As a child, the sight of my mother wielding a blowtorch in an effort to achieve the perfect crème brûlé didn't incite the least bit of fear in me; au contraire: I would often beg for the privilege of handling this powerful carpentry/culinary tool.  It was when she poured whisky into a pan of meat juices and lit a match, subsequently setting the whole pot aflame, that I feared my sticker collection and other treasures would burn to a crisp with the rest of the house.  Why, oh why, I thought, did she have to use booze and flames in the kitchen?

I have since learned that by flambéing the meat (which required the above flame) my mother was eliminating much of the alcohol in the whisky.  Why employ whisky if you just want to rid it of an element that largely defines its being?  For the same reason wine is often called upon to enliven a dish: new dimensions of flavor are teased out and give a dish new life and delicious complexity.  Only after infusing my own cooking frequently with wine and spirits do I finally understand why my mother seemingly put our house on the line in the quest for that perfect rump roast.  

While the focus of this article is an exploration of why and how wine works so well when used in the kitchen, some of the same reasons and principles apply to liqueur, but that is another article for another day.   In short, wine adds dimension to a dish, as it brings out and produces nuances in flavors that might not otherwise have emerged in its absence.  For example, the buttery, often rich flavors in chardonnay augment the richness and buttery character of a cream sauce, just as a fruity zinfandel enhances the flavor of that fruity sauce that would go so well with a pork tenderloin or duck.  Because flavors in wine range greatly - from citrus-y, to apple-y or fruity, to berry-like (just to name a few) - the varietal of wine one adds to a sauce greatly influences the flavors.  A cream sauce infused with chardonnay will taste quite different from a cream sauce infused with sauvignon blanc: while the latter's herbal, citrus-y notes will shine through, the buttery, oftentimes oak-y nuances of the former will accentuate the creamy, rich qualities of the sauce.

Although it is possible to experiment by substituting different wines in the same basic sauces, several foods do have affinities for certain types of wine.  The stronger the meat, the stronger the wine should be.  In other words, for beef and lamb, red would be best.  Red can also be successfully used with chicken and veal, although white is called for in certain recipes.  Fish is almost exclusively the domain of white wine, as the mild flavors of most fish would be lost in a red sea.

What about those harsh flavors that alcohol can potentially give a dish, and how can a cook soften them? The reason for flambéing with liqueur is to burn off the alcohol quickly and thereby take off the harsh quality the spirit would otherwise contribute to the sauce.  With wine, the simple act of heating and cooking wine causes the alcohol to evaporate (although never completely as long as there is liquid of some sort in the pan), thereby softening the flavors of the sauce.  At the same time, the characteristic flavors of the wine intensify and deepen beautifully (berry and cassis in Cabernet Sauvignon, or herbal and grassy in Sauvignon Blanc, for example). 

Tannins also contribute to the harshness of flavor that wines can potentially add to a dish, as they add astringency and sometimes bitterness.  In order to sidestep this risk, opt to cook with wines low in tannins, such as, for example, aged wines, Pinot Noir, Merlot, or a white wine.

Very often, a dish calls for a specific type of wine.  For instance, a classic dish of the Bordeaux region of France might call for a Bordeaux in the sauce, just as a recipe for Boeuf Bourgignon may call for red Burgundy or Pinot Noir (which is the primary red grape of the Burgundy region).  Sticking with the recommended wine is not of utmost importance, as it would have been the wine most readily available to the cook.  Selecting a wine with similar characteristics is your best bet (i.e. don't pour in an acidic Chianti or a highly tannic cabernet sauvignon if a recipe calls for a pinot; a merlot would do nicely). 

Techniques abound when it comes to cooking with wine, and other than sautéing and marinating, cooks can macerate (soaking meat in a liquid in order to soften it), deglaze (dissolving the remaining morsels of roasted or sautéed food in a pot or pan by adding and heating liquid), simmer (cooking gently or remaining at or just below the boiling point), and poach (cooking in a simmering liquid). 

And what about drinking the same wine you cook with?  It's always a safe bet, but not always necessary.  You could cook with a white and drink a red.  While the opposite might be a bit risky, by all means let your own palate be the judge!

Recipes using wine as a component range from those that require just a bit of wine, to those for which wine is the basis of the dish.  Enjoy, be creative, and most of all, don't worry too much if you see flames coming from your kitchen; it's probably just someone who has discovered the joy of cooking with liqueur and wine.

The Top 8 Ways to Cook With Wine to Ensure You Won't Hate What You Just Ate

1. Use only wine you would drink, for your dish will take on the qualities of the wine you use, particularly if it is added towards the end of the cooking process. 

2. Stay away from cooking wine!  The bottles you will find on supermarket shelves tend to be harsh and unbalanced (either too salty or too sweet), and the acidity and astringency will only intensify with cooking.  What you want is a balanced wine.

3. First reduce wine, and then add other ingredients to complete the sauce.

4. Adding wine at the end is not recommended unless you want pure wine taste in the sauce.

5. Adding more wine than is called for is generally not a good idea, as the sauce's balance could become disrupted.  Therefore, measure accurately!

6. Alternatively, using less wine than is called for might be cause for disappointment in the result.  If a dish requires an entire bottle, all the liquid may be necessary to cook the meat and any less will probably alter the flavor, particularly with respect to acidity.  Some acidity is good!  It adds life to a dish.

7. Salty foods and sweet wines don't mix, so don't cook with them!  Chicken à la Sauterne…hmmmm -- sounds like Chung King to me!

8. Choose wines according to the food you are cooking.  A light fish in a complex or acidic red wine will be lost and result in an unbalanced overly-acidic dish. 

About Bottlenotes

Article written by Antonia Moran, Contributing Author, Bottlenotes, Inc. Bottlenotes is a personalized sommelier service delivering wine tailored to our members personal tastes using proprietary matching technology. Bottlenotes sources wine exclusively from some of the best boutique and estate wineries from around the world. Each wine that you receive will automatically be tracked in your very own online wine cellar (My Cellar™). There, you'll be able to forever track the label, story, your tasting notes, wine ratings, see what your Bottlenotes Friends thought of the wine, get cheese and general pairing suggestions, and more!  Bottlenotes. The Culture of Wine. Redefined.  Go to www.bottlenotes.com to begin the journey.