Pairing Wines and Spirits for New Year's

As the clock ticks down to midnight, why not make your New Year’s Eve celebration truly memorable with perfectly paired wines and spirits? Whether you're hosting a lavish dinner party or enjoying an intimate gathering, understanding how to balance flavors and pair your favorite drinks with delectable dishes can elevate the entire experience. From sparkling wines to classic cocktails, this guide will help you create unforgettable pairings that will impress your guests and set the tone for an exciting year ahead.

Basic Pairing Principles

The key to pairing is not finding exact matches between drinks and dishes but rather knowing the fundamental combinations that make pairings successful. With some experience and some guidance, you’ll be well on your way to great New Year’s pairings and beyond.

Flavor profiles are essential to developing great pairings. They help you to understand what experience a food or drink is intended to deliver. A flavor profile is the sum of characteristics of the combination of flavors, textures, and other taste elements of a food. This goes beyond whether a food is sweet, salty, acidic, bitter, or savory.

Some other flavor profile features include things like how aromatic a food is, how balanced the flavor of a food is, and how complex or rich a food is. Texture is also important. This includes how crunchy, creamy, or tender a food is.

Once you can identify flavor profiles, you can truly begin pairing. One of the easiest ways to pair is to use complementary or congruent flavors. For example, a complementary combination would be an acidic wine, such as a Pinot Grigio, paired with a creamy dish, such as chicken alfredo. Alternatively, you can match flavor profiles to make a congruent pairing, such as a Chardonnay paired with alfredo.

Pairing can get more complicated and in-depth, but some basics guide the way, as previously mentioned.

• Though many flavors blend well, others clash in a negative way. Flavors that clash easily are bitter, spicy, and acidic, each with the two others.
• There are generally 3 categories of wine when it comes to pairing:
  • Sweet wines
  • Bitter red wines
  • Acidic white, rose, and sparkling wines
• The flavor profiles of wines can be more complex than one element: the best way to know if a pairing is strong is to start by understanding the unique flavor profile alone.

Flavors That Pair Well with New Year's Champagne

Generally speaking, champagnes have bright fruit flavors that pair well with rich, umami, spicy, or fatty foods. If you pair that profile with something else that has a very strong profile, you’re more likely to end up with a clash between flavors rather than a beautiful, harmonious combination of flavors. You'll want to lean toward subtler flavor and lighter fare to match the lightness of the bubbly.

If you're trying to keep it classy, champagne pairs perfectly with seafood because it's inherently savory and often salty. Sashimi, oysters, and caviar are great raw options, but if you prefer lightly cooked, think white fish, smoked salmon, grilled scallops, or ceviche.

Salty foods are also a favorite because the salt counterbalances the acid and sugar that are prominent in sparkling wine. Deviled eggs and mini-quiches are traditional, but for a fun casual vibe, consider potato chips or buttered popcorn.

Fried food is another potential direction. It works because it's rich enough to balance delicate bubbles. You can make comfort food like fried chicken and hush puppies, or you can lean toward a particular cuisine with options like spring rolls or fried ravioli. Many Mexican dishes also work a treat, but be careful with lime juice – you don't want to serve anything too acidic with champers.

Bubbly and dessert are a challenge because anything too sweet will make the champagne seem bitter by comparison. Good options for straight champagne are fruit, dark chocolate, and bundt cake—anything sweeter, and you should consider pairing it with a champagne cocktail instead.

Other New Year's Wines and Spirits

Champagne's not for everyone – nor is it for all night. If you’d rather omit champagne or just diversify your menu a bit, consider relying on some other drink choices.

Sparkling wines are a great alternative that also keeps the bubbly element of New Year’s. Sparkling rosés are full of fruity flavors and generally have a drier profile; they pair well with seafood, such as smoked salmon or scallops, but can also pair with sweeter flavors, such as brie and other cheeses with sweet notes, as well as with chocolate, berries, or better yet chocolate-coated berries.

More traditional options are not off the table either. Red wine and duck can make a classy New Year's pairing, as can sake and sushi. Tequila and mezcal are excellent options to pair with Latin American cuisine, while steak calls for red wine or scotch.

Ham is a traditional holiday fare that you can pair with bourbon, whiskey, or wine – though the type of wine varies drastically with the food preparation.

Here are some other popular pairings to consider:

• Prosecco and Cava with charcuterie, cheeses, and festive snacks
• Sauvignon Blanc with salads, seafood, and light poultry dishes
• Chardonnay with creamy soups, roasted chicken, and rich seafood
• Pinot Noir with roasted vegetables, pork, and mushroom dishes
• Cabernet Sauvignon with red meats, hearty stews, and strong cheeses
• Classic Cocktails (i.e., Martini, Old-Fashioned) with small bites and appetizers
• Whiskey with dark chocolate, nuts, and grilled meats
• Vodka with caviar, smoked salmon, and light appetizers
• Rum with tropical fruits, desserts, and spiced dishes

Don't Forget Safety

As you plan for an event to cap off the year, you can't forget the basic rules of serving safely. The National Safety Council (NSC) estimates that more than 400 people may die on U.S. roads during the New Year’s holiday, with alcohol being a major contributor to these accidents. That's why December is the perfect time of year to refresh your serving staff on responsible alcohol server training. It doesn't have to be expensive or complicated.

We've been in the business of online compliance training for over 20 years and offer state-approved online alcohol training in most jurisdictions, as well as TIPS training that arms your staff with the techniques they need for responsible but low-conflict alcohol service. We also offer food handler safety training.

Enroll today and have a safe holiday season!