Rule 1 – Match the weight and texture of the food to the weight and texture of the wine

A light bodied fish – deserves a light bodied Pinot.

A fuller salmon – deserves a heavier Chardonnay.

Rule 2 – Balance the intensity of flavours in food and wine

Mildly flavoured food, such as a roast works best with light bodied wines such as Sauvignon Blanc.

Stronger dishes work best with richer, fruiter wines.

Rule 3 – Balance tastes

The five basic tastes are sweet, sour, salt, bitter and umami (a recently discovered fifth taste found in mushrooms, tomatoes, soy sauce etc).

Salty and sour tastes make red wines taste milder, whilst sweet and savoury makes white wine taste stronger.

Rule 4 – Match flavours & Counterpoint

The relationship between food and wine is not unlike the relationship between lovers…match common factors to create success…on the other hand opposites also attract.

The sun is shining and we’ve had a makeover! With the release of our new DatingAgency.com look last week we would love to know what you think of the site! We want you to be happy and any feedback we receive helps us to make this site even better for you. We will be sending a survey to all our members on Thursday to find out what you think. As a thank you for taking part, one very lucky participant will win six months full membership for FREE!

As if that wasn’t exciting enough…Today is National Kissing Day!

The latest survey from online magazine getlippy.com reveals that the majority of us would like more kissing in our lives. National Kissing Day  could be the perfect opportunity for Brits to join the lucky lot who claim they kiss up to 10 times a day (19%).

In the league of best and worst kissers, the Brits sweep the board with 42% of the vote for great kissing. The Italians – the Casanovas of Europe come in second with 15%, closely followed by the French with 13%. So how and when did the Brits get to be so good at kissing? Over a third of women practised on their hands when they were younger with a few admitting to practising on the mirror (11%). A quarter of women admitted they are still learning!

When it comes to kissing etiquette, there are some things you just shouldn’t do. Well over a third of women voted bad breath as the worst offender. Sloppy kisses are a passion killer for a third of women and nearly a fifth are put off kissing someone who smokes.

When it comes to the most iconic silver screen kiss, readers opted for a modern fairy tale classic and voted for Julia Roberts and Richard Gere in Pretty Woman with a third of the vote. We second that!

Here at DatingAgency.com we believe that you don’t have to wait to meet someone for the fun to begin. We do everything we can to make the experience as enjoyable as possible for you and would love to hear from you about how you’re finding the site – whether that’s through the comments below, on our Facebook page, our Twitter account or by emailing our dedicated support team.

We will also be sending all our lovely members a survey in the near future, and one lucky participant will win a fantastic prize! In the meantime, we hope you continue to enjoy the site…

Don’t worry – you will still have access to all the same great features and functions and will be able to carry on enjoying meeting people for friendship and romance in a safe, secure and hopefully fun environment.

We’ll be sending out a survey soon to get your feedback on the changes, we really hope you like them…

A new wardrobe

With Spring comes a complete turnaround in wardrobe choices from the warm and woolly clothes of winter. Neutral colours are in for 2010, so think khaki, camel, and beige – but, these colours don’t suit all skin colours so you could go for light grey instead.

DIY gadgets

Most of us are going to succumb to some sort of home improvement activity in the next few months, so head on down to your nearest DIY superstore now to pick up a bargain on barbeques, lawn mowers, parasols and all the other paraphernalia we usually leave until the last minute.

Fitness

Most of us are going to succumb to some sort of home improvement activity in the next few months, so head on down to your nearest DIY superstore now to pick up a bargain on barbeques, lawn mowers, parasols and all the other paraphernalia we usually leave until the last minute.

Go for a picnic

What better way could there be to enjoy the weather than to pack up a feast (and maybe a bottle of wine), find a peaceful spot in the sun and have a good old chin-wag over lunch with your DatingAgency.com date? Even in the biggest cities you can always find a quiet corner in a park so seek it out and just enjoy each other’s company.

Head to the coast

We’re really quite fortunate here in Britain that most of us are no more than a couple of hours’ drive from the sea. Get to the coast before the summer rush starts to enjoy quiet strolls on the beach, fish & chips on the promenade and ‘investing’ a few pennies in the amusement arcades!

Rent a boat

The Manchester Shipping Canal excluded, Britain’s waterways are the perfect venue for a cosy but relaxed date now that the sun’s out. For the gentleman who wants to impress there are rowing boats to hire or for those wanting a bit more equality you can always opt for a pedalo.

Go balloning

Far from something reserved for “adrenaline junkies”, lots of companies offer very refined, luxury balloon trips ranging from a couple of hours to day-long excursions with prices to fit every pocket. So with nature blooming there’s no better time for an aerial view of the countryside.

It’s also a time for change here at DatingAgency.com which means that there’s no better time to re-assess who you’re looking for and spring clean your profile.

