There is no mystique to the art of matching wine and food.  There are no ironclad rules.   Wine is a very personal thing, depending on each individual's taste.  There is not one right wine for any particular food.

The primary consideration for a proper marriage is that the character of the wine and that of the food should not overpower each other.  Instead, the taste of wine combined with the other ought to create a third taste that is greater than each individual character.

General rules to harmonize wine with food date to the days of ancient Greece and Rome.  While rigid, specific food and wine rules were written in the 1500’s regarding the serving of appropriate wines and foods, today's consumer drinks what pleases the palate.

There are, nonetheless, some general recommendations to be made regarding wine and food combinations.   Red wines with red meats make gastronomic sense.  The tannin in the wine marries with the proteins in the red meat, causing digestion to begin almost immediately.  Drunk with certain seafood, red wine acquires a metallic taste.

White wine with white meats and seafood is also a good general recommendation. Though fresh salmon, swordfish or tuna, being rich in natural oils, marry well with light-bodied reds.

Salads do not impart any characteristics to wine but, if dressed with vinegar, they inhibit the palate's assessment, robbing wine of its liveliness, making it taste flabby and dull.  Lemon juice is preferred, as citric acid blends well with wine's makeup.

Cheese and wine are ideal combinations just take care not to serve rich, piquant cheeses with light bodied wines and vice versa.

Spicy foods can be a problem, but when served with a spicy or very fruity wine, the two meet their mates (Lambrusco from Italy, Shiraz from Australia).