• Weight:  A hearty dish like Beef Bourguignon needs a full-bodied wine like Red Burgundy.  Though reds are the usual accompaniment to powerful meat dishes, it’s not the color that’s most important.  For example, a full-bodied white wine might be a better match than a light red.  Conversely, a light, delicately prepared fish – like tilapia, or trout amandine – calls for a light and delicate wine.
  
• Acidity:  Both food (tomatoes, citrus, etc.) and wine (particularly from cool climates) can have acidity.  For example, many Italian dishes are made with olive oil, so many Italian reds have considerable acidity, which matches the tomatoes and cuts through the olive oil.
  
• Salt:  Salty foods taste better when balanced with a bit of sweetness, as when prosciutto is served with melon.  Take a salty cheese and match it with a nice sweet Sauterne and you have a delicious match.

• Sweetness:  As sweet foods make dry wines seem tart and acidic, a good guideline is to serve wines that are as sweet or sweeter than the dish.
  
• Tannins:  Because of its high tannin content, a Cabernet Sauvignon drunk without food can cause your gums to pucker.  Wine tannins are attracted to protein (as in your saliva), so when the wine is drunk with fatty lamb, the tannins attach to the protein molecules in your mouth and strips them, leaving your mouth feeling cleansed. 

• Flavor Intensity and Characteristics:  A hearty dish like Beef Bourguignon needs a full-bodied wine like Red Burgundy.  Though reds are the usual accompaniment to powerful meat dishes, it’s not the color that’s most important.  For example, a full-bodied white wine might be a better match than a light red.  Conversely, a light, delicately prepared fish – like tilapia, or trout amandine – calls for a light and delicate wine.