Roast Duck with Orange sauce and what knid of wine?

[Innkeeper]

You need a red with high acidiy to handle the orange. The pinot that Catch 22 recommended could do the trick. We think that a cabernet franc from the Loire Valley would be a little better for these reasons: it is a little higher in acidity than the pinot; the green, herbaceous notes match better with the dish; and Duck a l'Orange is a regional dish of the Loire. Look for Chinon, Bourgueil, Anjou Rouge, or Saumur-Champignay. IMHO the Saumur would be best; you can get a good one for $14 or $15, or you could blow your whole budget.

There are no hard rules on what wine to have with which food. You need to look at the individual dish. Generally speaking, lighter dishes call for white wine, and heavier ones call for red. Some people drink only red, or only white, and that is possible. The characteristics of the food and wine are what need to be matched. In the example above, the acidity of the food and wine were matched. The high tannin in cabernet sauvignon and syrah/shiraz match with fatty meats like beef steak or lamb. Sweet wines such as Port match with sweet desserts.

[This message has been edited by Innkeeper (edited 02-08-2001).]