How to Pair Old Vintage Champagne with Food

Champagne is a delicate and sophisticated drink. Usually, people keep a bottle of it for a special occasion such as a wedding or a New Year’s Eve. There are many kinds of Champagne. Some of them are sweeter, and others have a more intense flavour.

Many people reckon that the taste of this drink is so rich and powerful that no food is needed. Indeed, you can have a glass of Champagne without eating anything. But there are many classic combinations that will complement the taste of this drink.

People already know that a delicate rosé and Blanc de Blancs taste better with seafood, such as prawns or lobsters. When it comes to demi-sec and blanc de noirs, fatty meats will be a perfect match.

Many questions arise concerning old vintage Champagne. This kind is one of the most expensive and rich in flavour. With what kind of food can vintage Champagne be paired, so its taste is even more unforgettable?

Not knowing many options of food to serve with it, very often, people omit vintage Champagne while making a shop list going to a wine shop. They choose other proven types of drinks. However, in this article, you will find the list of meals that will create a perfect match with this type of alcohol.

You should always remember the rule that the intensity of the flavours of the meal and drink should coincide. That’s why light white wine is drunken with fish but an intense red one with meat.

When it comes to Champagne, an old vintage one has a very strong taste too. Therefore, the food you serve with it should also be intense. Otherwise, you will feel the flavour of the drink only and lose the taste of the food.

Duck

This type of poultry tastes perfectly with a glass of old Champagne. It can be prepared in different ways: roast, cooked or grilled. Adding a sweet, intense sauce to it is a good idea too. For example, it can be a plum or berry sauce.

If the Champagne has a sweet taste, don’t add a sweet sauce to the duck. It will be too much. The best way to combine food is to create contrasts—for instance, a sour sauce and sweet wine or the other way round.

Other types of poultry might be too light for this type of Champagne. In this case, everything depends on the spices and the sauce. The only taste of chicken or turkey by itself is not enough to be combined with vintage Champagne.

Cheese

There are different types of cheeses nowadays. If you pair mozzarella or provolone cheese with vintage Champagne, it might be a waste of money.

Hard mature cheeses should taste perfectly with this drink. You can buy parmesan or cheddar and they will make the taste of Champagne richer.

Such cheeses as blue cheese or camembert can also be delicious with vintage Champagne, but in order to play with contrasts, even more, you should add some sweet details to it.

Smoked Foods

As has already been mentioned, the taste of the food paired with old vintage Champagne should be very strong and intense. Smoked foods are the ones of the most intensive in terms of flavour. Therefore, they will perfectly match the drink we are talking about today.

When it comes to fish, smoked salmon and tuna are a very delicious option for vintage Champagne. They can be eaten alone or be a dominant ingredient of some dishes.

Pastrami and Jamon are not smoked, but rather dried. But these meat products also go very well with a bottle of old Champagne.

Caviar

Old vintage Champagne and caviar is a classic combination that gives a lot of chic and elegance to any table. People say it’s a match made in heaven. Caviar is a luxurious food on its own. But due to being rich in fat and salt, it pairs very well with vintage dry Champagne.

Usually, people pair black caviar with this luxurious drink. However, the red one will also match very well. The choice mostly depends on your preferences and the type of vintage Champagne you have.

Sushi

This combination might surprise you, but Japanese food pairs excellently with old vintage Champagne. Sushi is very trendy nowadays and more and more people serve them during big celebrations.

As it has been already mentioned, salmon, tuna, caviar should be paired with Champagne. You can find all these products in sushi. In addition, many people recommend eating spicy kinds of rolls in order to make the flavour of vintage Champagne even more interesting.

The only type of sushi that will have a boring taste when paired with this kind of drink is the ones with avocado, cucumber or light cheese. You will barely feel their flavour when combining them with intense Champagne.