CHIPS AND SIPS
Potato chips can be an easy, inexpensive and delicious pairing for your favourite wine,
Sure, foie-gras profiteroles and champagne or slow-braised beef riblets and red Rhone can make you believe in God, but they’re all pains-in-the-posterior to pull off on the fly. Take the work out of Labour Day with these five delicious but dirt cheap and dead easy food and wine pairings. (Fancy stemware optional.)
Lamarca Prosecco D.O.C., Italy (LCBO 487694 $16.65 in stores and online) with Miss Vickie’s Sea Salt and Malt Vinegar Potato Chips
With its eye-catching Tiffany blue label and delicate, off-dry appeal, this Prosecco is an easy crowd-pleaser that teases the senses with coy suggestions of apricot and pear. But it’s even better with salt and vinegar chips — especially this slightly more gourmet version with its hard bite and subtle seasoning. The pairing forms the right balance of salty-sour-sweet in the mouth while the wine’s effervescence stands up to the deep crunch for a — and I write this with a straight face — texturally rich snack experience. No joke. Score: 90
2016 The Ned Sauvignon Blanc, Waihopai River, Marlborough, New Zealand (LCBO 470070 $16.75 in stores and online) with Lay’s Dill Pickle Potato Chips
This combo will stun and amaze. The wine’s damp herb and cool cucumber appeal shot through with bracing lime squirt acidity tastes gorgeous on its own, but is hands-down amazing with Lay’s Dill Pickle Potato Chips. The salty dill seasoning and gentle zip mirrors the wine’s character while the savvy blanc refreshes between bites beautifully. All green and fresh tasting, this pairing is a fine finale to the season. Score: 94+
2015 Ribshack Red Vintage Blend, South Africa (LCBO 392761 $12.95 in stores and online) with Kettle Brand Backyard Barbecue Potato Chips
This pairing is crazy. The off-dry blend of Pinotage and Shiraz delivers a muscular hit of ripe red and black fruit, toasted oak and grilled red meat while these smoky-sweet-and-spicy chips tastes like everything you love about backyard barbecues. So each sip-bite-sip scenario creates a greater-than-the-sum situation as the wine compliments and intensifies the flavour of the chips and vice versa. This pairing is so riveting you won’t have to bothering firing up the grill at all. It’s that good. Score: 94
2016 Lindeman’s Bin 65 Chardonnay, Australia (LCBO 142117 $11.10 in stores and online) with Lay’s Classic Potato Chips
The first time I experienced rich food transforming a creamy Chardonnay into a far more elegant drop was in California, when I was served an oaky white with poached lobster and drawn butter. It was fascinating, and something I’ve been on the lookout for ever since. Something similar happens here; some of the richness of this popular wooded Chardonnay drops away when paired with these potato chips, bringing the mouth-watering crispness and bright citric core to the fore. Together, the wine becomes more delicate-tasting while maintaining the weight and power to stand up to the chips’ earthy, deep-fried goodness. Great match. Score: 91
2016 Henry of Pelham Baco Noir, Old Vines, VQA Ontario (LCBO 459966 $19.95 in stores and online) with Harvest Cheddar Sun Chips
No wonder this wine has a cultlike following; its smooth, mouthcoating texture and attractive flavours of macerated berries, damson plum puree and cracked black peppercorn offers huge and instant appeal. But that appeal goes skyward with Harvest Cheddar Sun Chips. The salty tang of old cheddar and hearty whole grain flavour and crunch matches the weight and intensity of the wine well while delivering a huge hit of deeply satisfying umami. And who doesn’t love a generous dose of umami, right? Score: 93