Pairing Wine with Asian Food

Filed in archive Food and Wine on October 12, 2006

One of my favorite drool sites is Stef's Noodles and Rice blog. Since I'm a little challenged in the kitchen....er...okay, a lot! challenged in the kitchen, I mostly like to look at all her yummy Asian food posts, like this called Ants in a Tree. I could never imagine actually cooking something like this. That is what Asian restaurants are for!

But, what kind of wine do you pair with Asian food? It's kind of tough because of the mixture of sweet, sour, and spicy ingredients, which are all the reasons I love this kind of food.

Dick Rosano from the Washington Post has a few good suggestions for this problem:

Pork suggests white wine. Soy usually points to red wine (Rosso di Montalcino, shiraz or zinfandel), but the ginger, orange, and sesame oil call for a dry or off-dry white. ("Off-dry" is an awkward term but usually refers to a wine that is neither sweet nor truly dry.)

Riesling, with its bright flavors and bracing acidity, would work nicely with this recipe for Orange-Ginger Pork Stew With Carrots and Potatoes. Consider Cousiño Macul 2005 Doña Isidora Riesling (Maipo Valley, Chile, $9), with its lime, green apple and mineral notes, or Chateau Ste. Michelle 2005 Riesling (Columbia Valley, $11), light and friendly with a bit of zippy acidity.

There's also the fragrant, appealing Hogue 2005 Riesling genesis (Columbia Valley, $15), with rich fruit flavors, or the St. Urbans-Hof 2005 Riesling (Mosel-Saar-Ruwer, $12), which has accents of peach and lime on a silky-smooth frame.