How to Substitute Red Wine for White Wine
Choosing wine is ultimately a matter of taste, and the thinking of wine purists has led to a variety of "unbreakable" rules. The link between red meat and red wine, and white meat and white wine, may seem aesthetically attractive, but in reality the breadth of red wine types mean that different reds can be used in different circumstances. Depending on your own taste, and those of your guests, red wines can be used in any circumstance, regardless of tradition. Does this Spark an idea?
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Instructions
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Serve red wine with fish. Although this is a traditional area where white wines dominate, serving a light red with fish is perfectly acceptable. Tannins in red wine can react harshly with a light, delicate fish, and so a red such as Pinot Noir is advisable, as this has a light flavor. Similarly, the lack of acid in a Cote du Rhone or a Cabernet Franc will help to meld the flavor of the wine with that of the fish.
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Serve red wines with pasta or rice dishes. Again, the aesthetic link between light food and white wine can be hard to shake off, although ultimately, if you have a pasta with a cheese sauce, a red wine can serve to enhance the flavor of the dish. A Merlot or a lighter Burgundy will be able to balance a pasta and cheese sauce dish. Try these wines also with spicy dishes, which again are usually paired with white.
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Be free to experiment. The rules that have developed are by no means unbreakable. Consider your guests' tastes. If they like white wine with steak or red wine with fish, give it to them. Tannins in red wine can lead to it being rich, although with wines from the New World creating a great depth in choice for reds, there is no circumstance where they can't be used instead of white.
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Tips & Warnings
As an exercise, pour a few small glasses of red and white wine. Cover your eyes and taste the wines. Attempt to guess which is red and which is white. Place the ones you imagine to be white to your left, and the reds to your right. Uncover your eyes and see how many you got right. You will now appreciate how much of wine tasting is done with the eyes, and how by breaking this, you will be more free to experiment.
References
- Photo Credit red red wine image by DXfoto.com from Fotolia.com
