Wine tasting notes are derived from specific components of sugar, acid, fruit, tannin and alcohol. When it comes to wine and food pairings, there’s science. The wine must complement the flavors of the meals components of acid, sugar, bitterness, fat, salt and umami. The food must balance and harmonize with that of the wine, matching one another’s intensity. Acidity can enhance food flavors, fats can amplify or provide richness, salt can tone down bitterness or astringency. The way a dish is prepared also matters, hence why there are different pairings for the same protein. Many restaurants want to optimize guest experience by providing wines that can elevate the flavors of their course. Extensive wine lists overwhelm and confuse guests. Such restaurants have a sommelier to guide guests wine selection. Extensive lists established the recent trend of “micro lists”. The two restaurants I will compare is Charlie Bird and River Café.
River Café is an American fine dining restaurant.  It features a romantic setting, overlooking a waterfront. It is arranged by grape varieties then by region to terroir. It is offered by glass, half bottle, bottle and uniquely larger bottles. The wine list features at least 10 pages of wines featuring sangiovese, port, dessert wine, syrah, pinot noir from France, California, Canada, U.S, Spain, Australia and more. The first observation I noticed is the lists has ice wine, which is wine produced from grapes that have been frozen on the vine creating a sweet wine. The second observation is the 1998 La Romanée BOUCHARD PÈRE & FILS Grand Cru, $1250 was higher priced than the same 1996 La Romanée BOUCHARD PÈRE & FILS Grand Cru, $1050. I felt as though the 1996 vintage should’ve been expensive based on longer fermenting. The last observation is the longest list on the menu is the Pinot Noir that features over 70 selections. Charlie Bird is a casual-fine dining Italian cuisine restaurant with small hip hop accented décor. The first observation is that bottles are offered only unlike River which has glass, bottle and half bottle. The second observation is the restaurant has a micro wine list unlike River’s extensive. The last observation is the lowest price point is $55 and highest is $295 in which options are available for both prices. This restaurant also organizes their list by grape varieties and regions. They both also feature vintage wines; however, River also has non vintage wine. Overall, I understand the importance in wine varieties at restaurants and I learned that some lists may be longer than others to accommodate each course and it is definitely a skill to be a sommelier.

Reference

Garret, D. (2017, May 4). Wine Pairing: Food & Wine Recipes and Pairings. Retrieved from https://www.winemag.com/2014/11/12/mastering-the-art-of-wine-and-food-pairings/