I like the list and it is making me hungry, but all of them with the exception of the fish have enough of the ingredients I mentioned to interfere with the wines. And I have never been a fan of fish and Burgundy…
Mark G., in general, Traditional Cantonese food is very very light in sugar and chili spice. If anythjng they take great pains to enhance the unique qualities of the main protein or veg. Soy contents depend on dish. Many Canto dishes also have zero soy.
That being said, there are exceptions, many very tasty. Many are Cantonese versions of other regional Chinese cuisine. Easy example is Peking duck. Served at most canto banquets.
I do agree though that it is still difficult to perfectly pair pinot with canto food, and I grew up with the stuff.
my favorite “chinese” food is cantonese and it goes very well with myriad red wines, especially older burgundy.
This! Well put Fred!
Mark G, if you ever make your way to LA, let us Chinese peoples know and we’ll take you to the promised land. Lots of great Cantonese restaurants here that have Mark Y’s list on their menu. In fact, I recall having most of those dishes in the last chinese + burgundy dinner we did a few months back.
Here are a few regional differences/unique qualities I find in Chinese cuisine:
Cantonese Style: As CWun said, very light in sugar, spices, and soy. Probably the more fragrant/aromatic of all Chinese cuisines. Cantonese foods focus on predominately seafood and meats. Some dishes may feature heavier use of sauce, but typically they are considered to be on the lighter style of Chinese cuisine.
Shanghai Style: Traditionally, heavier use of sugar, salt, and vinegar. Sugar and salt are staples of Shanghai cuisine. You will find heavy use of soy in many dishes - think anything braised or stewed - they are typically bathed in some soy based sauce. Nevertheless, really yummy food. Lots of focus on meat dishes.
Sichuan/Hunan Style: Heavy use of chili, spices, garlic, think bold and pungent flavors. The use of leeks, onions, garlic, ginger are pretty widespread in this style. Focus is mainly on meats. Very little sugar. Dishes are mainly a shade of red with green and white coming from the onions. I don’t have much experience with this style as Shanghai peoples’ palate are not accustomed to the fiery foods of this region.
Beijing/Northern Style: Lots of focus on the use of flour dishes - mainly noodles, dumplings, and buns. The South usually eats rice with their food, whereas the North eats noodles and dumplings. Stewing and roasting are methods used to prepare the food, though the use of soy based or sugar based sauces are kinda all over the place. As mentioned here, you’ll find Peking Duck, which is not overly salted, but then there are hotpots that have lots of intense flavors usually with a soy based stew. Dumplings are typically lightly seasoned with very low sugar.
Hope this helps!
**Damn, I’m hungry now and its not even 10am . . .
Got it.
Mark Y.
Spot on. Squab is a stellar pairing and is as good as any pairing with poulet roti or roast pork.
And as odd as it sounds, steamed rockfish with light soy pairs surprisingly well even though theoretically, it shouldn’t. Had it with Fourrier CSJ so maybe it’s only Fourrier and not Dujac 
Dry or off-dry Chenin Blanc.
need to do phoenix garden wine dinner asap after this thread.
This is a very good list/description. To this I would add Mongolian/Chinese, Indian/Chinese and Macanese/Chinese style cooking, along with Taiwanese cooking. The other thing to remember is that at gringo Chinese restaurants, of which most fall under the Sichuan/Hunan style, many of the flavors are amped up for the American palate- i.e. more spice, more soy, etc.
Southern Rhone with duck and pork
Germany, Alsace and Champagne with everything else.
Aha, I stumbled across the brilliant match of Lopez de Heredia rosado (which for those who don’t know, is made in an oxidative style) with Sichuan food. Works better than anything else I’ve tried. Goes great with the chile heat, the sichuan peppercorns, the garlic and ginger, and cuts through the oil brilliantly. Yeah, I can see sherries and Jura whites performing similarly.
That does sound pretty great.
Maybe not Dujac, but let’s not forget that in Sideways Miles drinks his treasured Cheval Blanc in a burger joint with onion rings.
I’ve had Cheval Blanc with Shake Shack. Screw the haters, it was great.
plz, I had 96 Coche dury Corton Charlie out of a cocktail glass, shooting pool in a vegas hotel with a slice of pizza on a paper plate. No one is more low brow than this guy
And Shake Shack is pretty high brow as burgers go.
Burgers and pinot works for me
Great thread drift. Mine is Krug 1990 out of a Mason jar while baby sitting friend’s fractious four year old.
You could have drank it in a dirty washroom.