Wine & Food

Have you ever noticed how a wine changes depending on what you’re enjoying it with? Picture this scenario: one day you’re having a glass on the patio while catching up with friends and you just love the wine you are drinking! The next time you’re at the store, you are excited to buy that same bottle to pair with tonight’s meal. You slave over dinner set the table, and pour yourself a glass of wine. All of a sudden, the wine tastes completely different than you remember it. Maybe you like it more, maybe you like it less. What happened? This is the power of pairing food and wine! Creating a perfect wine pairing can be intimidating, but understanding the basics will help.

Understanding Your Palate 

Most palates discern five basic tastes: sweet, sour, umami, bitter, and salty. Sometimes you’ll see sour and acidic or umami and fat interchanged. However, a number of descriptions about wine have nothing to do with taste, but rather refer to the wine’s aromas.
Prepared with tasting notes and the wine’s label, you’ll be able to pull together enough information to create a pairing, without even tasting the wine.

Homework You’ll Actually Want to Do

Under normal circumstances, we would suggest you do this next time you order a glass of wine while sitting at the bar. But seeing that it might be a while before you’re doing that again, you can easily do this experiment at home! 

Gather your supplies – you’ll want something sweet, sour, umami, bitter, and salty. At the bar, these are all things your bartender usually has readily available as garnishes. Sweet – cherries, sour – lemon, umami – mushroom, bitter – olives, salt (self-explanatory). Pour yourself a glass of wine; any wine will do! Spend a few minutes enjoying it and familiarizing it on your palate. Now, you’re going to take a sip of your wine and taste one element at a time. Sip, then eat a cherry, and so forth, paying attention to how the wine changes with each sip. Depending on which wine you’re drinking, some of the elements will make the wine worse, and some will make the wine better. Hence, why choosing the right foods to pair with your wine is essential.

Pairing Basics

Now that we understand why pairings are important let’s talk about the basics of wine pairing. This will help you craft wine pairings with confidence on your own! 

Complementary vs Congruent Pairings 

There are two general types of pairings: complementary and congruent. A complimentary wine pairing is when you pair a wine that differs from the food, adding a complement to the food. A congruent pairing is when you pair wine with something similar to the food. For example, pairing a buttery Chardonnay with buttery popcorn is a congruent pairing –butter + butter = two similar flavor profiles. Pairing buttery popcorn with crisp, acidic Champagne is a complementary pairing– butter + acid = two different flavor profiles that work well together.

In general, 

  • complementary pairings are used with red wine. 
  • congruent pairings are used with white wine. 
  • the wine should be sweeter or more acidic than the food.
  • bitter/acid and fat is a good pairing. 
  • keep the wine and food at similar intensity levels. 
  • it’s very difficult to pair chocolate, asparagus, and Brussels sprouts with wine. 


The Perfect Summer Menu with Tayson Pierce

We hope you’ve enjoyed this primer course on food and wine pairings. We’d love to answer any questions you may have. Now, without further ado, our recommendations for the perfect summer menu with Tayson Pierce wines!

Try pairing our 2017 Rothchild Rosé with delicious, epitome-of-summer watermelon and feta salad. The acidity in the wine offers the perfect complementary pairing with the creamy feta. The Rosé is more acidic than the watermelon, and they’re similarly mild in intensity.

Is there anything more summery than the perfect BLT? Our 2017 Chardonnay is the ideal match for this classic summer sandwich. Feeling something extra? Add an avocado, making a BLTA, or try this swordfish BLT! Our Chardonnay is a great balance of creaminess (from malolactic fermentation) and acidity. The BLT works with both components. The creaminess complements the avocado and mayonnaise, while the acidity from the wine cuts through the fat from the bacon. It checks all the boxes and is seriously one of our favorite summer pairings! 








Last but not least, our 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon is an excellent complement to grilled steak and veggies. Cabernet is usually paired with grilled meats because very few wines are as equally intense and rich as grilled steaks are. Additionally, grilled meats are full of umami flavors, as is Cabernet. We love this smoky take on classic grilled steak, with the addition of fresh eggplant – a true sign of summer! 









It’s Your Turn

You’ll know quickly if you make a mistake with a wine pairing, but hopefully, with this basic crash course, you’ll be able to identify where you went awry! Our top recommendation is to just keep trying. The more you practice, the better you’ll get. That means you’re going to need more wine! You can browse our collection of Napa Valley still wines and Champagnes from France here. Make sure to tag us on social media in your next pairing!

