Sommelier, go away! Food pairing made easy

For consumers who aren’t interested in delving into a wine’s expressiveness or pinpointing whether a Mourvèdre’s hints of blackberry are outweighed by its overtones of black pepper, what matters most is how well the wine goes with their food. Making it as simple as possible, the Amazing Food Wine Company has launched a fool-proof line of Wine That Loves. Each wine is specifically suited to one dish, which leaves no room for error; these are wines that singularly ‘love’ pizza, grilled salmon or pasta with tomato sauce. The dishes were chosen based on popularity in American households. Wine That Loves takes the guesswork out of food and wine pairing, while promising “world-class quality, distinctive character and winning style that will also delight wine aficionados.” The wines were picked and paired by Ralph Hersom, a wine expert and professional wine taster, who was Wine Director at New York’s Le Cirque restaurant for seven years. Opportunities? Start up something similar in your own neck of the woods, or take another difficult or elitist product and make it easy for the rest of us. Just don’t dumb it down too much, and do keep it playful and well-designed. Spotted by: Channing Hancock