How to be a crisp sommelier: Neil Ridley on ‘bringing fun back into food and drink’

Crisps, who doesn’t love them? A humble snacking staple, the crunchy crowd-pleasers are devoid of pretence. But for Wallpaper’s resident drinks expert Neil Ridley, crisps are so much more than an in-between meal filler. In his new book, The Crisp Sommelier, he dives into the subtle art of elevating crisps’ flavour profile by matching them up with the perfect drink. ‘British tapas’ are looking up.

Ridley (also co-author of 60-Second Cocktails) has done the hard work and explored a plethora of flavours – from Torres’ earthy truffle crisps to prawn cocktail Skips – even throwing controversial pretzels into the mix in his desire to lay everything on the tasting table. Here, he sits down with Wallpaper* staff writer Tianna Williams to discuss life as a crisp nerd, perfect crisps-and-drinks pairings, and whether pretzels made the cut.

Perfect pairings with The Crisp Sommelier, Neil Ridley

Wallpaper*: How did the idea for a crisp-and-drinks pairing book come about?

Neil Ridley: I've been a lifelong crisp nerd, and it’s been a secret I've never talked about with anyone. Around two years ago, my agent got a call from publishing giant Bloomsbury about doing this book on pairing crisps and drinks, which she turned down. I was distraught as it was a book about my two life passions, and ran to get Bloomsbury back on the phone. Luckily the opportunity hadn’t gone away, and it grew into this tentacled beast of really fun research and passion points.

W*: We’re glad it worked out, otherwise who would have known that ready salted crisps are the perfect champagne pairing?

NR: I love crisps because there is something incredibly humbling about them. Everybody eats them, they pack a punch of childhood nostalgia, and now there are many options that are much more sophisticated in terms of flavour. I think, because of the cost of living crisis, going out isn't as much of a thing. This idea of having a night in with your friends and buying two or three different packets of crisps, different flavours or different textures, and then pairing those with wines, particularly different grape varieties, has become quite a thing. I think the book really tapped into this zeitgeist of home entertaining and the art of bringing fun back into food and drink.

W*: How did you decide what made the cut?

NR: Everything was, quite literally, on the table. I had 185 different bags of crisps in two big blue Ikea bags. For about six weeks, my office was filled with all these different flavours; I had my very own crisp library! The main criteria for the crisps was that they had to be available. And there's a mixture of well-known brands and more sophisticated flavours, so what you’ll see ranges from Space Raiders and Nik Naks to bags of Torres, for example.

W*: Did you match the crisp to the drink, or the drink to the crisp?

NR: I approached this from the point of view that, because I'm predominantly a drinks expert, I wanted to cover ten white grape varieties, ten red grape varieties, sparkling fortified wines, then all of the different cocktails, beers, ciders and non-alcoholic drinks. Once I got the list of drinks I wanted to include, then it was a case of going back and asking myself, ‘OK, what would work with a sparkling rosé?’ Alongside this, I also thought about different occasions, from hosting an elegant dinner party to watching Netflix.

W*: Does the shape of the crisp affect the flavour in the pairing?

NR: With some of the ridged crisps, you get a much more intense flavour. This was important to note, as you don't want one [half of the pairing] to overshadow the other, or it's going to fall flat.

W*: What surprised you in your research? Is there a crisp that is overrated?

NR: I think the more sophisticated crisps get, the more likely they're going to disappoint. And I think there's a two-fold answer to this one because, in a way, the older we get, the more we're led by this desire to be more sophisticated. You can't just have a cheese flavour crisp. You've got to have the 28-day mature cheddar, or barrel-aged feta crisp. This is when it either doesn't taste as you'd hoped, or it tastes artificial. I think that's when it really falls apart.

W*: If you were having crisp pairings for breakfast, lunch and dinner, what would they be?

NR: There is, without doubt, an absolutely killer pairing of Torres Fried Egg crisps – where they’ve captured the flavours of a very crisp fried egg and its runny yolk – with black Arabica coffee. And then if you throw in a bacon frazzle as well, you've got a crisp version of a fry-up. Around mid-morning, I would have pickled onion Monster Munch and a really nice-quality lemonade. From this, you get this lovely pairing in the sharpness of the lemonade, and then the pickled onions, which really wakes you up a bit. Going into lunch, I would have ham and mustard crisps with a German lager. Dinner has to be more sophisticated: a cool glass of Chardonnay with a cheese and onion crisp, or a Rioja with chorizo crisps. Dessert would be white chocolate-coated pretzels, with a creamy cocktail. There's a crisp-and-drink pairing for every occasion during your day.

W*: And finally, what are your thoughts on a crisp sandwich?

NR: For a textural delight, it is hard to beat a crisp sandwich. It is actually the chapter that got away in the book, as annoyingly I ran out of room. But you could really take it to a whole new level. Think of a crisp club sandwich – you could have one layer, one flavour, followed by another. You have butter, which keeps the crisps in place. It's a real staple and I am an advocate for the unbridled joy of a crisp sandwich.

The Crisp Sommelier, £12.99, published by Bloomsbury, is available to buy from Amazon, and Waterstones