Cutting the Fat: How to pair wines with Super Bowl food

Pairing wines with Super Bowl foods and common sauces

Cutting the Fat: How to pair wines with Super Bowl food

When pairing Super Bowl foods with wine, keep this rule in mind: fat with acidity, salt with sugar.

Greasy, Fatty Foods and Wine

Greasy or fatty finger foods need a wine with a bit of acidity to help cut the fat. Grapes like riesling, gewürztraminer and grüner veltliner are great choices. Red grapes can also work, but avoid heavy or tannic wines. Pinot noir, tempranillo and gamay can be a pleasant match.

Tom Firth's picture

Tom Firth

Tom Firth is a writer, wine consultant, judge and a member of the Wine Access National Tasting Panel. He loves to chat about all things wine and blogs for wineaccess.ca, tweets as @cowtownwine and is a general nuisance.

Don’t be a Hero: How to buy beer for a Super Bowl party

Buying beer that will make everyone happy

Don’t be a Hero: How to buy beer for a Super Bowl party

I have a motto for buying beer for parties: don’t be a hero.

When buying beer for myself, I love a good microbrew, the kind of beer that shows the love and care that went into its creation. I prefer to support good, local breweries over the Molson and Labbatt brands of this world.

But when I’m hosting a few sports fans for the Super Bowl, I buy beers that are crowd-pleasing, light and affordable.

Tom Firth's picture

Tom Firth

Tom Firth is a writer, wine consultant, judge and a member of the Wine Access National Tasting Panel. He loves to chat about all things wine and blogs for wineaccess.ca, tweets as @cowtownwine and is a general nuisance.

4 tasting notes for Laphroaig whisky

Tasting the range of Laphroaig Scottish whiskies

4 tasting notes for Laphroaig whisky

I recently spent the evening at Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse, where I was treated to an evening with the Friends of Laphroaig, a tasting and fan group for the famous Islay distillery, Laphroaig.

Tom Firth's picture

Tom Firth

Tom Firth is a writer, wine consultant, judge and a member of the Wine Access National Tasting Panel. He loves to chat about all things wine and blogs for wineaccess.ca, tweets as @cowtownwine and is a general nuisance.

Whiskies for Robbie Burns Day

What to drink on the Scottish bard's birthday

Whiskies for Robbie Burns Day

What better way to pay homage to the Scottish bard than by coming in to work on Thursday with a scotch hangover? Whether you celebrate with a kilt, haggis and full regalia or just by watching golf on television, the following recommendations should help you celebrate in style.

So reach into your deep pockets with those short Scottish arms and enjoy one or two of these authentic Scottish whiskies.

Tom Firth's picture

Tom Firth

Tom Firth is a writer, wine consultant, judge and a member of the Wine Access National Tasting Panel. He loves to chat about all things wine and blogs for wineaccess.ca, tweets as @cowtownwine and is a general nuisance.

A tasting of Glenmorangie whisky

Tasting the range of Glenmorangie whiskies, including the limited-release Glenmorangie Pride 1981

A tasting of Glenmorangie whisky

Last month I attended a horizontal tasting — a tasting of a selection of products from a single producer — of Glenmorangie single malt scotch whisky at the Fairmont Palliser hotel. Glenmorangie is a classic scotch brand and one of the most drinkable. The whiskies are smooth and enjoyable, and depending on your budget, relatively affordable.

Tom Firth's picture

Tom Firth

Tom Firth is a writer, wine consultant, judge and a member of the Wine Access National Tasting Panel. He loves to chat about all things wine and blogs for wineaccess.ca, tweets as @cowtownwine and is a general nuisance.

Interview with sherry expert Christopher Cannan

Cannan discusses the demand for sherry and how producers are making sherry attractive for consumers

Interview with sherry expert Christopher Cannan

It’s no secret that I love a good glass of sherry. Because of my ongoing interest in sherry, I had the chance to interview Mr. Christopher Cannan, a wine exporter and sherry expert, who was in Calgary promoting Bodegas Lustau

Tom Firth: Are consumers still interested in sherry? Are they rediscovering it?

Tom Firth's picture

Tom Firth

Tom Firth is a writer, wine consultant, judge and a member of the Wine Access National Tasting Panel. He loves to chat about all things wine and blogs for wineaccess.ca, tweets as @cowtownwine and is a general nuisance.

How to quickly chill a bottle of wine

An experiment in chilling wine — in the toilet

How to quickly chill a bottle of wine

Rarely a week goes by without someone asking me about a newfangled “miracle” wine device and if it works.

Most recently someone asked me about a bottle-top wine chiller. This device is used to chill a room temperature bottle by the glass. I suggested to my colleague that there is a cheaper, better way to chill a bottle of wine. And no, this solution doesn’t depend on your significant other refilling the ice tray.

Try the toilet tank.

Tom Firth's picture

Tom Firth

Tom Firth is a writer, wine consultant, judge and a member of the Wine Access National Tasting Panel. He loves to chat about all things wine and blogs for wineaccess.ca, tweets as @cowtownwine and is a general nuisance.

Try Samichlaus beer this holiday season

A robust, flavourful beer that is perfect for fireside evenings

Try Samichlaus beer this holiday season

As a wine writer, sometimes you just have to spend a night tasting beer. In this case, my night was spent tasting a vertical (successive vintages) of the world’s strongest commercially available lager, Samichlaus, which weighs in at a hefty 14 percent alcohol.

Our Samichlaus tasting guide for the evening was Karl Stöhr, the very charming and funny owner of Schoss Eggenberg, which produces Samichlaus.

Tom Firth's picture

Tom Firth

Tom Firth is a writer, wine consultant, judge and a member of the Wine Access National Tasting Panel. He loves to chat about all things wine and blogs for wineaccess.ca, tweets as @cowtownwine and is a general nuisance.

A Vertical Tasting of Don Melchor

Sampling vintages from 1993 to 2008 of Concha y Toro's flagship cabernet sauvignon-based blend

A Vertical Tasting of Don Melchor

In late fall I had the opportunity enjoy lunch with Enrique Tirado, the technical director and head winemaker for Concha y Toro’s Don Melchor brand.

The average wine drinker who has tried Chilean wine has probably sampled Concha y Toro, but they may not be familiar with Don Melchor, the flagship wine from the Concha y Toro line.

Tom Firth's picture

Tom Firth

Tom Firth is a writer, wine consultant, judge and a member of the Wine Access National Tasting Panel. He loves to chat about all things wine and blogs for wineaccess.ca, tweets as @cowtownwine and is a general nuisance.

How to find the best wines in a restaurant

Selecting a wine without help from an in-house sommelier doesn't need to be stressful

How to find the best wines in a restaurant

Choosing a wine at a restaurant is always feels far more stressful than it needs to be.

If the restaurant has a good in-house sommelier, selecting a wine should be a pleasant, stress-free experience. The sommelier will help you choose a wine that is appropriate for your budget, meal and dining experience.

Brad Royale, wine director for Canadian Rocky Mountain Resorts, summarizes the role of a sommelier:

Tom Firth's picture

Tom Firth

Tom Firth is a writer, wine consultant, judge and a member of the Wine Access National Tasting Panel. He loves to chat about all things wine and blogs for wineaccess.ca, tweets as @cowtownwine and is a general nuisance.