Perfect Pairings & Recipes for
Alentejo

Top flavour pairings and Alentejo recipes, revealed through the hidden methmatics of flavour.

Alentejo immediately conjures the evocative embrace of cherry and the kiss of tannin, woven with delicate hints of oak, vanilla, and plum, giving it remarkable depth. The key to a truly exceptional combination lies in appreciating how these notes interact and harmonise.

To illuminate these harmonies, we embarked on an ambitious journey, analysing thousands of ingredients. Each was meticulously deconstructed across 150 distinct flavour dimensions, allowing us to pinpoint precisely which notes complement in both classic and unexpected ways. Our analysis reveals, for example, how nutmeg's eugenolic tones infuse with Alentejo, and how bay leaf's eugenolic notes create a surprising synergy with its juicy sweetness.

An ingredient's flavour stems from its core characteristics, such as herbal, vegetal, or acidic, combined with layers of subtle flavour notes (outer bars). For a balanced dish, pair ingredients with a variety of core flavours, and choose complementary aroma notes for harmony.

The Art of Flavour Pairing

To understand exactly which flavours harmonise, we compiled a database of over 50,000 ingredient pairings commonly used in cooking. We then analysed these pairings, identifying the specific flavour notes that frequently appear together.

The Flavours That Harmonise With Cherry Notes

Our analysis shows that the flavour of cherry is strongly associated with the flavour of clove. This suggests we should look for ingredients with a clove-like flavour, such as bay leaf, when pairing with the cherry-like aromas of Alentejo.

The recipes below provide inspiration for pairing Alentejo with bay leaf.

Harmonious Flavours Of Alentejo

Just as our analysis highlighted that cherry and clove-like flavour notes frequently pair together, we can identify the full profile of flavours that harmonise with each of the flavours present in Alentejo. For instance, the tannic notes of Alentejo are strongly associated with mouldy and burnt notes.

The aroma accents complementary to the various accents of Alentejo can be seen highlighted in the pink bars below.

Matching Flavour Profiles

The flavour profile of nutmeg offers many of the aroma notes complementary to Alentejo, including clove and cinnamon aroma accents. Because the flavour profile of nutmeg has many of the of the features that are complementary to Alentejo, they are likely to pair very well together.

The chart above shows the unique profile of nutmeg across 150 dimensions of flavour, while the recipes below offer inspiration for bringing these flavours together with Alentejo.

Recipes That Pair Alentejo With Nutmeg

Linked Flavour Notes

Looking at the notes that are most strongly associated with the various flavours of Alentejo, we can identify other ingredients that are likely to pair well.

The left side of the chart above highlights the aroma notes of Alentejo, along with the complementary aromas associated with each note. While the right side shows some of the ingredients that share many of the aroma notes complementary to Alentejo.

Which Vegetables Go With Alentejo?

Choose vegetables that infuse with its woodiness or anchor its crisp tartness. Red pepper and carrot offer vibrant, clean counterpoints, their verdant freshness lifting the palate. Savoy cabbage add a gentle, oniony brightness, while red chilli introduces a sophisticated, anise-tinged elegance.

Alternatively, embrace vegetables that harmonise with Alentejo's greenness. The addition of broad bean, with its subtle fabian notes, can complement the cucumber beautifully, while gaeta olive lends a starchy aroma.

How Flavonomics Works

We've pioneered a unique, data-driven approach to decode the intricate art of flavour pairing. Our goal is to move beyond intuition and uncover the science of why certain ingredients harmonise beautifully. This rigorous methodology allows us to provide you with insightful and reliable pairing recommendations.

Our analysis begins with over 50,000 carefully selected recipes from acclaimed chefs like Galton Blackiston, Marcello Tully, and Pierre Lambinon. This premium dataset ensures our model distils genuine culinary excellence and creativity.

Each ingredient from these recipes is deconstructed across 150 distinct flavour dimensions, creating a unique numerical "flavour fingerprint." This quantification allows us to apply advanced analytical methods to identify complex patterns between flavour notes.

We identify popular ingredient combinations that frequently appear in our recipe database. Regression analysis is then performed on these pairings to statistically validate and pinpoint truly harmonious flavours.

These insights drive our predictive model, which allows us to take any ingredient (e.g., Alentejo), analyse its detailed flavour profile, and accurately reveal its complementary flavours and perfect ingredient partners.