A Classic and Delectable Pairing

Oysters, along with most shellfish, are incredibly versatile with their adaptability and ability to be consumed at nearly anytime of the year. While oysters are fantastic to enjoy on a hot summer day with an ice-cold glass of Champagne or Sauvignon Blanc, they are also equally as satisfying with a glass of our rich 2016 Chardonnay. So, before we share our favorite pairing, let’s dive into the history of oysters, their many different species, and the ways to prepare and enjoy them.

Raw Oysters

A Very Brief History of Oysters

Neolithic Period (10,000 BC)

The earliest source of food, and is believed that the shells were used as cutlery. 

15th Century 

In this period of exploration, the oyster provided long voyage sailors with essential nutrients and protein. Oysters during this time were often cooked in their own juices and seasoned simply. 

Today 

Oysters are enjoyed around the world and are appreciated for their briny and sweet characteristics. While some are still harvested directly from the sea, they are now farmed for a more sustainable future. 

Different Oyster Species

Here’s a quick guide to the different species of oysters you can find today.

A guide to different oyster species by Tayson Pierce - Kumamoto Oysters, Pacific Oysters, European Flats, Atlantic Oysters and Olympia Oysters.
Pair Tayson Pierce Chardonnay with Oyster Stew

Our Favorite Oyster Pairing

While the classic oyster pairing is with a crisp white wine such as Sauvignon Blanc or Champagne, Chardonnay also pairs impeccably well with the more savory oyster dishes. 

There are typically four different ways to prepare oysters – raw, baked, fried, and grilled – but with our 2016 Chardonnay, our favorite way to enjoy is Oyster Stew! The heartiness and richness of the stew pairs impeccably with the full-bodied, rich creaminess of our Chardonnay. Great for any season and even better to share with others.

Father’s Day is a perfect opportunity to get to know Eric J Rothchild, father, founder, vintner, and resident Dad of Tayson Pierce Wines and Champagne Eric Philippe.

A Passionate Family

Eric was born in New York, New York, to loving and doting parents, Herbert and Audrey. He holds many special memories of his father. Both avid cyclists, Eric fondly remembers a road biking adventure in Girona, Spain at one of the Tour de France training sites. Eric greatly admired his father’s passion for family, work, and sport – passions he, in turn, instilled in his three boys. 

Even as a child, he loved helping and healing people. That passion manifested in adulthood as a career in ophthalmology. Always on the quest for improvement, Eric spends his free time developing his hobbies, which include photography, equestrian sports, triathlons, and, of course, wine. 

The first wine he remembers drinking is Château Latour when he was 14 years old and falling in love with Sauternes, specifically Château d’Yquem in his 20s. In 2005, his passion for enjoying wine had grown into a desire to make wine and now 15 years later, his dream of producing elegant wines and Champagnes for people to enjoy and share is a reality. “I can’t believe I’ve done it. It had always been a dream of mine.” 

A Proud Dad

As much as he loves wine, Eric’s three boys – Taylor, Grayson, and Pierce – are truly the joy of his life. When asked what his favorite thing about being a dad is, he said, “watching your children grow, develop, mature, and succeed.” And succeed, they have. Taylor, the creative and brilliant eldest, works closely with Eric on both Tayson Pierce Wines and Champagne Eric Philippe. Pierce is sensitive and determined, living in Chicago and working in finance. And Grayson, the balanced, focused youngest brother, just completed graduate school in Miami. 

The whole family brings their passion, intelligence, and preferences together to make a portfolio of wines and Champagnes that they all truly enjoy.

The Perfect Day

Father’s Day will be a little different this year. We asked each of the boys what their perfect Father’s Day with Eric would be if they were able to be together. Here’s what they planned:

From Taylor: We’d go riding horses in Bordeaux and enjoy some of our Grand Cru Champagne afterward.

From Grayson: We’d go for a long drive, in a nice car, along the beach together. 

From Pierce: In the morning, we’d go for a long run, followed by brunch at our favorite restaurant. Then after a relaxing afternoon at the spa, we’d head out for an ocean-side dinner of steak and great conversation.

JOIN US FOR OUR NEXT VIRTUAL TASTING 

INSTAGRAM LIVE | @TAYSONPIERCE

Saturday, June 20
11 AM PST | 2 PM EST

Get to know Tayson Pierce proprietor Eric Rothchild. Virtually join him, and meet his horses, at his beautiful barn for a friendly conversation about how his passion for wine developed into a hobby – and ultimately the creation of Tayson Pierce Wines and Champagne Eric Philippe.


