<em>Jay Lloyd's Getaway: </em> What Wine Goes With That?
A traveler's dilemma is often what wine to choose when faced with unfamiliar labels away from home. Jay Lloyd found some help.
by KYW's Jay Lloyd
I recently met Hudson Austin, a wine guru and distributor, at a cooking class in Blue Bell, Pa. He taught, I learned.
My question: What do you do when in Rome, for instance, when presented with a wine list the size of the New York telephone directory?
Austin's' answer: "Ask someone. Involve whoever is serving you -– their manager, their sommelier, perhaps someone who's selected the wines."
But it can't be that simple, can it? Austin thinks it can.
"The best way to experience great wine from any region is to pick the wine from the place where you're drinking it," he advises. "When you're in Rome, drink Frascati. Drink the wine that's made that region a legend in wine consumption."
And Austin points out that here in America, wine is a beverage in itself but in Europe, it's an integral part of a meal. And often the local food and local wine become perfectly paired.
From a budgetary standpoint, though, I've rarely gone wrong with the house wine.
