Our sense of taste is much more focused than our sense of smell.  You can actually identify, on the tongue, only four tastes:  Sweetness, Acidity, Bitterness and Saltiness. 

Matching wine with food is not an exact science, and nor should it be prescriptive, after all it's fun. We might say that the beauty of the combination is in the eye of the beholder, however there are some simple considerations which you might wish to consider, and a very few no-go areas.

Remember, the use of vinegar or toothpaste and mouthwash, and smoking, deny anyone the opportunity to taste wine.

Bisques

»Chardonnay Viognier, El Delirio Reserve, Botalcura.
»Semillon Chardonnay, "Winemakers Selection"Hillsview.

Minestrone

Consomé

French Onion

Gazpacho

Hot & Sour Thai Soup

Oxtail

Bouillllabaisse or Fish Soup.

Grilled or baked tender white fish

Grilled or baked oily or meaty fish

Fried fish

Battered fish

Smoked fish

Fino sherry, dry sparkling wine, Pinot gris, Gewurztraminer, Riesling, light dry italian white.

Shell fish / seafood

Fish terrine

Pickled fish

Meat

It is essential to consider the quality of meat and the method of cooking, cheaper cuts of meat do not warrant fine wines. Strong sauces, such as red berries, should also influence your choice.

For beef we recommened; a full bodied Shiraz Ozi for sirloin, fillet steak with medium weighted Bordeaux style Cabernet, Merlot and Cabernet Franc or blends of these. Spicy garnished meats such as pepper or mustard deserve spicy style wines like Grenache and Peppery Shiraz. The tradtional British Roast beef dinner is ideal for Cabernet Sauvignon (Bordeaux), Pinot Noir (Burgundy) and the Syrah-based red Rhone wines, or alternatively consider the Italian big style classic reds from Tuscany (Brunello, and Chianti) and from Piemonte, Barolo.
Lamb means either Rioja or Burgundy, however, the more worldly migh consider Medium to full bodied straight Cabernet Sauvignon, or a medium to full bodied Shiraz, or even some of the Italian classic reds.
Pork is such a versatile meat that will work with many wine combinations, from bold full-bodied Shiraz, a crisp acidic Chardonnay, a fruity cru Beaujolais, to a Burgundian style Pinot Noir.

Beef

Lamb

»Pinot Noir, Marlborough and Canterbury, Sherwood Estate.
»Ribera del Duero 'Reserva', Finca Villacreces. Luis Canas Rioja

Pork

Veal

Pasta

Ignore the pasta, pasta borrows flavors from what ever it is cooked with, always match the wine with the sauce, and ideally choose wines from the appropriate region. For example take a look at italy.

Tomato based sauce

Meat based sauce

Cream or Cheese based sauce

Fish based sauce

Pesto based sauce

Game and Poultry

The method of cooking is of equal importance as the flavour and texture of the meat, for example, poached chicken will require a different style of wine to roast chicken.
Roasted or cold sliced Chicken or turkey is a great companion for Cabernet blends with Shiraz and Merlot. Medium to full bodied Shiraz will also suit or Riesling, Gewürztraminer or Chenin Blanc for white wine lovers.

Venison

Duck or Goose

»Ayler Kupp Riesling Auslese 2003.
»Jester Shiraz, Mclaren Vale, Mitolo.
»Two Hands 'Angel's Share', McLaren Vale Shiraz.

Game birds

Chicken, turkey, guinea fowl

Asian & spiced food

For those who are vegetarian, Asian cuisine offers a vast choice, and, organic wines may suit our gastronuaght with a conscience (take a look at some super value organic wines, click on Organic Wine.
For spicy foods such as Thai. Rosé comes into it's own. But Rieslings, Gewürztraminer and Traminer are best suited to spiced dishes of a floral nature. Dry whites and reds are generally not suited.

With Chineese style roasted birds, such as Peking duck, Cabernet, Merlot, Pinot Noir and light Californian Zinfandel are ideal.
For milder Indian style food choose full-bodied sparking wines and fruit driven reds such as Merlot for sweet curries. But for hot and spicy curries, Alsace wines are ideal, choose slightly sweet and cold Riesling and Gewürztraminer.

Indian Food

Whites: - Aromatic , Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc, Gewurztraminer, Viognier.
Reds: - Non-tannic, Valpolicella, Rioja, Grenache.

Chinese food

Mexican food

»LA Cetto - Petite Syrah.
»Botalcura,Cabernet Franc, La Porfia Grand Reserve.

Thai food

Salads

Always avoid vinegar in salads, it will destroy any unfortified wine.
Use wine, or just a little lemon juice, not vinegar!

For other non-dressed salads Champagne is the safest choice.

Cheese

The commonly held belief that wine and cheese are a perfect match couldn't be further from the truth.
Fine and delicate wines will be smothered by most cheeses, only sharp or sweet wines will survive the experience.
Reds are not the perfect match you might expect or even wish, port is probably the best of the reds, rich sweet whites are undoubtedly better suited, typically a Sauterne will complement most cheeses.

If you really need to keep-on reds, then for tradtional hard cheese like English Cheddars try Cabernet Sauvignon and fuller style Merlots. The soapier Edam and Swiss,Gruyere are could be accompanied by Pinot Noir.
Blue cheese suit a Sauterne or the thicker Alsace Gewurztraminer, Tawny Port and Dessert wines are the traditional match for Stilton style cheese, but they will also work with very dry (Fino) Sherries.
Creamy cheeses such as typical French Camembert and Brie are suited to very dry Riesling and Sauvignon Blanc. For the more racey Gastronomes, Champagne will work well.
Cooked cheeses make different demands.

Soft

Blue cheese

Hard cheese

Goats cheese

Desserts

At this stage of a meal, quality is more important than quantity. With desserts the main consideration must be sweetness, too dry, and the combination will taste sour, and too sweet and it will overwhelm the food.
As a general rule, the wine should be at lease as sweet as the dessert, or even sweeter.