White Wine With Fish; Red Wine With Meat
Don’t let yourself be boxed in by too many rules. But unless you understand wine, this is a good rule of thumb. I would encourage you to take chance and experiment, but follow a couple guidelines.
1.	Ask for help if there is someone there that can help you.
2.	Spicy foods tend to go better with low tannin wines. I like spicy foods with cool refreshing whites.
3.	Champagne goes with everything. Don’t be hesitant to get Champagne.
4.	The goal of wine is to compliment the food, not to bury it. Drink wines that are light with lighter foods. As the food picks up more flavors, sauce and richness, the wine style should typically get heavier or compensate accordingly.
5.	You typically get what you pay for in wine. That is why I like to buy an expensive alternative variety. What does that mean? Well, I like to spend around $40-60 dollars on a wine off a wine list. I can get an unbelievable bottle of Sauvignon Blanc, Sancerre or Pouilly Fume for that. I will get a pretty mid-range Chardonnay or Burgundy. With reds, I go with varieties like Rhone, Beaujolais or Zinfandel in that same price range. You can’t, however, drink great Cabernets at the same prices.
6.	Look at the menu first, whenever possible.
7.	Don’t chill your wines too cold, except for Champagne.
8.	Don’t let your reds get too warm.
9.	Salmon and Tuna – red flesh fish may go better with a lighter style red wine than with white wine. Try a red Zinfandel or Syrah and see what I mean.
10.	Try something new as often as possible.