A Note on Beverages by David Gill, MW

Appears in
Hot and Spicy
Hot and Spicy

By Marlena Spieler

Published 1985

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It is often difficult to pair a suitable drink with hot, spicy food. Beer is a good, all-round choice and there are enough varieties on the market from all over the world to satisfy anyone’s sense of adventure. Many of the hotter dishes are best matched with China tea - I personally recommend Pu Li, although the more aromatic teas can also work well. Many of the Eastern cuisines, such as Indian, offer cooling yogurt drinks to sip to quench the fire of the spice.

Matching hot and spicy foods with wine is more difficult. For white wine, choose a richer-flavoured variety, such as Gewürztraminer. Those which are medium dry tend to work best, so try wines from Eastern Europe or California. For the more fragrant dishes, a fuller Riesling from Australia, or a sweeter one from Germany might be rather pleasant. If your taste lies in red wine, then go for the softer, rounder reds, especially the vanilla-oaky wines from Spain or Bulgaria. For those who want them fruitier, perhaps a Chilean Cabernet or Australian Shiraz might be suitable.