Originally Posted by bhrubin

You are now drawing a conclusion that is not in evidence. No one, including me and any decent sommelier, thinks that only whites should be had with seafood and only reds with meat. Those are often but not always good pairings. Both reds and whites can be paired with a huge variety of both fish and meat dishes...though more reds tend to pair with more meats on average. You're missing the point.

As for wine and food pairings being a con, you are mistaken. Wines in the old world were ALWAYS about being paired with the food of that region. That is one of the reasons that different regions, with their own particular cuisine, only tended to grow certain types of grape varietals (and vice versatile). Over time, those varietal preferences were codified into law in many of the Old World countries in recognition that those types of wines paired well and best with the cuisine offered in that same region. That has been true for hundreds of years. Restaurants didn't con anyone. They just enhanced it.

Hard to call it a con when no restaurant ever requires a wine pairing with a tasting menu....