If you’re a sweet wine enthusiast looking for the right wine for grilling or the right patio party wines to serve your guests, you’ve come to the right place. As fashionistas often recommend building an outfit around the accessories first, the best results for sweet wine pairings with grilled meals are achieved by building the meal around the wine. This is because there’s an incredible range of sweet wines that pair with grilled meals, but not every grilled meal pairs well with sweet wines.
Dark Meats + Red Wines & Light Meats + White Wines
When pairing BBQ or grilled meats, red wines work best with dark meats like steak and lamb. The trick is to pair leaner dark-meat cuts with lighter red wines. Some of the best sweet wines for dark-meat cuts are Red Zinfandel and Port. Very lean steak cuts also pair well with Riesling.
White wines pair well with fish, seafood, and poultry for the most part. Pinot Grigio pairs well with lighter fish, while meatier fish pair better with a richer white like Chardonnay. Chardonnay, along with Sauvignon Blanc, is a great match for chicken and turkey. It gets interesting here because red wines like Pinot Noir and Cabernet Sauvignon pair better with “dark” poultry, such as duck.
One surprise with grilled meat pairings is pork: while it is a white meat, it is rich and pairs well with lighter-style, sweeter whites and reds.
Rich Vegetables + Red Wines & Non-Starchy Vegetables + White Wines
Grilled vegetables generally have a stronger flavor thanks to seasoning and should be paired with sweeter, more flavorful wines. Therefore, portobello mushrooms and eggplant-based dishes pair well with reds, as do bell peppers and zucchini. Tomatoes also work well with acidic white wines. If you’re making skewers, these tend to pair better with fruity reds. Potatoes generally work better with sweet whites, but if they are prepared spicy or charred, they work better with reds.
Pairing Our Wines
Now that we’ve established some overarching rules, let’s explore summer BBQ wine pairings that are sure to impress.
Stella Rosa® Blackberry & Stella Rosa® Blueberry: These popular wines are a match made in heaven with BBQ chicken.
- Stella Rosa® Asti: This versatile Asti, best served chilled, is a great contrast for spicy BBQ dishes featuring chicken, shrimp, and wings. Our Super Fresh Shrimp Salad makes for a great combination.
- Stella Rosa® Black: This fruit-flavored red wine will perfectly complement dark-meat dishes like hamburgers and bratwurst. Bonus points if the burgers are blue cheese-stuffed and the brats are beer-bathed.
- Stella Rosa Moscato D’Asti D.O.C.G: This semi-sweet wine pairs well with tomatoes and chicken, making our Tomatillo Chicken Chilaquiles recipe a great starting point for a well-rounded meal.
- Stella Rosa® Rosso Red Berry: Another semi-sweet option that pairs well with steak and lamb. This wine complements recipes like Steak Fettuccine Pasta.
FAQs
Q: How Does Wine Pairing Actually Work?
A: Wine pairing as a practice uses complementary and contrasting flavor relationships between the wine and the meal to complete the experience. There are many ways to break it down, including the following:
- Body: Heavier wines work better with heavier foods.
- Sweetness/Bitterness: Sweeter wines work well with both complementary and contrasting relationships. They should be sweeter than the meal or dessert. On the contrary, sweet wines work well with spicy dishes. Bitter wines also work well with sweet dishes as a contrast; bitter wines with bitter dishes tend to overwhelm and should be avoided.
- Flavor: This aspect uses complementary flavor types and intensity. A good pairing matches similar flavor strength.
Q: Should I Pair Complementary or Contrasting Wines?
A: This is where there’s a bit of experimentation with wine pairings: while complementary wine pairings tend to be straightforward and easy to figure out, contrasting pairings make for an exciting experience when they work. If you are doing the pairing yourself, you may find it easier to get comfortable making complementary pairings before learning how to make contrasting pairings.
Q: How Do I Handle Wine Acidity in Pairings?
A: The pairing’s acidity level should match for the best results. Sweet wines are generally acidic, making them a better match for meals with some acidity. Some of the more acidic meats include beef, lamb, chicken, turkey, tuna, and salmon. Tomatoes are a good vegetable to pair with grilling.