Acknowledging that even the most fastidious foodies can't say no to Popeye's spicy fried chicken, Dirty South Wine'sHardy Wallace has made the dish the centerpiece of what he claims is the world's first-ever online food-and-wine pairing competition.
"There are a lot of online wine tastings, but no one ever does pairings," Wallace explains. "As much as I love wine, it's useless without food."
Wallace has recruited five respected wine experts to submit their picks for the best vino to sip with Popeye's celebrated chicken, Cajun-battered fries and red beans and rice. He and 50 friends will sample the selections at a party next Wednesday; While the festivities will be live-streamed from Wallace's house, he's also urging wine-and-chicken lovers to play along at home and report their findings via Twitter.
At stake is the title of Dirty Bird King (or Queen) -- and a lifetime of potentially enhanced Popeye's enjoyment.
There are so many culinary wonders (and occasionally questionable indulgences) in the Slashfood archives, just waiting to be washed down with equally delicious wines. Here are six pairings from our September archive that will make you thirsty...or make you sick. You decide.
With fall officially in full swing, it's time to break out sweaters, hot cider and even our oven mitts after a summer avoiding the stove. Jennifer Iserloh's Ropa Vieja, a Cuban dish of shredded beef in a tomato sauce, would pair nicely with a light, fruity Italian Dolcetto or a sweet and spicy California Zinfandel.
For Southerners who haven't been blessed with a dose of crisp fall weather yet, Gena Knox's Shrimp and Mango Summer Rolls are a lovely way to wind down a warm day, preferably with an off-dry Riesling.
Being a wine geek, I read through Slashfood posts thinking, "Hmmm, what wine would I pair with that?" Not everyone is as wine-centric as I am, but surely you've whipped up one or more of our delicious recipes (or read about a crazy new food trend with mouth agape) and wondered how best to wash it down.
This month I'm trying a fun little feature, "What to Drink With...," in which I comb through the Slashfood archives and find, er, interesting foods to pair up with wines. I'll start this one off with something easy, Sarah LeTrent's Roasted Broccoli with Shrimp. What do you say to a light, mineral-y Albarino or a California Sauvignon Blanc?
Here's a challenge: Cool and Creamy Broccoli Soup from Brent Ridge. Soup and wine are a tough match -- how do you pair liquid with liquid? Considering the fact that this soup is also a) cold and b) vegetarian, and we've got a real stumper. I'm going to go with Pinot Grigio or possibly a Grüner Veltliner.
More pairings, including Deep Fried Butter, after the jump.
In a career that has included wine jobs at haute dining and wine destinations Per Se,Cru and, since June, the head sommelier at Daniel Boulud's flagship New York eatery Daniel, Raj Vaidya has paired more than his share of his duck with vino.
Born in Jersey, and raised in his parents' native Bombay and Singapore, Raj's wine tutelage began well before he was of legal drinking age, enjoying vino and good food with family and company. It laid the groundwork for post-college (a degree in political science and philosophy from Rutgers University) career in the wine business, where he first started working at New Jersey's Ryland Inn and did time in the biodynamic fields at Robert Sinskey Vineyards in Napa.
As fall quickly approaches, we caught up with Raj to discuss the different elements one needs to consider when pairing wine with all those preparations of this wonderfully fatty, gamey bird, creamy foie gras and bloody duck à la presse.
Chantelle Pabros, a sommelier at Chicago's L20, is widely considered a rising star of the wine universe. Entrenched among oenophiles since leaving high school, at a mere 26 she has worked alongside world-renowned talent including chef Laurent Gras at his seafood-centric eatery. Though Chantelle has few hard and fast rules about pairing wine with food, she offered a couple tips as we head into prime grilling season. We caught up with her this afternoon to talk burgers and vino.
Do you think burgers and wine go together? Yes, absolutely. Though we don't have burgers [at L20], I like pairing wine with them. There is this place here called Kuma's Corner. We normally drink beer there, but I am thinking about the possibilities of wines with their burgers.
How does one go about pairing the two? With pairing, things that you think would go well don't always go. It's trial and error. I start by thinking about the classic burger, cooked medium rare with really fresh lettuce, tomato, onion and a really intense mustard. Chantelle's five under-$25 burger-friendly wines after the jump.
I've written many a story about wine and food pairing for Wine Enthusiast magazine, and one of the people I turn to again and again for expert tips is Natalie MacLean, my favorite north-of-the-border wine writer. Natalie knows her stuff: She's a certified sommelier who runs an award-winning Web site and free newsletter, she's funny (she's the author of Red, White and Drunk All Over: A Wine-Soaked Journey from Grape to Glass -- no wine snobbery in that title), and she's really polite (every time I interview her she sends a thank-you note!).
