Good Wines to Drink Without Food

Title says it all really.

We're all aware that food and wine pair well together but I rarely get the chance to enjoy anything more than a few morsels of cheese with my wine, as we have a toddler and family dinner time is a bit chaotic and stressful for enjoying good wine!

However it had never occurred to me that certain wines are better drunk alone than others until, during my last trawl through the wine shop, the staff asked me whether I was buying bottles to drink with food or without. Being told without they promptly handed me a Saint Joseph, which I've yet to try.

Similarly upon trying her (and my) first red Burgundy my partner instantly observed that it'd be a better wine to have with food and suggested that it might be a good match for Christmas dinner.

So the question is are there particular varietals or regions which are likely to make good wines to enjoy without food?

We drink sparkling wines (Champagne, Processco, etc.) without food. Same for sweeter Riesling, Albarino, Vinho Verde, and the like. Dessert wines are fine alone as well.

Matt,
Interesting question. My wife and I work hard on matching food with wine so your answer would be the wines we love but seldom serve with our dinners. I find big wines like CA Cabs and some Syrah (St. Joseph) the hardest to match. I do not drink OZ Shiraz but if I did that would also go on the list.

There is no correct answer but Sam mentioned a wine that we match with food all the time. Sparkling wines are our "go to" wine with spicey Chinese or Korean food.

Walt

Even when quaffing we usually snack. The best quaffers are those lowest in acid, sort of the opposite of good food wines.

Cheers, Carl

Rose works for me. So does tempranillo. Heck, I'll really drink just about any wine on it's own. But there are some that I would rather have with food (Burgundy, Bordeaux, Barolo, Brunello...hmmm, wines that start with the letter B?).

For the record, the wine I will drink when I need to have "a moment", the wine that puts me in that "moment" is Royal Tokaji.

rwj

Recently a Cremant d'Alsace (sparkling wine from Pinot Noir) was pleasant on its own. Some young basic Rioja seems to fit that circumstance well as does a fruity Beaujolais-Villages or Pinot Noir which can pair well with food or stand on its own. I also like many Rieslings either way. I find most Cabernet Sauvignon too tannic to have without beef, etc. and even a Beaujolais Cru seems to improve with food. Most Syrah I would want to pair with meat and Chianti Classico with red-sauced pasta or other Italian fare. Some over-the-top Shiraz (as wrc indicated) is a tough match for food, so if you are going to drink it, you might want it without food.

Recently a Cremant d'Alsace (sparkling wine from Pinot Noir) was pleasant on its own. Some young basic Rioja seems to fit that circumstance well as does a fruity Beaujolais-Villages or Pinot Noir which can pair well with food or stand on its own. I also like many Rieslings either way. I find most Cabernet Sauvignon too tannic to have without beef, etc. and even a Beaujolais Cru seems to improve with food. Most Syrah I would want to pair with meat and Chianti Classico with red-sauced pasta or other Italian fare. Some over-the-top Shiraz (as wrc indicated) is a tough match for food, so if you are going to drink it, you might want it without food.

One reason we do not drink cabs with food is that we do not eat a lot of red meat. Have nothing against it but if we are doing red meat it will be lamb and that is a must with Bordeaux, IMO. My kick against cabs is the high alcohol and ripe fruit that turns me off with food but sometimes is OK with a piece of cheese or a baguette. Tannins are not a problem as I usually age them about 8-10 years.

Think acid it the main thing with food wines and if a wine is low in acid it is more difficult to match. I agree with Sangiovese and tomato based sauces.

Walt

In this category I would place many of the aromatic wines - Muscats being a prime example, as well as perfumey native wines. Sweetness aside, if a wine is so aromatic that it would overpower food, then I tend to think it best as a stand-alone sipper.

Any off-dry wine, or sweet dessert wines.

German rieslings could work particularly well in this case, because of the low alcohol, leaving you alert to monitor the toddler.

I would say that anything that you really, really like would work. I rarely drink wine without food for the simple reason that alcohol (and I guess acidity also) makes me feel hungry, so I can't drink without eating. But there are a few times a year that I want a couple glasses of wine, yet eat food that just doesn't suit my food (I like to eat lots of spicy/hot food), so I might drink a couple glasses without food. And I find that I will even enjoy a Madiran or some such wine that many will say is too tannic to be enjoyed without rare meat. I won't deny that a chunk of rare meat would make a more complete culinary experience, but that doesn't mean I didn't enjoy drinking the Madiran. So my experience would say that you should drink what you like with or without food. As usual, I'm not much help, I see!

I don't think that high acidity disqualifies a wine from being good alone without food. I think the thing to avoid is high levels of tannin, and I'd also avoid very high alcohol as a matter of preference. I think they are also good food wines, but off-dry to sweet German rieslings and fruity accessible Loire cab Franc are high acid but great solitary drinks.
Charles

I opened a bottle of Cline Viognier the other day and it was good just by itself. Also, I agree with others that sparkling wine can be nice by itself.

I'm like you. It seems like I mostly have cheese w/ my wine b/f or after dinner. Our staple is Robusto (cheese) and a heavy red.

Thanks for the suggestions. I'm going to summarise this for my own use later.

