How To Order Wine In A Restaurant

Selecting wine to go with your meal in a restaurant need not be a daunting experience. In fact, servers in elegant restaurants are often very knowledgeable when it comes to wine and can make some good recommendations. Even so, it's a good idea to learn which wines go well with particular foods to enjoy the dining experience more fully.
A few general rules, and they are general because they have exceptions, are that red wines are good with vegetables and red meats and white wines are good with fish, poultry and salads. So red goes with red things and white goes with white things-easy to remember. These are general rules because for example the French vegetable dish ratatouille is made with white wine and a prosciutto salad is ideal with a red wine.
When eating foods that have mild flavours such as baked trout, quiche and risotto, delicate wines are the best choice. My list of favourite light wines includes Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Noir, Riesling and Champagne. People's preferences often differ here. For example, I prefer dry wines with main dishes but some people prefer semi-sweet to sweet wines. It's simply a matter of taste.
When eating spicy and strong-flavoured dishes, it's important to choose a full-flavoured wine which will not be dominated by the dish. For dishes such as curry chicken, pepper steak and red hot chicken wings, delicate wines are out. Instead, choose wines that can compliment such dishes. Examples include Chablis, Merlot, Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon.
With salads, I recommend Sauvignon Blanc, especially if the salad has a light dressing. For pasta and pizza, I prefer Chianti, an excellent Italian wine, but many other wines such as Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz are also popular. For fish and chicken, Sauvignonlanc is an excellent choice, but if the fish and chicken are in a spicy sauce, smoked, barbecued and strong-flavoured, I prefer a full-flavoured wine such as Chablis. With strong-flavoured cheeses such as stilton or Danish blue, port is a great wine. Amazingly, the sweetness of the port and the strong aroma and flavour of a stilton and Danish blue complement each other extremely well. With foie gras, I recommend Champagne but many people prefer red wines such as Shiraz and Merlot. With desserts, I quite like the Hungarian Tokaj wine which King Louis XIV reputedly called "le roi des vins" and "le vin des rois" which means the king of wines and the wine of kings. Other excellent choices, though, include port and ice wine. Cabernet sauvignon is a popular choice for dark chocolate.
Many rules can be given for selecting which wines to match with particular dishes in a restaurant. The truth, though, is that people's tastes differ. Fortunately, it isn't necessary to be familiar with a vast number of wines to select an appropriate wine for a dish. The reason is that many wines are good with a great number of dishes and if you have a favourite wine, you may choose to order it with most dishes. The only way to truly learn which wines you prefer with particular dishes is to experiment and discover for yourself.