Wine pairing for some college staples...

Let me first apologize for the lack of posts over the past couple of weeks.  I'm studying to take the Certified Specialist of Wine exam next Tuesday, and my brain has been completely fried with wine knowledge.  It's an exam put on by the Society of Wine Educators.  It literally encompasses everything from viticulture to grape varietal/region knowledge to chemical reactions of photosynthesis/fermentation.  It's gotten a little intense studying for a couple hours every night (as I decided to take this 3 weeks ago!), and I have been too motivated to conjure up a good post!

Anyways, I wanted to write a short entry today about pairing wines with "budget" food.  When the bank account gets a little tight, sometimes the dinner selection reverts back to college favorites:  Easy Mac, Tombstone Pizza, and Ramen noodles.  Check out my pairings below, and tell me what you think!

Easy Mac

This dish is cheesy, buttery, and fatty.  It was a classic dish for me, since it took 3 minutes to make.  Easy Mac is a great dish with a bottle of California Chardonnay.  Chards from California are known to have a rich buttery component to them, which would mesh well with the cheese/butter in the dish.  My choices:  Clos du Bois, Sterling, Kendall Jackson, Beauleau Vineyards, and Beringer Founders Estate.  These producers all make a style that is "traditional" California.

Tombstone Pizza

I think value/dollar, Tombstone is the best deal in the frozen pizza department.  You can usually find these at 3 for $9.99.  I was also a huge fan of their commercial.  When the guy's sitting in the jail cell, and warden comes by and says: "What do you want on your Tombstone?!"  There are a lot of reds that are versital with pizza.  My favs would be:  Valpolicella or Montepulciano di Abruzzo from Italy, Cote du Rhone from France, and Tempranillo from Spain.  These reds tend to be "lighter", and express a softer fruit component....very little tannin.  The texture/flavor of the pizza is not overpowered by the weight of the wine.  You can find values in these categories for under $10/bottle.

Ramen noodles

Probably the all time "go-to" dish in college.  You could buy Ramen for pennies, and it usually did the trick late at night.  This pairing is a little trickier since Ramen is light, has little flavor, and it pretty salty.  I'm going to hate to type this, but here it goes:  Franzia, Almaden, or Charles Shaw Sauvignon Blanc/Pinot Grigio, or anything that is supercheap and a lighter white.  The reason for the pairing is that most of Chuck Shaw whites have no body, and are virtually like tasting flavored, alcoholic water!  Ramen is essentially flavored, salty water with spongey noodles.  I'm envious of the person who is reaping millions of dollars from the creation of this dish!

Next time you've spent a little too much money and have to curtail the dinner budget, pick up a pack of Easy Mac & Clos du Bois!  It could turn into a monthly staple?!