Barbecue and wine, Kansas City Style Barbecue

There are a ton of barbecue styles, so lets begin with the 800 pound gorilla of barbecue, Kansas City style.  This style of barbecue utilizes the widest variety of meats, paired with a sweet and savory sauce utilized in generous proportions.

The dominant factors in the regional style are the sauce and hickory smoked meats. This leads to a fairly wide selection of complimentary wines.

When enjoying beef ribs or brisket you could go directly to a big, oak-aged California Cabernet Sauvignon.  The wood influences will enhance each other and the bold fruit will enhance the texture and flavor of the beef, without being overpowered by the sauce application.

If you don't want to feature the wood influence in both wine and food, then a California Petite Syrah would be a good alternative.  This wine is not normally made with a distinct oak signature, if oak aged at all, however it brings big, bold fruit to the palate that will certainly meld well with the sauce and beef.

When pork is on the menu, a bit of subtlety is called for.  I like Australian Shiraz' and blends featuring Shiraz. Also, a good Chianti or Barbera D'Asti  provides a solid platform for the sauce and meat without over-powering  the senses.  Too big a wine will drown out the pork.  One could also make a case for Zinfandel and pork ribs, as long as the sauce is sweet enough to balance the spice of the Zinfandel.

Now for a bit of a twist, when it comes to chicken and turkey I strongly recommend red wine.  Keeping in mind the wood smoked meat and the sauce as dominant influences, nothing fits the bill better than a Pinot Noir, particularly those of California and Oregon. The combination of smoked turkey, KC sauce and Pinot Noir is a wonderful thing for the palate!  Other wines to try would be a Beaujolais, (not the Nouveau released in November, but a true Beaujolais), perhaps one of the Grand Cru Beaujolais, or a Rhone style blend from the Paso Robles region in California would also be worth a try.

As always, guidance is simply that: a guide, not a hard and fast rule, so, first and foremost let your palate tell you what is best for you.

For more insight on barbecue and preparations make sure to visit Bubba Q over at The Smokin' BBQ Pit, and for more on wine, whether you're interested in purchasing some beautiful boutique wines of the variety I have mentioned above, or just shootin' the breeze because you don't necessarily share my opinion, I can be reached at 308-338-0006 at Wineshippers, or you can shoot me an email.

"The difference between eating and dining is a glass of wine" , anonymous.