CHOOSE WINES LOWER IN ALCOHOL

For Samantha, the most important characteristic in determining a food-friendly wine is the alcohol content. “If there was one rule, for me it would be that lower-in-alcohol wines tend to pair better with food,” she says. “Food exacerbates tannins, acidity and alcohol, so a wine that’s balanced, with a lower alcohol content of around 11.5 to 13 per cent, is going to work better with food than a wine that sits around that 15 to 16 per cent mark.”

Jane agrees that wines that are out of balance – overly acidic, tannic, dry, sweet or alcoholic – don’t tend to complement food as well as those that are “balanced, open and not dominated by super-strong flavours”. This is why a better match for steak would be a lower-alcohol cabernet, grenache or even a cool-climate shiraz – something that’s “more balanced, open and fresh,” Jane says, to work with, rather than against, the meat.

There are, of course, a few exceptions, such as Amarone and sherry – both being high-alcohol flavour-packed wines that can make incredible food matches. But, generally, it’s easier to find food friends for wines that are a bit more subtle.

“Sangiovese and a bowl of tomato-based pasta – no doubt!”