Your Weeknight Food And Wine Pairing: Grilled Cheese And Sparkling Wine
The combination of crisp, buttery, grilled bread, melted cheese, and a steaming bowl of tomato soup cannot be beat. But while you're dunking your diagonally cut sandwich into that soup, can you have a glass of wine in your free hand? One that will complement this classic comfort food duo? Absolutely. Here is a trio of wines to consider.
Let's start with sparkling wine. An inexpensive, refreshing blanquette de Limoux has lively bubbles and a dry profile to cut through the richness of all that butter and cheese. A well-chilled bottle can counteract the heat of the soup, and match with the acidity of tomatoes.
And don't forget rosé. Not just a summertime sipper, dry rosé is one of the most versatile and food-friendly wines on the planet. If you have a wide variety of cheese to contemplate for your sandwich, rosé can cover a lot of flavor ground. The savory and herbaceous notes of the wine also work well with the tomato soup. Look for a heartier rosé, like examples from Tavel.
Finally, we haven't forgotten about red wine. Lighter style reds, like cru beaujolais, are fantastic with cheese. (Cru beaujolais also happens to be a criminally underrated wine as well. Wines from the region's top sites, they show off the best of the gamay grape.) Serve your beaujolais with a slight chill to bring out the best in this pairing.