When it comes to wine, choosing the right one can sometimes create a challenge. Should you choose red or white? When and why? Certainly, there is protocol such as red wine with red meat and white wine with white meat, but is that always necessary? Some people prefer to simply serve their wine of choice without worrying about choosing a wine to go with a particular meal and though that may be fine in most cases, there are times when it might not be acceptable. For instance, a red fruity wine with fish may cause a metallic taste if the wine includes tannin. That means if you want to serve red wine with fish you have to make sure you choose one that does not include tannin.
Keep in mind that you don’t want to serve any kind of wine with your salads because the vinegar will not mix well with it. The choice is yours of course, and if your guests insist on wine with the salad course, you want to accommodate them as much a possible. In that case, you may want to choose a dressing that has less vinegar such as French, Russian or Ranch instead of Italian. Though there is still a small amount of vinegar it is not as much as you will find in Italian, garlic or other oil-based salad dressings. You want to accommodate your guests but you also want to provide drinks that are going to go well with the food as well.
In cases where you are in doubt about what goes well with a particular food, you may find that a fruity white or red wine is a good choice. The sweet taste will go well with most food choices, and if you choose a red without tannin, you can serve it with any fish dishes you may be serving as well. It isn’t so much etiquette or protocol that lends its hand to a particular wine being served with certain foods but rather how the combination of ingredients in the wine will combine with the ingredients in the food. You are certainly welcome to experiment with different wines, but do it on your own rather than with your guests. Do not use a party as a place to test wine and food combinations although you may ask any of the guests if they are willing to try it outside of the party.