Now, Nat has a new food and wine pairing widget out that she's created from eight years of notes and pairings. You can pair by choosing a food or a wine first, which is nice (I've noticed that wine-centric people choose the wine first, and then the food, and food-centric people do the opposite).
On the day of the big turkey feast, sommeliers have a serious job -- pairing wines with the wide range of flavors, fragrances, and textures of a Thanksgiving meal. However, in the post-Thanksgiving afterglow, sommeliers have a chance to let loose, having fun with pairings with the natural post-Tgiving food choices, which are either 1) Turkey, The Remix, or 2) something completely opposite of anything related to Thanksgiving (I eat sushi for five days straight). The LA Times finds out what kind of quirky, non-traditional picks they make to go with leftovers, or not to go with anything and just to drink. Just a few from their list:
2000 Baltieri "Sortilegio" Amarone della Valpolicella
The drink of choice for curry fans is beer. The mild flavors complement the complex spices and the cold bubbles are refreshing and palate-cleansing, especially if you happen to be eating a spicy dish. Why aren't wines paired with curries, though? One reason is that there is no cultural tradition of wine-drinking in India. The popular line is that they are too heavy-tasting with curries, and either the wine or the dish itself ends up being too acidic to make a pleasurable combination.
The truth of the matter is that some wines don't go with curries and the reason turns out to be tannins. High tannin wines taste harsh and bitter with chilies and some spices, so selecting light, low-tannin wines will help you to make a better match with a curry. Suggestions include gewürztraminer, zinfandel, merlot and rosé, opting for fruitier flavors to counteract any potential bitterness. Choose a sparkling wine if you crave the palate-cleansing sensation of carbonation.
Most people study for years on how to pair wines with food - fois gras, caviar, hundreds of cheeses, fish, steak,
and chicken. But what about...pretzels?
The Chicago Tribune asked local food and wine experts what their pairing
recommendations would be for snack foods like tortilla chips, popcorn, and crackers. After getting over the
initial shock of not being laughed right out of the cellar, try these suggestions yourself:
For Doritos, a "big, sloppy" zinfandel
But if it's Cheetos, go with Three Thieves Zinfandel, which comes in a jug
Animal crackers with Oregon pinot noir
Snyder's of Hanover pumpernickel and onion-pretzel sticks with a Carneros pinot noir
Buttered and cheese popcorn (heated in the oven and drizzled with truffle oil) with any sort of sparkling
wine, like Perrier Jouet Champagne Grand Brut
Goldfish crackers with everything from New Zealand sauvignon blanc to California syrah to Spanish Rioja
Barbecue chicken pizza's yeast-y crust works well with the "yeastiness" of Perrier Jouet Champagne
Salt and pepper potato chips with an Australian Shiraz, but if they're plain chips, 2005 Girard Sauvignon
Blanc
Peanuts go with 2004 French Rabbit Chardonnay or a Beaujolais like 2004 Georges DuBoeuf Chenas
If it's a mix of popcorn and potato chips, then do 2003 Wild Horse Zinfandel Paso Robles
UCLA has a great extension program - classes that are offered to the
general public that go from Accounting to...Wine Pairing. The Spring quarter of UCLA Extension is offering a
six-session class that is taught by wine connoisseur C. Scott Hindel and chef Octavio Becerra of Pinot
Bistro. The final class is putting the lessons to use, dining out at "a fine dining restaurant," as the
course description says (though my guess is that it would be Pinot Bistro).
The course is $585 (ouch) and meets from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. every Thursdays from April 20 through May
25 near the Westwood campus. If nothing else, you can take the class and call yourself a Bruin next year
when UCLA wins the NCAA championship.
UCLA Extension 1010 Westwood Blvd. Westwood Village, CA (310) 206-7509 www.uclaextension.edu
On the day of the big turkey feast, sommeliers have a serious job -- pairing wines with the wide range of flavors, fragrances, and textures of a Thanksgiving meal. However, in the post-Thanksgiving afterglow, sommeliers have a chance to let loose, having fun with pairings with the natural post-Tgiving food choices, which are either 1) Turkey, The Remix, or 2) something completely opposite of anything related to Thanksgiving (I eat sushi for five days straight). The LA Times finds out 
The drink of choice for curry fans is beer. The mild flavors complement the complex spices and the cold bubbles are refreshing and palate-cleansing, especially if you happen to be eating a spicy dish. Why aren't 
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