Printable wine quizzes
Wine and food
Which wine with which dish, and why: acidity, tannin, sweetness and the regional classics.
12 questions · answers on page 2
Two A4 pages: the questions first, then the answers. The print dialogue can also save it as a PDF.
Weinquiz · Printable
Wine and food
NamePoints/ 12
Why does a fresh, crisp white go so well with fatty dishes?
Which wine is the classic partner for fresh oysters?
Which wine goes best with a hot Thai curry?
Spaghetti with tomato sauce or a pizza Margherita: which red wine is the classic match?
Zürcher Geschnetzeltes with Rösti: which wine best suits the mushroom cream sauce?
Asparagus is considered a tricky partner for wine. Which wine suits it best?
Why does a tannic red go so well with a juicy steak?
Which wine is the classic British companion to Stilton, the English blue cheese?
Munster, the pungent soft cheese of the Vosges: which Alsace white wine is its classic partner?
Artichokes are known as wine killers. How does the compound cynarin they contain change the taste of wine?
Crottin de Chavignol, the Loire goat’s cheese: which wine from the same village is its classic partner?
Which dish is considered the classic partner of a powerful, tannic Barolo in Piedmont?
weinquiz.ch/en/printable/wine-and-food/ · Answers and explanations on page 2
For the quizmaster
How to run it at a tasting
- Print page 1 for each person or team, and page 2 with the answers once, for the quizmaster.
- Pour the wine and allow ten to fifteen minutes: tick one answer per question, no looking it up on a phone.
- Swap sheets; the quizmaster reads out the answers and explanations. Each right answer scores a point.
Another round? The apéro round is for two to six players on a single phone: weinquiz.ch/party
Answers: Wine and food
B Its acidity cuts the fat and refreshes the palate
Acidity works like a squeeze of lemon on fish: it clears the fat from the palate and makes every bite fresh again. That is why Chasselas with cheese, Champagne with chips or Riesling with smoked salmon all work.
C Chablis
Chablis, an unoaked Chardonnay from northern Burgundy, grows on Kimmeridgian limestone full of fossilised oyster shells; its acidity and minerality answer the oysters’ salt, whereas tannin or sweetness clash with seafood.
C An off-dry Riesling
Residual sugar tames the chilli heat and the Riesling’s acidity keeps everything fresh; tannin and high alcohol, by contrast, are held to fan the burn. A Gewürztraminer or a slightly sweet Pinot Gris also work.
C Chianti (Sangiovese)
Tomatoes bring plenty of acidity; the wine needs at least as much, or it tastes flat beside the sauce. The Sangiovese of Chianti has high acidity and moderate alcohol and is the classic partner for pasta and pizza with tomato sauce.
D A light Zürich Pinot Noir
Tender veal in a cream sauce needs a wine without hard tannin, which would taste bitter in the sauce. There is no canonical match, but a light Pinot Noir from Lake Zurich or, as a white alternative, a fresh Räuschling is the obvious regional choice for Zurich’s traditional dish.
A A fresh Sauvignon Blanc
The green, grassy aromas of Sauvignon Blanc mirror the asparagus and its acidity copes with hollandaise; tannin and oak, by contrast, taste hard and metallic beside the slightly bitter vegetable. In eastern Switzerland, Müller-Thurgau is another favourite.
B Protein and fat bind the tannin, so the wine seems softer
Tannins bind to proteins: in the mouth these are normally the proteins of saliva, which produces the furry, drying sensation. Meat supplies plenty of protein and fat that capture the tannin, and the wine suddenly seems round and fruity.
B Port
Salt and sweetness make a powerful contrast: the salty, pungent blue cheese is tamed by the sweetness and weight of Port. The same principle lies behind Roquefort and Sauternes.
C Gewürztraminer
Munster is a washed-rind cheese with a marked smell and spicy force. Aromatic, ample and often slightly off-dry Gewürztraminer holds its own; Riesling also works, and late-harvest versions are considered especially fitting.
B The wine suddenly tastes sweeter
Cynarin temporarily blocks the sweet receptors on the tongue; the next sip washes it away and, for about 60 per cent of people, the wine tastes unnaturally sweet and hollow. Dry, crisp, unoaked whites such as Grüner Veltliner or Sauvignon Blanc therefore work best.
C Sancerre (Sauvignon Blanc)
Chavignol is a hamlet in the commune of Sancerre, and the fresh goat’s cheese and the Sauvignon Blanc of the limestone slopes have always been neighbours: the wine’s acidity and grassy notes pick up the cheese’s tang and herbal notes. Swiss Sauvignon Blanc also suits goat’s cheese well.
D Brasato, beef braised in Barolo
Barolo, made from Nebbiolo, is powerful, tannic and fresh; a delicate or cold dish could not stand up to it. Brasato al Barolo, slowly braised in the same wine, is the classic, as are rich risottos, game and long-aged cheeses.
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