Hello:

What wine suggestions for real, homemade, macaroni & cheese? This is a great dish, with some sharp cheddar, a creamy Bechamel sauce, some onions and penne pasta. It's not your Kraft mac&cheese!

I favor reds, but would love to get advice.

Thanks!

The classic pairing for Macaroni and cheese is a Burgundy--- Perhaps something from the Cote D'Or, or Nuits St. Georges.
I think that the Pinot Noir would match well.

Irwin

"Life is short.....start with the dessert."

I´d go for something mediumbodied from Bordeaux.

Hmmm... I'd avoid anything tannic, and try to get something with more acidity. A Pinot as Irwin suggests or a Chianti Classico. Rioja has the acidity too, but I think the sweetish taste of oak may not go very well with the bechamel and cheddar?

You all know that I hate to be pedantic but... surely 'real' macaroni & cheese would use macaroni not penne and would use an Italian cheese not an English one made somewhere else other than England or Italy (Or are the quotes supposed to be ironic?)

Oh yes - Chianti Classico

Boogaloo Dude

Sorry for butting in again, but I still think that a Pinot Noir might be a little too tame to match a bit sharper cheddar.... I vote for a Nice Cabernet Sauvignon, or maybe a Syrah from Cotes du Rhone.

"real" mac and cheese is as American as hotdogs and pizza, isn't it? I'd got with a Zin -- not a fat, lush fruit bomb, but something with a little acidic bite and some tannin.

quote:

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Originally posted by bottmfishr:
"real" mac and cheese is as American as hotdogs and pizza, isn't it?

---

Absolutely - Hot-dogs are really German (as are burgers and doughnuts) and pizza is really Italian. Apple Pie is, of course, English.

Boogaloo Dude

KillerB -- That was sort of my point... and Zinfandel is really Croatian -- genetically identical to crljenak kastelanski, right?

I did wonder!

Boogaloo Dude

Turkey is American. Also, corn was not typically eaten (by humans) in Europe until it was popularized after the English brought it back to Europe. Also, the tomato is from the New World. Italians didn't cook with tomatoes until they were imported into Europe from the US.

Irwin

"Life is short.....start with the dessert."

A little curiosa about the tomato ( to show that they were NOT imported to Europe from the US exactly)

South America is the home of the tomato and has been cultivated by Indians in the Andes Mountains since prehistoric times. It moved from South America to Mexico more then 3,000 years ago, when settlers migrated to this area of the world. The Tomato was introduced to European society in the 16th Century and was first grown in Italy in 1550. Tomatoes are a fruit, not a vegetable and belong to the same family as the poisonous nightshade family. For a long time in the U.S. they were thought to be poisonous and inedible until the 19th century. The tomato is now cultivated throughout the world.

If we're talking about real origins then pasta isn't even Italian - it came from the Far East. However, no-one is going to claim that Spaghetti Bolognese is a Chinese dish.

Boogaloo Dude

Oh my oh my oh my I get to be the wiseass!!!

While it is true that pasta has been made in China for at least 5000 years, the belief that Marco Polo would have brought pasta to Italy is purportedly legend. Polo returned to Italy in 1295 while Genoese soldier listed a basket full of pasta in his estate inventory in the year 1279.

Boiled pasta (noodles) first appeared in the western world in the 5th century AD in Jerusalem and was probably brought to Italy by the Arabs when they conquered Sicily (1061-1091).

The Romans kand the Greeks new of a form of pasta known as lagana that apparetly wasn't too far off lasagna, but the dough wasn't boiled but grilled, so this may not count as pasta. Either way, KillerB is correct in saying pasta is not italian.

i think a big zin or syrah would be the best bet!!!! the pasta from china was made from rice not semolina !!!!!!!
bez

I suggest a nice Riesling. It's food friendly.

This question is asked every year in northern Michigan on the Old Mission Peninsula. Chefs from local restaurants serve macaroni and cheese at the tasting rooms with the appropriate local wine. People travel from winery to winery eating mac and drinking wine.

Incidentally I think there are so many variations on Mac&Cheese that there's probably no single good answer for this question. Like the idea of a Riesling though.

Kraft Mac N' Cheese was introduced in the United States in 1937. Over 67 years old, this fine addition to the culinary world, although becoming more and more and more processed... remains a delight for wine lovers everywhere. I would suggest, from lots of experience, a sauvignon blanc. It has some nice acidity to counteract the cheese coating left on your tongue, and a nice crispness with some grass and green that makes it a great complement to the dish. I would suggest, with Kraft or homemade, the 2002 Brancott Reserve Sauv Blanc Marlborough.

Now nobody here will take me seriously... but I must be true to the orange and blue.

LJ

It's the Cheeziest

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I am currently eating a smoked gouda omlette with a Toro (Finca Sobreno Seleccion Especial) and it goes terrifically well. This reminds me of the smoked gouda Mac n' cheese that I used to get at a small restaurant where I went to college. I think a Toro would work well with said dish.

a

I'd agree with the comments re: Pinot Noir, Chianti Classico, and perhaps Toro (haven't tried the latter pairing myself). But I do disagree on the Riesling suggestion, wouldn't work (for me) IMO.

www.vinocellar.com -- Mm-Mm-good

i've had great success with a basic chardonnay, but i use alot of gruyere in my mac n cheese. riesling works too. so does pinot noir.

I like the suggestions of going with white, not red or pinot. I think a Chard or a richer sauvignon blanc would be great with what I'd consider "real" mac and cheese: from The South.

It depends on the cheese used. Not the freaking pasta!

Pair as you would normally.

quote:

Originally posted by rizell:
Hello:

What wine suggestions for real, homemade, macaroni & cheese? This is a great dish, with some sharp cheddar, a creamy Bechamel sauce, some onions and penne pasta. It's not your Kraft mac&cheese!

I favor reds, but would love to get advice.

Then stick with a red; several would fit this dish.

quote:

Originally posted by KillerB:

quote:

Originally posted by bottmfishr:
"real" mac and cheese is as American as hotdogs and pizza, isn't it?

Absolutely - Hot-dogs are really German (as are burgers and doughnuts) and pizza is really Greek. Apple Pie is, of course, English.

Boogaloo Dude

ahem