Some of the foods, such as artichokes and asparagus, don't necessarily get along with wine. Many of the difficult foods have a distinctive taste with no parallel in the wine world. Artichokes, for example, possess an oddly sweet flavor that unkindly alters the taste of almost any wine. I had despaired of discovering a wine to serve with a wonderful artichoke risotto, when I happened upon a California Gamay Beaujolais Nouveau. The heady, almost perfumed taste of this red wine met the challenge better than any of the whites I tried.
Salads also can mess up a good bottle of wine.
It's usually the vinegar or sugar in the dressing that does the foul deed. Homemade vinaigrette, with just a whisper of good-quality vinegar, will solve the problem by lowering the acidity. A full-tilt Cabernet Sauvignon would be the classic partner for lamb, but the salad lightens the total effect, and allows for a less weighty, more summery red wine choice, such as a Cotes du Rhone or Sangiovese. Warm weather used to mean switching to white wine, but a doubling of red wine sales in the United States over the last five years may indicate that people don't relinquish their heart- healthy reds even in the face of sunny skies and summer meals. Some reds, such as Beaujolais or Grenache, are especially appealing this time of year because they are best served slightly chilled.