French wine

Golden rules

· Young wine is served before older wines.

· Dry white wine is served before red.

· Sweet wine (or Port or Banyuls) must be served last...

· Light red wine (Burgunay, Beaujolais, Loire types) must be served before stronger red wines (Bordeaux, Languedoc-Roussillon, Côtes-du-Rhône).

· Red Bordeaux is served between 16 °C and 18 °C, red Bourgogne between 14 °C and 16 °C. Dry white wine and rosé are served at 10 °C or 12 °C. Champagne and sweet wines are served at between 6 °C and 8 °C.

· An old wine is never decanted.

Happy marriages

· Oysters, shellfish: dry white wine.

· Fish: grilled fish requires a dry white wine or a rosé.

Fish in sauce goes well with the wine used to make the sauce. Otherwise, a rich dry white may be served (Meursault, Montrachet, Chablis) or medium dry (Loire). With a very creamy sauce, a sweet wine may be tried.

Smoked fish only tolerates very aromatic wines (Sauvignon, Alsace).

· Foie gras: Sauternes (a classic choice) or a great white from Burgundy, or an Alsace (Riesling or Gewurtztraminer).

· Cold meats: young aromatic wines (Beaujolais, Côtes-du-Rhône, Côtes-de-Provence, Loire). Sauerkraut only likes white wine from Alsace.

· Game: goes well with quite powerful reds (Pommard, Gevrey-Chambertin, Vosne-Romanée, Chambolle-Musigny, Châteauneuf-du-Pape).

· Meat: lamb - a relatively fine red wine (Pessac-Léognan, Volnay, Beaune, Savigny).

Veal, poultry, white meat: a less light red wine (Côtes-du-Rhône) or a smooth Bordeaux (premières Côtes-de-Bordeaux, Côtes-de-Castillon). Burgundies also goes well. The essential is to avoid wines that are too powerful.

Red meat: wines with more body. Chinon, Saint-Nicolas-de-Bourgueil, Beaujolais (Morgon, Fleurie, Juliénas, Moulin-à-vent), northern Côtes-du-Rhône (Châteauneuf, Tavel, Hermitage). Pedigree Burgundies and Bordeaux (Côtes-de-Bourg, Saint-Emilion, Médoc) are perfect.

· Cheese:

Soft cheeses: (Tomme de Savoie, Port-Salut): dry whites or reds that are still young (Corbières, vintage Beaujolais).

Soft creamy cheese (reblochon type): fuller bodied whites (white Bourgogne, dry white Bordeaux) or a Burgundy, or even a light red Bordeaux.

Pressed cheeses (gruyère, comté): fruity reds or characterful whites (Arbois or a great dry Bordeaux).

Blue cheese (Roquefort, etc.): sweet white or full-bodied red.

Goat's cheese: full-bodied wines (Sauvignon, Sancerre, Pouilly Fumé, well-defined Beaujolais, Côtes-du-Rhône, Côtes-de-Provence, Côteaux du Languedoc).

Strong cheeses: white wines with plenty of body (Gewurtztraminer goes well with Munster, Sauternes with Livarot, Epoisses, Maroilles) or reds that can accompany a wide range of foods (Clos du Vougeot, Chambertin, Châteauneuf-du-Pape, Madiran).

· Desserts: chocolate goes very well with Banyuls or Rivesaltes.

Don'ts

· Vinaigrette and wine: with a salad, water, only water!

· Sweet dishes or cream sauces with red wine, bar a few exceptions.

· Wine and the freezer: never put wine in the freezer to cool it quicker.

* Translation from "Le vin à la maison" by Louis Plessis, with the kind autorisation from Flammarion, the publishers.