Seafood white wine, the best accompaniment choices

It is important to choose your wine well in order to appreciate your dish even more. Depending on the chosen dish, it will be necessary to find the specific wine that will suit. To accompany seafood for all occasions , white wine seems the most appropriate, but what kind of bottle should you choose exactly? Here is a little guide that will help you find the best food and wine pairings .

Make a choice according to the dish

Even if we talk about seafood in general, you have to know the dish precisely to be able to choose the right wine. Thus, depending on the case, it is possible that a grand cru among dry wines or blanc de blancs is required. In other cases, carefully selected white wines will do just fine. You should know that an accompaniment wine for an oyster dish will not necessarily be suitable for seafood platters , for example. It will therefore be essential to make a judicious choice according to the dish.

Which wine to accompany oysters?

To accompany oysters, people immediately think of Muscadet . This wine is of course an excellent choice, like Muscadet Sèvre-et-Maine . However, it is also interesting to try other marriages and turn to another association.

In the case of cupped oysters with a fatty texture (such as fine de Claire or Gilardeau), a mineral and saline wine is preferable. In this register, the Rias Baixas, a Spanish wine, or a Mâcon-Azé can also do the trick. The latter is a fairly fat and rich wine, the lively side of the oysters will be well highlighted. For special occasions, champagne and its bubbles may also be suitable for the aromas of this dish. It just needs to be raw. As oysters contain iodine, it would be better not to choose a blanc de blancs or red wines or sweet whites.

What to serve with shellfish?

Cooked shellfish can delight the taste buds, whether stuffed with parsley butter or cooked in bacon fricassee. Delicate and fleshy, it is best to accompany them with a structured and rich white wine like the wines of the Rhône Valley . Long and ample wines like the young Condrieu or the Lirac , slightly oily wines which do not contain too much alcohol, will be perfect. These wines will enhance the taste of shellfish.
For raw, very iodized shellfish, a white prosecco or a dry champagne can underline their freshness. Thanks to the bubbles, the taste buds will be renewed, the molluscs can be tasted more easily by those who find it unsavory.

What to drink with crab?

As crab has a rather oily texture, it is best paired with lively wines. The slightly sour side of the crab will disappear. You can choose wines that have been produced at altitude. One thinks, for example, of Chignin Bergeron, from Savoie, or Chardonnay produced in the south of Languedoc. The latter is grown in the Pyrenean Piedmont. The flesh of a crab will be perfectly enhanced by the mint and flower flavors of this wine. You can choose accompaniments such as semi-salted butter, mayonnaise and rye bread to taste it all.

How to better appreciate prawns?

The choice of wine does not only depend on the seafood, it also depends on the recipe used. If the prawns are cooked a la plancha, their flesh can be a bit bland. In this case, it will be necessary to associate them with aromatic wines. A Chignin Bergeron or a white Pessac-Léognan will suit perfectly. To compensate as much as possible for this somewhat dull side of prawns, they should be chosen young. On the other hand, it will be necessary to bet on the liveliness of the wines if the prawns are flambéed. A white wine from Madeira, for example. To add delicacy to prawns, dry champagne is preferred.
If you use a lot of sauce, you can accompany the prawns with red wines. But the best is to turn a little more towards fruity and low tannic wines. The choice of Cornas or Chateauneuf-du-Pape would be wise.

Discover a delicious Châteauneuf-du-Pape!

The ideal wine for a full seafood platter

If you have to serve a platter made up of several seafood products, finding a compromise is imperative. Among the recommended wines, we find Chablis, young Meursault (from 2008 or 2009) or Pouilly Fumé. Otherwise, we can choose according to a few points. The most important: we must banish sugar. The mixture of sugar and salt is not the most appealing thing in the world. It will therefore be necessary to turn to very dry wines. We have Riesling, Jurançon or a dry wine from the Basque Country, floral and mineral wines at the same time. Since they are long in the mouth, the taste of seafood will not neutralize them, especially if served frozen.

Goes well with cooked fish

For fish with delicate flesh, Riesling d'Alsace will be perfect. This refined wine offers an excellent textural agreement with this kind of dish. Thanks to a light zest of lemon and the fine acidity of the wine, each flavor present in the fish will be underlined. However, the iodized character will remain very present.
If you want the taste buds to remain sharp, it is advisable to cook shellfish and fish with cream or sauce. The touch of lightness that the recipe brings will make all the difference. In addition, we can bet on a Pinot Blanc from Alsace, which is both refined and digestible, it will highlight the iodine in each dish.

For those who can't stand white wines, some reds can also go well with seafood. However, they must be fruity and light. Pinot Noir from Alsace can go very well with a seafood platter.