Imagine the feeling, when the soft Lucknowi galouti kebab disintegrates in your mouth and that velvety texture is shattered with the sharp taste of pink rosé wine, seems unlikely? But this is the joy of discovering unusual wine pairings, something Anushka Pandkar feels passionate about. A certified sommelier from the Wine and Spirit Education Trust, London, and currently working as a sommelier with Wine Park, a major importer of wines in India, Anushka is one of the few female sommeliers in India.
The young lady, who has been travelling across India educating people about wine, conducting workshops and trainings, was in Bengaluru on invitation by Courtyard by Marriott and Fairfield by Marriott. “It’s a myth that red wine pairs well only with red meat and that white wine pairs well with white meat. The tannins in red wine make it bitter and such bitterness goes well with slightly sweeter food. For example, you can pair it with a thick Indian gravy made of tomatoes because the wine will offset the sweetness of the curry,” elaborates Anushka. Likewise, she explains how the fruitiness and sourness of the white wine complements low intensity flavours, so pairing white wine with vegetables that are sauteed in light garlic sauce, or vegetables that are crunchy is a good combination. “The best wine to pair your spicy Indian food with is the off-dry wines that are slightly sweet. The best off-dry wines are from Germany,” she adds.
It’s Anushka’s comprehensive understanding and knowledge of wines that lures anyone who listens to her to get deeper into the subject. With over five years of experience having worked as a wine consultant at All Things Nice, a Mumbai-based online platform that offers wine consultancy and with Wi-Not, a professionally qualified and managed wine and beverage solutions company, Anushka is adept at her job. “It started with just one thought when I was a student at the Institute of Hotel Management Goa. When we were introduced to all beverages, it was wine that intrigued me. I wondered why fruit juice that’s fermented could be so expensive. It was this quest to know about the intricacies involved in making this simple beverage not so simple that drew me to this profession,” she says.
Raise a toast
Today with more awareness about wines in India, Anushka seems to be much-in-demand. But though she has been travelling and meeting wine connoisseurs, she believes wine still has a long way to go. “It will take a while before a wine bottle becomes a fixture on the dinner table. But the good thing is that, people who know wine and are collectors have been hosting sit-down wine dinners where there is a lot of knowledge sharing. The incidence of such dinners in cities like Mumbai, Delhi and Bengaluru has just increased. The trend is here to stay,” says the sommelier who loves her Burgundies from France and New Zealand, Riesling from Germany and Italian wines.
Quick takes
First time wine drinkers: Should start with sparkling wine or white wine, both are easy to drink
Tips to buy wine: Choose a good boutique that stores wine in a temperature-controlled environment. Decide whether you want red or white wine and if you want light bodied or heavy bodied wine.
Best way to drink wine: Let it breathe, then swirl. Smell and take a sip. Swirl in the mouth to taste the complex flavours of the wine.
Why swirl: Oxygen absorption helps bring out all the flavours
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