Choosing the perfect wine to complement your main dish can make the meal that much more enjoyable. Pairing of wine and meat can depend on what sauces are being used or how lean the cut is. And because more than one pairing is often possible, harmonizing food and wine can sometimes be subjective. A little confused as to which wines pair with your meal?

Let us help! Here is a look at what kinds of wine go best with meats from poultry to pork and seafood from lobster to crab.

Beef

There are many wines that taste good with beef. As a general rule, good red wine goes well with plainly cooked beef.

When pairing wines with leaner cuts of beef, look for light or medium-bodied red wines.

When pairing wines with fattier beef, look for bold red wines that have high tannin. What is tannin? It is an astringent which works as a palate cleanser to essentially ‘scrape’ the fattiness from the inside of our mouth.

Examples of fuller bodied wines are Merlot or Cabernet Sauvignon, which would pair beautifully with fattier cuts of meat like Remington’s Filet Mignon or New York Strip Loin dishes.

At Remington’s of Niagara, we are famous for our Prime Rib! Order a glass of full bodied red to cut the richness of this dish!

Pork

With it’s underlying sweetness, pork is a more difficult match than beef. Your best best is to pair this meat with a low-tannin red or white wine with some fruit and acidity to match the flavour. A fruity Merlot or Pinot Noir would go wonderfully with our Grilled Pork Loin Dish!

Chicken

Chicken is best paired with white wine, such as Sauvignon Blanc or a Chardonnay. A quick tip is to think is the “lighter the meat, the lighter the wine.” Roasting poultry preserves a lot of the rich flavours so sometimes you can get away with a red wine with more complexity such as a Pinot Noir or Rosè.

Pair our Stuff Chicken Supreme with a white wine of your choice that will harmonize your tastebuds!

Lobster

For the richness and delicacy of lobster, we suggest a white wine such as a Chardonnay or Burgundy White. These whites work well if the lobster is served with drawn butter or in a cream sauce like Remington’s Seafood Pasta! If you find the lobster in a tomato sauce, opt for a Chianti due to its high acidity and flavour that will stand up to the tomatoes.

Salmon

Since salmon is a meaty fish that is high in oil and richness, your wine pairing can be either a red or white! The best wine with salmon greatly depends on how the salmon is prepared or what sauce or dressing it is served with and the personal preference of the consumer. For a red, we suggest finding a low-tannin red wine to keep the pairing from tasting metallic, and for white we suggest a nice oak-aged Chardonnay. Pair our Pan Seared Atlantic Salmon or Salmon Roulade with a wine of your choice!

Remington’s of Niagara

A general rule has always been that red wine is for red meats and white wine is for chicken and seafood, however we find that there are many combinations that can make your dish delicious! We hope our general guide to Food and Wine Pairings has opened your eyes and stomachs! After reading this, we hope you’re hungry- and our restaurant is the perfect choice! As a premier Steakhouse and Seafood Restaurant, Remington’s of Niagara has plenty of options to pair your glass of wine with! Create your own harmonized dish, join us for dinner tonight!