Typically the recommended drink with all sorts of ethnic food is beer. Whether this is just convenient or an excuse for men to drink copius amounts of beer remains undecided. What is clear is that recommending wine as partners to lots of ethnic foods opens up a cornucopia of different choices. In fact they are so broad as to be able to accompany even the most powerfully flavoured dishes. And furthermore it adds value to the proposition.
Presenting Ethnic Food and Wine matching at The Great Hospitality Show gave me a great opportunity to investigate this issue of both flavour combinations and commercial opportunity to a much greater level. It re-enforced my anecdotal suspicions that wine has as much dimension as the flavours across Thai, Chinese, Indian, Japanese, Mexican and Caribbean culinary fayre.
The breadth of flavours with wine span so wide from sweet to dry, full to light bodied, fruity to more austere, sparkling, semi-sparkling and still that if we can identify the key flavour and taste drivers of the food, it is impossible to conceive that there isn’t a match.
If we take the more delicately flavoured Thai dishes – fragrant and aromatic such as prawn dishes, or Goan dishes then there are some great choices from Pinot Gris (produced in an aromatic way as opposed to neutral Pinot Grigio style), to Alsace wines like Pinot Blanc or Gewurztraminer or my favourite Argentinian Torrontes which was sampled on Wednesday by the assembled audience at the Show.
Put the restaurant story together about the plate of food together with a carefully chosen wine such as Quara Estate Torrontes then you end up with a match that makes life easy for the consumer, a trade-up from what they would likely have done previously (i.e. buy house wine) and entertained them.
That is the point there are more consumers drinking wine than ever before at 73% of all UK consumers or 38M people (Wine& Spirit Trade Association). Just this bare fact about the number of people drinking wine points towards the idea that by its nature this trend is not about consumers becoming geeks with wine, but a more broad underlying trust in wine as a category and a disrobing of fear in trying different styles, varieties and regions. They aren’t drinking as much but they are drinking better. So that means they need to be entertained with their choice of wine and food.
What matters is that as the server and establishment is that you have thought about it and can deliver it with conviction, if not a little passion. Achieve that in the moment in the right venue then the consumer feels entertained.
Cyrus Todiwala the well-known Indian restauranteur recounted to us his experience of wine in Indian restaurants. 20 years ago when he arrived he saw beer being drink and wondered why. He focused on wine sales in his restaurants and has seen a 3 fold increase in wine sales. He agrees totally with the wine being partnered with his food.
One lady shared her revelations and discussed the opportunity of wine and Carribean food; especially jerk style foods. Currently her outlet offers just beer – Red Stripe mostly. By discussing the wine opportunities (and she doesn’t drink alcohol) she saw the opportunity of matching jerk food with wines for her tippling customers. What a great opportunity to add value to the experience.
Imagine a wine similar to the Wehlener Sonnenuhr Riesling Kabinett tasted at the show – the key points being Estate produced, high quality Germanic style (7.5%-11% alcohol), with a degree of sweetness and high acidity – matching with a plate of Sashimi. HEAVEN. Japan and Germany come together – now no-one would have forecast that 70 years ago!
BBQ Mexican chilli beef with Senorio de Vila Mencia; KERPOW flavour sensation. A fruity variety like Mencia, something different (you don’t have to mention the grape variety, just explain to customers that it goes great with the dish) maybe it could be Gamay or even Pinot Noir; in any event get creative and trust your palate.
Forgotten about Lambrusco – 1980’s-1990’s wine dead and buried. Oh no – this traditional fruity foaming frothy cut through dry red made to go with local Parma foods would be great with Lamb Rogan Josh – KERCHING!
The combinations are only as limited as your imagination. Take yourself, your menu and wine list and think about what your customers would like and get proposing some creatively brilliant combos. Whatever you do don’t be boring – it is about the entertainment!
Alistair Morrell
Hospitality & Catering News, Wine & Drinks Editor