Tips To Choose The Best New Zealand Wines For Complimentary Flavour Pairing

New Zealand is a premier new wine country in the world that produces award-winning wines, with Auckland as the founding region of the country’s wine industry, featuring more than 50 vineyards. Bring your guests to your home by serving top-quality New Zealand wines.

So, check out these tips when choosing the best New Zealand wines to compliment flavor pairing.

Make the Appropriate Wine Selection

First and foremost, you have to think about the food you want to serve and aim to choose the best New Zealand wines that’ll complement your dishes. New Zealand is internationally known for its sauvignon blanc. It also has a growing reputation for Chardonnay, Merlot, Pinot Noir, Pinot Gris, Cabernet Sauvignon, Riesling, and methode traditionelle wines.

Here are some tips when choosing the right wine for your important celebrations:

• For a wide range of dishes, it’s worth selecting a couple of reds and whites for the tables.
• Consider serving more versatile wine styles, such as a lightly oaked Chardonnay or dry Riesling in the whites.
• For the reds, try a fuller bodied red, such as Shiraz, a Merlot blend, something Spanish, or Pinot Noir.
• Split evenly between whites and reds unless you’re confident of the preference of your guests.
• For a summer wedding, more bubbles or sparkling and white wines are consumed.
• If you’re overwhelmed with vast wine options available, reading wine guides online, like Tohu Wines Guide to New Zealand Wine, can help you choose the best wine for your next important event.

Do Not Risk Running Dry

You don’t want your guests to be left hanging and dry at your wedding or any important celebration. Remember that one bottle of wine will yield about five medium-sized glasses. Thus, it’s expected that for every important celebration, you’ll need to have at least five bottles of wine.

Further, here are some tips and tricks to ensure that your wedding or special occasion won’t run the risk of running dry:

• Expect to set half a bottle consumed by each guest when planning on the number of bottles you’ll serve. This conservative guide reduces your risk of you and your guest running dry, making everyone happy and satisfied until the end.
• Identify your wine-loving family and friends. Doing so will give you an idea of how many bottles of wine and type of wine to serve.
• Determine the length of your reception. Think of half a bottle of bubbles or sparkling breathless wines for the pre-ceremony, three-quarters of a wine bottle each with the main meal and another half bottle for later.

Plan What Wines to Serve

It’s crucial to plan by wine-tasting before selection of the best wines to be served for your wedding. In that way, you can strike a perfect balance between the quantity and quality of wines, cost-wise.

Here are some wine brand suggestions for a wedding:

• For post-ceremony bubbles, go for Quartz Reef Methode Traditionnelle NV.
• You can choose from Kumeu River Estate Chardonnay, Pegasus Bay Bel Canto Riesling, and Churton Estate Pinot Noir for dinner selection.
• The best cheese wine available is Mazuran’s Directors Port.
• Make sure to serve Champagne Dom Perignon for the toasts and assorted local wines throughout the evening.

Choose the Best NZ Wines for Complimentary Flavouring

New Zealand wines are more affordable than French wines with Auckland, Wairarapa (Martinborough), Hawke’s Bay, and Gisborne in the North Island, Central Otago, Canterbury, and Marlborough in the South Island as the ten major wine-producing areas in the country. Villa Maria, Montana, and Nobilo are the three biggest wineries in New Zealand.

Here are the wine varieties and suggested flavor pairings produced in New Zealand that are affordable yet top-quality:

• Sauvignon Blanc from Marlborough is best paired with beefy red meat or steak.
• Cabernet produced in Hawke’s Bay and Waiheke Island is best served with braised beef, Moussaka using a lean lamb, Roasted Mushrooms, Polenta, or Grilled Radicchio.
• Pinot Noir from Martinborough and Central Otago is best paired with salmon, tuna, ducks, and mushroom dishes.
• Chardonnay from Gisborne is best served with raw and lightly cooked seafood, like prawns and crab, grilled or steamed fish, fish, fish pâtés, chicken, vegetable terrines, and risotto or pasta with spring vegetables.
• Methode traditionelle sparkling wines are served for a wide variety of dishes or solo.
• Pinot Gris produced in Martinborough, and Central Otago is best served with clams, fish, and chips.

Conclusion

While Champagne is most-sought in weddings and other special occasions, serving and drinking New Zealand wines enhance your wine-lowing way of life. New Zealand wines are affordable yet with high-quality like their French and Spanish counterparts, allowing you to enjoy the most special occasions in your life guilt-free.