Foodies’ new fiesta

The quickest way to pump the happening quotient of a party is by serving guests with foods that they will talk about till at almost every other party or food items that are not frequently heard of.

DNA spoke to chefs and restaurateurs across the city to find out which alcohol-food pairings are most hip and happening this party season, and we stumbled upon some very interesting discoveries.

Rishi Kumar, restaurant manager of a popular Bandra-based five star hotel, says that while one can just not go wrong with the classic pairings of white wine with white meat and red wine with red meat, this season calls for a little experimenting.

He reckons one tries ushering in Christmas and New Year’s with kobe with grilled asparagus and mashed potatoes paired with 1964 Girvan single grain scotch.

Ajay Varma of a Bandra-based Italian restaurant says that this party season one could start the revelry with an appetiser like Vermouth.

“Basically this helps in cleaning your palette. For starters, one could go for a seraed chicken roll, which is stuffed with gherkins and mild cheddar flavoured with rosemary and served with aioli,” says Ajay, adding that if someone is not confident of carrying off these items, they should just innovate with the classics. “For instance, team a Rib eye steak with a full bodied red wine like a Merlot, the musky and spicy flavour of which goes fantastically with the intense and juicy flavour of the steak. Braised leg of a lamb will also fit well in this combination.

Nikhil Agarwal, director of a popular restaurant, suggests that rookies stick to Indian tandoori starters with whisky or wine pairings. “You could also put together a nice cheese and charcuterie platter and serve it with accompaniments,” says Nikhil. But if you want to stun your guests, he suggests you try port wine with chocolate combination. “Sweet wines with blue cheese, crab with German Riesline, caviar with iced vodka or a full bodied champagne or sparkling wine are also out of the box options,” says Nikhil.

Tricia Batliwala, of a Churchgate-based restaurant, is of the opinion that it is important to observe that we are the biggest whiskey market in the world, which means it naturally appeals to our palates and match the complex layers of flavour and texture in our food.

Having said that, Tricia’s not so regular alcohol food pairing is Martini Bianco which he warns is an acquired taste and can be paired with Italian food. “Most of the herbs in Italian food are also in this delicate aromatic drink. Martini Bianco is a Vermouth, a fine blend of Italian white wine infused with herbs and sweet floral botanicals with notes of vanilla and citrus.” Cheers!