On a recent Tuesday at Mattawan's Chinn Chinn Asian Bistro sat owner and chef John Tsui sampling both types of beverages with some of his favorite dishes.

It was 3 p.m., and the dinner rush wouldn't start until 4:30 -- just enough time to taste, talk and compare, he said. He chatted with Jenny Parker, sales representative of Kalamazoo's Imperial Beverage Co., and Fred Bueltmann, of New Holland Brewing Co., a brewery in Holland, Mich.

It is seldom that Tsui has the opportunity to talk to a wine sales rep and a beer sales rep together. But Parker and Bueltmann happened to be together on their way to a company function.

Tsui also had a chance to privately enjoy his culinary creations -- teriyaki-grilled salmon on tempura onions, fried salt-and-pepper shrimp, Korean bulgogi and a platter of filet mignon and roasted scallops.

Wine flowed, and dishes were passed. Soon the table was cluttered with plates, bottles and more glasses than one could count at a glance. The meeting underscored a challenge shared by chefs and customers alike at Asian restaurants: With so many wines available, which ones are good with specific dishes such as kung pao chicken or pad thai?

Lychee wines and plum wines from China are terribly sweet and not on the level of French, German and California wines. And who wants to get sauced by 55-proof Chinese mao-tai on a regular basis with a meal?

beers aren't bad either, Tsui discovered. One just has to have the patience to sample them.

``If you're looking at it from your palate's point of view, you want to have as many choices as possible,'' Bueltmann said.

Advice on food- and-beverage pairings

These general suggestions on how to pair Asian food with wine or beer are from Jenny Parker, of Imperial Beverage Co., a distributing company at 4124 Manchester Road, Kalamazoo:

v Chardonnays with strong oak flavors are not good with foods that include ginger, cumin or coriander. The wines make those ingredients taste bitter.

v Merlots and cabernets do not pair well with Asian foods because of their concentrated tannins.

v Wines with flavors of jam and fruit, such as petite syrahs, which don't have great tannins, go well with Asian foods.

v White wines with some sweetness, such as Rieslings, go well with Asian foods.

v Many restaurant customers drink beer with spicy Asian foods because beer has enough acidity and backbone to stand up to the spicy heat.

Possible pairings at area restaurants

Here's a look at three Asian restaurants in southwestern Michigan and some suggested pairings of food and wine, based on discussions with the chefs and, for Chinn Chinn, Jenny Parker:

Chinn Chinn Asian Bistro

Location: 52885 Main St., Mattawan. Phone: 668-7667.

Background: The restaurant opened in 2004 and got its liquor license about a year later.

Fare: Asian. The menu and daily specials include Chinese, Japanese, Thai, Vietnamese and Korean dishes.

Beverage sales: Owner John Tsui has tried to encourage wine sales by displaying a wine list in a two-sided glass picture frame on tables. He also offers special glasses for beers.

Notable pairings: Try the Vouvray Domaine Locquets, 2003 ($6) or Gruner Veltliner by Wachau, Austria, 2007 ($6) with teriyaki-grilled salmon on tempura-style onions. The low level of tannins in these wines aid the pairings. Also try Claude Val Vendanges, a red wine, with Korean beef bulgogi, zucchini and kimchi pancakes.

Background: The restaurant opened in 1992 and got its liquor license about a year later. In 2006 it added a noodle bar.

Fare: Chinese-American cuisine, noodle soups and Cantonese-style roast chicken, duck and pork. The restaurant also specializes in Szechuan cuisine and has a separate menu for that.

Beverage sales: For the past two years, the restaurant has offered a Chinese New Year meal with wine served with the various courses. Management also arranged wine training for employees.

Notable pairings: Light reds worked well with the restaurant's fiery Szechuan cuisine, some of which features the distinct flavor of Szechuan peppercorns. Try the Firesteed pinot noir ($6.95 per glass) with the Szechuan lamb with pure cumin powder Xinjiang-style, or Little Penguin's shiraz ($5.95 per glass) with the boiled beef in Szechuan sauce.

Sprout Asian Bistro

Location: 236 S. Kalamazoo Mall. Phone: 345-1750.

Background: The restaurant opened last year with a high-end eclectic menu using a molecular-gastronomy approach, then changed to an Asian menu this summer.

Fare: Asian classics prepared by co-owner and chef Robb Hammond using locally grown and fresh ingredients.

Beverage sales: When Hammond changed the focus of the menu, he slashed his selection of wines from 47 to six and dropped the price of wine by the glass from $10 to a range of $6 to $8. The restaurant also sells seven beers.

Notable pairings: Try the Barton & Guestier Beaujolais-Villages, 2005 ($6 per glass) with the No. 5 With A Smile, rice noodles stir-fried with ginger, onion and zucchini and tossed with a red curry coconut sauce. The St. Christopher Riesling, 2006 ($6 per glass) works well with the pad thai.