“WATER, BEER, AND FRUIT JUICE? IT IS NECESSARY TO BE A ‘LAY-MAN’ BUT STILL NOTHING, ABOSLUTELY NOTHING CAN BEAT AN IDEAL WINE, IN THE IDEAL CONDITIONS, AS THE COMPANION FOR ANY FOOD”. THE WORDS OF THE DIRECTOR OF THE ESPRESSO GUIDES, ENZO VIZZARI

Wine has long been considered a given as the best accompaniment to fine dining but, for some time now, this has often been brought into question. And it is even being done by important names in Italian cuisine. Gualtieri Marchesi, a Michelin star winner, recently gave up his recognition in the prestigious guide for more creative freedom in the kitchen, part of which is his idea that food is best tasted accompanied by water. And, now, Carlo Cracco, another Michelin three star winner, has begun proposing special menus with fruit juices.

Then there is beer, which is an ever more popular meal companion on dinner tables around the world.

Could this signify that wine is losing its historic dominion?
It is a danger that, for now, is not very probable, at least according to Enzo Vizzari, the director of the Espresso Guides. “In a purely theoretical line of reasoning Gualtiero Marchesi” - explained Vizzari in an interview with WineNews - “is right when he sustains that the ideal condition for tasting food is to not accompany it with anything, or something like water. But this is the case if one wants to make a precise analysis and therefore give an evaluation of a plate or product”.

“However, ‘normal people’ (thus, those who do not have a job that is particularly attached to dining, like cooks or sommelier), both at home and in restaurants, eat for pleasure as well as for physiological need, and it is obvious that the search for the ideal combination with wine is by far more advisable than tasting food with water or nothing. This is a discussion that must be clarified”.
And what about accompanying meals with fruit juice or other drinks?

“In affirmation of other drinks with food, the growth of beer use is a given fact and a normal alternative. That of fruit juice is dubious. Which does not mean, however, that there are not foods that can be accompanied by fruit juice. This said, however, I retain that from a pleasure point of view, nothing, absolutely nothing can surpass an ideal wine, in the ideal conditions, as an accompaniment to any food”.

”There can be many motivations,” - concluded Vizzari - “including that of trends and advertising, that suggest alternatives. We must be ‘lay-men’, open to everything, but until contrary proof, the immense variety of types, quality, and characteristics, the ideal accompaniment is, primarily, found with wine”.