We have always championed the women in our family and today, above all, is when we celebrate all of them at once.  Past, present, and future, they are the ones that have cared for us through the good times and the not-so-good. Let us begin with a brief introduction. We are the Rothchild family and we are on a mission to create wines and champagnes worth sharing! 

Tayson Pierce is the culmination of the three children Taylor (myself), Pierce, and Grayson (the eternal baby of the family).

Our Family Tradition

In order to get the full picture, we will start where it all began, with my Great Grandfather, Nathan Rothchild. Nathan was a pioneer in his day and had a passion for wine, a novelty for Americans in the 1960s. He loved it so much that he began secretly making it at his summer home in Saratoga Springs. Nathan’s winemaking had a profound influence on his son Herbert and ultimately on his grandson, my father, Eric J Rothchild. An enthusiastic traveler, Eric’s travels led him to the greatest wine regions of the world, where he tasted at the most prestigious wineries.  Ultimately his passion to learn, collect and consume wine would, like his father’s, turned into a passion for crafting his own.

First, A Love Story

In the ’80s, Eric met my mother Susan in what always sounds to me like a great story for a Rom-Com movie. They met during Eric’s first week of his medical internship, in a hospital in California, while attending the same patient; Eric as an ophthalmologist and Susan a nurse.  Eric would make numerous attempts to get my mother to go on a date with him, to no avail.  Although one day, he made one of his famous “Dad” jokes, which made her burst out laughing.  She accepted his offer to have lunch in the hospital.  It was all a fairytale after that. They married in 1986, in a traditional ceremony in Boca Raton, FL at the iconic Boca Raton Resort. Three years later they had me, their “favorite first son”, followed by my brothers Pierce and Grayson.

Planting Roots

We grew up in Boca Raton, not exactly the epicenter of winemaking. After accomplishing a successful career as an Ophthalmologist, Eric decided to plant some roots (forgive the pun) in Napa Valley.  After years of traveling to wine countries all over the world, it was time for them to have a place to call their own. We spent our teens living in Napa Valley each summer, working summer jobs at wineries, and developing our own appreciation for wine.  Eventually Eric decided, like his grandfather Nathan, to take up the family hobby with prolific passion. 

Tayson Pierce is Born 

In 2005 the prototype of what would become Tayson Pierce Wines was made. We’ve learned a lot since that first vintage, most of which we’ll discuss in-depth at a later date. All along though, we’ve strived to create the best single-vineyard wines made of the highest quality fruit from vineyards focused on sustainability. This will forever be our focus, without compromise. 

Our Matriarch

In honor of Mother’s Day I would be remiss if I didn’t introduce the matriarch of the family, Susan Rothchild. I asked the family what they love most about our mother; it’s evident how much we love her. Even though Mother’s Day will likely be from a Zoom or Facetime this year, mom – we hope you know how much we love, adore, and admire you for all you’ve done for the family. 

Grayson, the youngest, says, “Mom cares about everyone else more than herself. That’s one of the many reasons I love her.”

“As I raise my glass of Eric Philippe, this is to you mom. “We love you for your boundless love, relentless care no matter the situation, kindhearted nature, love for animals, genuine honest, and constant thoughfulness for your loved ones!”

Love, Taylor

Pierce, my middle brother, says, “She is by far the most caring individual I have ever met. Her love for us is so much it gets annoying at times (joking). She will drop anything she is doing in a second if you need her help. She does nothing but think of others and never about herself. I am lucky to have her as my mom.”

Eric adds, “I love so many things. To name a few: her inner and outer beauty, her commitment to her family, her stability, her honesty, her love of animals, and her spirituality. I’m as much in love with her as the day I met her.”

We Toast To You

Our mother’s, past, present, and future have been and will always be at the backbone of this family.  They cared for us when we were young and now that we’ve grown up they provide relentless love and support when we need it most. Last but not least, they make great official taste-testers for our wines.  Cheers to you, mom, and all the other mothers out there today who do what you do.  We salute you and hope you are enjoying this special day.

If you still need a Mother’s Day gift, we’re offering $10 shipping on a dozen Rosé wines from either Tayson Pierce Wines or Champagne Eric Philippe. You can shop here.