How To Choose A Wine To Pair With Spicy Food

It's not always obvious what drink you should reach for when eating spicy food (hint: it's definitely not water), but many people don't even consider wine an option. Unless you're a connoisseur, it can be difficult to know which wines work with spice. Choose the wrong wine and you can end up with something that is too hot to handle, or you might risk overpowering the spice and not being able to enjoy it. To help you out, we asked Canadian chef and Cooking Channel's "Late Nite Eats" host, Jordan Andino, who we caught up with him at the Heritage Fire Fest held in Miami, where he partnered with Franciscan Estate wines.

According to Andino, "a good rule of thumb is to pair high acid wine with spicy food. By increasing the acid, your mouth will water and cleanse your palate in between bites of your favorite spicy dishes." For this, he recommends ordering a Pinot Noir. We'd add other low-tannin reds like Schiava and Zweigelt as alternatives if you're not a fan of Pinot. Another way to bring down the spice level is to look for sweetness. "Wines that have an element of sweetness ... tone down the heat and bring forward the flavor [of the food]. With this approach, you can reach for a bottle of wine that's fruit-forward," Andino states. You probably don't want to a dessert wine, but rather light bodied wines with residual sugar like a Riesling or a Gewurztraminer.

Andino's advice is a safe bet for those who aren't into experimenting with their wine choices. Both acidic and slightly sweet wines will bring down spice levels and won't overpower your meal. But everything with food is personal, so it's good to think about what you want from your wine. Some people, for instance, might want to enhance rather than control spiciness. Although high-tannin and oaked reds are recommended as a wine pairing for steak, they're usually a no-go for spicy food. If you're someone who can handle hot food, however, feel free to ignore this advice and go for bold reds like Shiraz or wines with hints of spice like Malbec. These will make the meal even more flavorful.

Similarly, you don't necessarily have to skip sparkling wines. If you know your wines well-enough, you can carefully choose one for the meal that you're having. You'll want to order these types of wines with foods that are just slightly spicy. Even if you love the heat, bubbles aren't always the most pleasant sensation when your mouth is hot. Sparkling whites pair well with seafood that has just a bit of pepper and other spices. If you want to experiment with this unusual pairing, try to find dry wines. In general, start out with recommendations from experts like Andino, but don't be afraid to experiment and see which spicy food-and-wine pairs best fit your taste.