Pairing wine with pizza: 4 recommendations from Barbara Philip
From Nero d'Avola to Emilia Romagna, from calabrese to pesto - we dare you to read this and not get hungry!
This past weekend was Cornucopia in Whistler, an annual celebration of food and drink in the village.
During the festival, the third annual Barbariain Pizza Party was held, and Master of Wine Barbara Philip was there, with fellow host and husband Iain, to find wine pairings for the pizzas.
(And do note, that's not a typo in the line above; "Barbariain" is a portmanteau of the hosts' names: Barbara and Iain.)
"The event is always a sell-out with lots of passionate opinions from the audience," Barbara Philip told On The Coast guest host Gloria Macarenko.
"There were five different pizzas and we picked two wines to go with each — one Italian and one non-Italian."
- Spanish wine picks that go beyond Tempranillo
- Italian wines from Piedmont make for great food pairings
The crowd of 60-plus tasters picked their favourite matches and some of the highlights are below:
Umani Ronchi "Casal di Serra" Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi. Marche. Italy. 2014. $17.99
"This fresh and citrus-y white wine from the Marche region was a delicious match with pesto pizza. The subtle herbal notes echoed the sweet basil and the fresh acidity in the wine stood up to the goat cheese on the pie."
Decero Malbec. Mendoza. Argentina. 2012. $25.99
"The dense ripe damson plum and blackberry fruit of this high altitude Malbec offset the rich, earthiness of the truffle funghi pizza beautifully."
Lini 910 Lambrusco. Emilia Romagna. Italy. N/V $19.99
"Sometimes the classic regional matches can't be beat. Savoury, dry, dark and frothy Lambrusco comes from the same region where they make prosciutto in Italy and so made an exciting pairing with the prosciutto and arugula pizza."
Vigneti Zabu "Il Passo" Nerello Mascalese/Nero d'Avola. Sicilia. Italy. 2013. $19.99
"The full body of this blend from Southern Italy stood up to the intense flavours of the calabrese pizza and the slight sweetness on the palate offset its spicy salami topping."
To hear the full story, click the audio labelled: Like pizza? Like wine? Check out these 4 pairing recommendations