Have a look at our simple ideas on how to easily freshen up your profile and we’re sure you’ll start to see even more messages come flooding in.

Change your photo

Your photo is more often than not the first thing that someone will notice, so it’s important that it strikes a chord straight away. If it’s bright and sunny outside then a summery setting for your photo will help other people relate to it and they may be more likely to get in touch.

Re-write your profile

Even if it’s only a couple of weeks old, it’s worth starting your profile from scratch once in a while to give it a fresh feel and weed out any of those things you’ve said that might not be so important any more. Writing about yourself can also help you work out just what you’re looking for.

Tell people what you’re doing

People often look at someone’s profile a few times before they pluck up the courage to get in touch. If you’re always adding new news to your description then they’ll know that you use the site regularly and that you’ve got interesting things to say and do.

Dating coach Sharon Vickery

Your ideal partner is out there, right now waiting for you, but the best way to find them is to identify what’s not been working for you so far and then to make adjustments until you get the results you want.

Online dating is a great way to meet other like-minded single people, there’s no doubt about it, but too often we start to upload a profile and send those winks and emails when we’re feeling lonely on a Sunday afternoon, in the hope that our love life might miraculously change by 8pm!

So, if you’re finding the dating process a struggle or if you’ve been feeling frustrated, confused or lonely, don’t worry. The good news is that I’m here to help, and the answers to where you’ve been going wrong are just around the corner.  Here’s how you can avoid the 3 biggest mistakes people make with online dating.

No.1:  Not Committing The Time And Effort To Dating Online

How great would it be if we could go to the gym once every 6 months for 2 hours and have the body of our dreams! That would be on my wish list for sure but realistically I know I have to go 3 or 4 times a week to stay in shape.

There’s no quick fix for finding love online in the same way that there’s no quick fix for having a healthy body. You have to be proactive and put the work in to see the results – and if you do, the results will be priceless.

No. 2:   Putting The Wrong Or No Photo’s On Your Profile

I’m going to cut straight to the chase here and ask you to be realistic. Your photos do matter!!

This can be the second scariest part after writing your profile but like it or not, looks do matter, so here are some guidelines when adding your photos.

• Always post at least 3 photos:

The simple truth is that if you decide not to put your photo up you’ll dramatically reduce your chances of success. You’ll be about 10 times more likely to get a response by having a photo up there than nothing at all.  The maths aren’t that hard here; do you want to lose 90% of your online chances?

• Use a head and shoulder shot as the main photo:

Your main photo should ideally be a great one showing just your head (no hats or sunglasses) and with you smiling. This is going to be your main selling point so it’s worth investing in getting it right.

• Use recent pictures:

All the photos should be no more than 12 months old, but ideally within the last 6 months.

• Avoid group photos:

Don’t add any photos where you’ve got your arm around someone of the opposite sex, where you’ve cut someone out of the picture or where it’s not obvious who you are in the crowd.

No.3: Don’t Take Rejection Personally

I’m going to start by giving you a figure to really get the realism flowing.  Statistically you’re going to be rejected by 8 out of 10 people online. Yes, this means that most of the people you write to won’t write back. It’s nothing personal and it’s important that you don’t see it as a rejection of you.

Maybe they are communicating with quite a few people and just don’t have the time to include any more?  Maybe they just met someone and want to see how it goes?  Maybe they’ve got personal or work commitments that are taking up their time or perhaps you just don’t appeal to them?

There could be so many reasons, but the bottom line is that you will never know what they are so there is very little point in spending valuable time trying to figure it out.  Remember never take rejection personally when you’re dating online.  Instead, spend your energy searching through new members and sending messages to everyone who catches your eye.

By Sharon Vickery, Online Dating Coach and Author of The Secrets To Finding & Keeping An Amazing Man

If you want to learn the insider tips and strategies to really make online dating work for you, Sharon has a special offer on her Mastering Online Dating 3 Week Program, which is open to both men and women, and valid for a limited time only.  On the 3 week program you will learn how to:

• Create a profile that will get you noticed
• Know what qualities really are important in your ideal partner
• Save time and money by knowing which website(s) to choose
• Avoid the 7 biggest mistakes people make with online dating
• Spot your ideal partner in a sea of profiles
• Write emails that get a response
• Go from email to that first date, plus much, much more!

You can find out more about the 3 week Master Class here:  http://www.havefunfindingtheone.co.uk/lookingforlove.php.

You can also get a free 7 part guide: How To Solve The Mystery Of What’s Keeping You Single, at Sharon’s website – www.havefunfindingtheone.co.uk

Between 7pm and 9pm on Tuesday 12th January, all members of DatingAgency.com will be able to send and receive private messages for free!

So if there’s someone you really want to get in touch with or messages in your inbox that you’re dying to read, login to DatingAgency.com tomorrow evening.  There’ll be thousands  more members online, so be prepared for a chocka-block inbox and the opportunity to get in touch with hundreds of new people!