A few presumptions I've made which I'd appreciate advice on ..

* If St Joseph is a good candidate, does the same go for other Northern Rhone wine?
* Beaujolais and Loire Cab Franc are good choices, by extension can I assume that Loire Gamay is worthwhile?
* Anything else other than Viognier and Muscat come under the heading of "Dry, Aromatic White"?
* I recall reading somewhere that Dolcetto also makes good sipping wines - is this right?

White
=====
Riesling
Aromatic White - Vigonier, Muscat
Dessert Wine

Red
=====
Tempranillo - particularly Rioja
Beaujolais
Californian Cabernet Sauvignon
Australian Shiraz & Northern Rhone Syrah - particularly St Joseph
Loire Gamay and Cabernet Franc
Dolcetto and New World Pinot Noir have been suggested on other pages

The white end has been fairly well discussed so I'll comment on the other end.

Despite the common practice of having red/big/sweet reds with cheese, this does not in fact do much for most wines (or most cheeses, which happen to mate much better with whites).

I'd add Port and some big reds like Amarone to the list of wines best taken alone - wines of contemplation.

Like Bill...Port & Amarone come to mind. Sherry is another type I prefer without foods.

Richard

Like Bill...Port & Amarone come to mind. Sherry is another type I prefer without foods.

Richard

I agree in regard to sweet sherry, but a dry sherry mates beautifully with food - anything from olives and slices of sausage to grilled seafood, or a plate of warm nuts.

for me, it is not necessarily about a certain varietal but more about the quality of a wine... solid quality wines, or ones that might have a minor character flaw in them (one of the basic components out of whack, or maybe a closed nose) are wines that i enjoy with food...

the better quality the wine, the less likely i am to eat it with food as i do not want to distract myself from it... if i am drinking a 94+ pt wine, the food (even if the perfect match) might alter my impression of the wine... . worst case scenario is the food is AMAZING and all you do is focus on it, next thing you know the wine is gone without consideration ....

for me. top flight wines are best paired with candles, bocelli, soft lighting, and the perfect wine friends..... but who am i to say no to some good bread and hard cheese

for me. top flight wines are best paired with candles, bocelli, soft lighting, and the perfect wine friends..... but who am i to say no to some good bread and hard cheese

But then you get that waxy nose, ears clogged with treacle, and can't see the colour of the wine....

I agree that many wines, particularly older ones that generally have more subtle flavours, merit contemplation without food, although I would ask for an absence of other odours (hot wax), music best suited to Italian elevators (Bocelli) and the presence of enough light to appreciate the wine. And as you say, friends to talk about the wine with you.

But there you get into the subject for another thread - 'perfect' wine friends. Would a perfect wine companion agree with your every thought about a wine, or would he come up with all of the things that you didn't pick up on, but when you hear them, you realise how true they are?

But there you get into the subject for another thread - 'perfect' wine friends. Would a perfect wine companion agree with your every thought about a wine, or would he come up with all of the things that you didn't pick up on, but when you hear them, you realise how true they are?

To me, the perfect wine friend, Bill, is someone with a 10,000+ bottle cellar and a generous nature and who lives in a beautiful home in an interesting city. Now where will I find someone like that, I wonder? More seriously, I take your latter choice, though their tastes have to be up to a minimum standard such that they don't show up to brown bag lunch tasting toting a '67 B&G Beaujolais as their "special" treat.

Mark Lipton

To me, the perfect wine friend, Bill, is someone with a 10,000+ bottle cellar and a generous nature and who lives in a beautiful home in an interesting city. Now where will I find someone like that, I wonder? More seriously, I take your latter choice, though their tastes have to be up to a minimum standard such that they don't show up to brown bag lunch tasting toting a '67 B&G Beaujolais as their "special" treat.

Mark Lipton

Well 10,000 is an exaggeration - more in the 4,000 range, but I can still use some help drinking it, Mark - when are you getting out this way again? Can always find room at a monthly lunch for someone bringing something other than a 67 Beaujolais.....

[Jenise]

when are you getting out this way again?

He's been out before? I missed it?

when are you getting out this way again?

He's been out before? I missed it?

Yup - in 2003.

when are you getting out this way again?

He's been out before? I missed it?

Yup - in 2003.

Presidents Day, 2003 to be precise, much to my shock when I approached the hours-long wait at the border Jenise, details of the event can be found here.

Bill, I'll certainly let you know when next I'm headed out your way. I've cut back on the travel since the birth of our son, but I'll start traveling again in the next 1-2 years (and my cellar should be ripe with aged wines in need of near-term consumption). Next time, though, I'm shipping my wine to you ahead of time to avoid more bottle shock.

Mark Lipton

Bill, I'll certainly let you know when next I'm headed out your way. I've cut back on the travel since the birth of our son, but I'll start traveling again in the next 1-2 years (and my cellar should be ripe with aged wines in need of near-term consumption). Next time, though, I'm shipping my wine to you ahead of time to avoid more bottle shock.

Mark Lipton

Shipping across the border is fraught with problems. but I do know a nice lady just the other side of the border that would be willing to receive the bottle - as long as she was in on the removal of the cork as well......