There are a bunch of things that come to mind when you hear the words “Super Bowl”. Of course there is the teams involved, and betting. Then there is the Super Bowl parties. And when we talk about the parties, we think of plenty of food, snacks, and beer. Most parties include chili, wings, beer, and snacks.
But what if you are more of a wine drinker than a beer drinker? Well, I’ve come up with a bunch of ideas to pair different wines with snacks, specifically many styles of potato chips. I absolutely love potato chips. So I figured why not hold a blind taste test to discover what kind of chip goes best with which wine.
I broke the potato chips into categories based on flavor punch – how much flavor each type of chip delivered. I then tried numerous wines, finding what I think to be the best pairings. The results follow below.
Carmine’s “Flavor Punch” Ratings:
Originally, I had thought that there would be a correlation between saturated fat content and “flavor punch”, but that wasn’t so. The total fat content for all of the chips tasted was relatively the same.
The first thing that you notice is the salt content on your lips, or lack there of. Saltiness varied widely from chip to chip.
Overall, salt content, chip texture, and flavor power effects the final wine pairing.
Flavor Ratings and Pairings:
Chips are rated from 1-5, with 1 being the lowest flavor punch, and 5 being the biggest flavor punch.
1- Wise Lightly Salted: Thin sliced, very subtle potato flavor, less oil than the original chips, light salt, short start & finish
1- Lay’s Baked: Very thin texture, o fat, cooked rare, “processed” taste, no potato taste, barely any salt
A great style of wine to pair with these chips would be white, light, crisp, slightly fruity, such as
**** Pinot Blanc, Italian Soave or Orvieto, or a lighter style reisling from New York.
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2- Wise All Natural: Thin sliced, lightly cooked, not overly salty, slight potato and somewhat oily taste
2- Charles Chips: Classic look and taste, nice potato taste, even saltiness
2+- Lay’s Classic: Thin sliced, not overly salty, short start, just a hint of salt on the lips, cooked slightly more than the Wise.
**** Use whites again, but go bigger and bolder, with a spicy Gewurtztraminer, or Sauvignon Blanc, or even a lighter style Chardonnay with little or no oak
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3- Lay’s Kettle Cooked: Light to Medium baked, great snap & crackle, beefy texture, bigger start, long lasting potato finish, less salty than expected
3 Wise Honey BBQ: Bright orange color, which is deceiving (the bbq taste isn’t very strong, the honey is), BBQ hits the lips to start, honey brings in a sweet short finish
3+- Lay’s Salt and Vinegar: Light color, dry, less oily texture, strong vinegar nose, long, sweet vinegar finish but no potato taste
3+ Ruffles Ridged Chips: Well cooked, tastes like “hops”, good degree of saltiness
**** Wines need to be a big bold oakey, buttery Chardonnay, or a light style red, such as a Beaujolais, Barbera from Italy, or a thin, light Pinot Noir (light red, slightly chilled is also great)
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4-Wise Ridges: Slightly oily, lots of salt, lots of potato, but thin
4- Wise Ridges Cheddar & Sour Cream: typical ridged texture, bright orange color, big bold start, mellows out on the finish, medium potato taste (overwhelmed by cheese & sour cream flavor)
4-Cape Cod 40% Reduced Fat Kettle Cooked: Very hard, crunchy texture, dark color matches the taste; like a dark beer vs lite beer comparison, smoky taste,earthy, but still not a real “potato” taste
*** Matching wines here include those that are medium body reds, with good tannin structure such as an earthy Merlot, Sangioves, a heavier, “thicker” Pinot Noir, or a young Chianti
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5- Cape Cod Dark Russet Kettle Cooked: Dark, ruby red color, soft-crunchy texture, very little salt; tastes like a great, big , baked potato with a rich smoky flavor.
5-Lay’s Baked KC Masterpiece BBQ: Light color, “fake chip” texture; slow BBQ start, very faint nose, sweet smoky finish, but hardly any potato taste
*** Here’s we pull out the big boys with the powerful flavors: Super Tuscans, fine California Cabernet Sauvignon, Meritage blends, or the big Italian Barolo
I found this article useful in a paper I am writing at university. Hopefully, I get an A+ now!
Thanks
Bernice Franklin
UGG Boots