experiences in pairings into&nbsp;structural (textural) and aromatic, and share both through complementarity, similarity, and contrast.<h2 fr-original-style="" style="margin: 0px; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.85); font-weight: 500; padding: 0px; box-sizing: border-box;">Structural (textural) experience&nbsp;</h2>To understand the structural (textural) experience in pairings, let's take a look at the building blocks of wine:&nbsp;acidity, tannin, and alcohol, with a pinch of sugar. The more saliva, the more acidity. The more sugar, the more alcohol. With the effect of these building blocks, changes - even transformations - take place in the palate. The palate becomes fresh, dry, warm, ticklish, and even watery. These are structural changes independent of flavors. Let's briefly look at what they are and then we will set the table!&nbsp;<h3 fr-original-style="" style="margin: 0px; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.85); font-weight: 500; padding: 0px; box-sizing: border-box;">Acidity&nbsp;</h3>Acid is the sourest building block of wine. When you drink lemonade, when greengages appear in the grocery store, or when you put too much lemon on a salad, you get a sour taste in your mouth, it hits your tongue and palate. Then you suddenly start salivating. This is exactly the sensory effect of acidity. We experience this effect on the palate with wine as with any food or drink with high acidity. The more saliva, the more acidity.<h3 fr-original-style="" style="margin: 0px; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.85); font-weight: 500; padding: 0px; box-sizing: border-box;">Tannins&nbsp;</h3>We can think of tannins as one of the building blocks that make up the skeleton of wine. They are tannic acid; polyphenols found naturally in many foods. They are found in the seeds, skin and stems of the grapes. The sensory experience is very similar to a beverage we consume a lot: tea. Let's imagine a cup of tea. After sipping it, it has a drying effect on the tongue and palate, and the tannin in wine has a similar effect. It's as if it pulls on your gums and dries your tongue and palate.&nbsp;<h3 fr-original-style="" style="margin: 0px; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.85); font-weight: 500; padding: 0px; box-sizing: border-box;">Alcohol</h3>"Is there a wine without alcohol?" No, that's grape juice. The alcohol in wine is produced by alcoholic fermentation. If there is a burning sensation in your throat and a slight heat on your palate after swallowing the wine, watch out! You're probably over 14% abv; so you're drinking a high alcohol wine. When you sip whiskey, your throat gets slightly warm, not as strong an effect, of course, but you can imagine it as a similar effect.<h2 fr-original-style="" style="margin: 0px; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.85); font-weight: 500; padding: 0px; box-sizing: border-box;">Aromatic experience&nbsp;</h2>To understand the aromatic experience in pairings, we will taste the wine, we will talk about its flavor. Is there a Kalecik Karası in the glass with red fruits as if cherries are bursting out of the glass? Or is there a sour salad with too much lemon? We will look at the aroma profile of both the food and the wine.

Some harmony, some explosions.

Textural and Aromatic Experience in Pairings

STARTERS

3 plates, 3 glasses.

Food & Wine Pairings S01 E01

MAIN COURSE

We've come to the last course. Palate collisions are my favorite wine pairings. That's why the pairing of fragrant and moldy cheeses and sweet wine has a special place in my heart.❤ Blue moldy cheeses and semi-sweet and/or dessert wines made from aromatic grapes are among the pairings that delight my palate the most. The reason is the contrast, the collision, the sweet war between these cheeses. Those wines shake the palate with their high acidity and intense aroma profile. A pairing to go: Arcadia 333 Late Harvest&nbsp;with molded Konya cheese. Yum!Big collision, sweet end.&nbsp;<img lazy="loading" src="https://images.aposto.com/1200xauto/2022/7/1/1659364354508.png" style="display: block; vertical-align: top; margin: 5px auto; text-align: center; width: 100%; max-width: 550px; border-style: none; position: relative; cursor: pointer; padding: 0px 1px; box-sizing: border-box;" width="550" ratio="1.50" fr-original-style="display: block; vertical-align: top; margin: 5px auto; text-align: center; width: 100%; max-width: 550px;" fr-original-class="fr-draggable">🎨 The illustrations are by <a fr-original-style="" href="https://www.instagram.com/estersaba.design/?utm_source=aposto&utm_source=aposto" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(9, 9, 9); text-decoration: none; background-color: transparent; outline: none; cursor: pointer; transition: color 0.3s ease 0s; touch-action: manipulation; user-select: auto; box-sizing: border-box;" target="_blank">Ester,</a>&nbsp;a big cheers to you Ester!

DESSERT

Thank you for reading!Cheers,Selin🍷

LAST SIP

Veraison is a wine publication that imagines the next sip while exploring the wine in its glass. I believe that wine is not only drunk on white-covered tables and I'm seeking a place on every table. In your inbox to draw sensory experience routes every week!