Finding the best white wine with Mediterranean food is a fun wine pairing challenge. Mediterranean food covers many dishes, including Middle Eastern, Italian foods, Greek cuisine, and more. This post focuses on white wines (i.e., low tannin wines), making them easy to enjoy. For simplicity, I’ll focus on four categories of wine pairing suggestions. Enjoy these suggestions with your next glass of wine.
The Best White Wine For Italian Food
Italian wines offer several great white wine options, including Pinot Grigio, one of the popular dry wine options on the market. This quick guide to Italian cuisine will touch on a handful of popular dishes that pair well with white wines.
Seafood Risotto and Chardonnay
Risotto is a popular type of dish in Italian cuisine that features A. This dish pairs well with a white wine like Chardonnay. This fish dish is trendy in Lombardy, a wine region in northern Italy that produces Pinot Grigio.
Light Pasta Dishes with Pinot Grigio
Are you looking for something light and fresh like a salad or a light pasta dish? In those cases, Pinot Grigio is an excellent pairing to try. Pinot Grigio pairs well with chicken alfredo and lemon chicken as well. Pinot Gris is another similar option to dry here.
Vegetable Pasta Dishes With Sauvignon Blanc
This guide to the best white wine with Mediterranean food needs some vegetarian options. A vegetarian pasta can pair well with several types of white wine like Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay. Try the above wine ideas with your next Italian-inspired dish and see how it goes. For even more Italian food and white pairing ideas, see this post: “An Italian Food Lover’s Guide to Pasta and Wine Pairing.”
The Top White Wine For Greek Food
Compared to French and Italian wines, you may be less familiar with Greek wines. However, the Greek passion for creating the perfect wine dates back thousands of years. Along with olive oil, Greek wine was one of the most famous exports of the ancient Greek world.
If you are going out for Greek meals, it is worth asking your server for suggestions. In the affordable wines category, Greek wines offer excellent value. You have to overlook the unfamiliar grape names.
Tzatziki with Riesling
This famous Greek dip is popular in many appetizers and vegetarian meals. A lighter white wine like a Riesling is the way to go with this one. If you’re traveling to Greece, try something different like a Greek white wine such as Malagousia.
Gyro or Souvlaki With Assyrtiko
Want wine with gyro? What a great way to enjoy this classic Greek dish around the world. The gyro is famous in Greek and other countries. Go native for this white wine pairing and track down a bottle of Assyrtiko.
Greek Seafood with Chenin Blanc
Greek cuisine is well known for its variety of seafood dishes, including sea bream and octopus. Your best bet, in this case, is a Chenin Blanc or a dry Riesling. While dry wine is usually the best way, there’s no law against experimenting with something different like a semi sweet Riesling. I would avoid heavy wine like Cabernet Sauvignon with this type of Mediterranean cuisine.
The Best White Wine For Spanish Food
Did you know that over 400 wine varieties come from Spain? That’s one reason why Spanish wine is so distinct. Therefore, I’ll reflect on some of those Spanish wine options in this guide and more familiar international varieties. Spanish cuisine is known for its wide array of tastes, including vegetarian dishes. Start with these options to experience Spain’s culinary prowess.
Seafood Tapas with Sauvignon Blanc
Tapas are one of the most famous Spanish dishes. Tapas featuring fishes are a natural pairing for famous acidic wines like Sauvignon Blanc and Riesling.
Spanish Octopus (El Pulpo a La Gallega) With Spanish White White
Salty dishes are one of the best types of meal to enjoy with white wine. El Pulpo, a La Gallega, is a traditional Spanish meal made from an octopus. Developed in the Galicia region, it is made with sea salt flakes (though you could experiment with kosher salt). Try a glass of Godello wine with this dish.
Spanish Garlic Chicken With Pinot Grigio
Do you prefer poultry-based dishes? It’s a memorable dish because it involves alcohol in its preparation. No, we’re not talking about white wine vinegar. Traditional Spanish garlic chicken (Pollo Al Ajillo) features sherry, a fortified wine from white wine grapes. Arrow con Pollo (rice with chicken) is another way to go with this dish.
Best White Wine With Mediterranean Food Frequently Asked Questions
Whether you like baked dishes, goat cheeses, or liberal dishes of port wines, Mediterranean food and wine go well together. There are a few more common questions about these pairings to cover here before concluding.
What About Sparkling Wines?
Sparkling wine is made across the world including in the Mediterranean region. Italian sparkling wine, Prosecco, is probably one of the best-known sparkling options. This wine tends to go well with various cheeses like aged cheeses and strong cheeses.
Are you concerned about gaining weight from drinking wine? It’s an intelligent question to ask. Some wines are better than others in terms of calorie content. For Italian meals with prosecco, the wine itself doesn’t add much – get the full answer in this post: How Many Calories In Prosecco: Data From 4 Wines.
What About Other Mediterranean Dishes?
Did I miss your favorite dishes? That’s almost certainly true. You can make the case that Turkish, Syrian, Albanian, and North Africa should be covered in greater detail. I’ll give you one suggestion – the best wine with falafel – as one more Mediterranean meal and wine pairing to try. Perhaps part two of this post will also look at other types of wine like Pinot Noir and off-dry whites. If there is interest in exploring other kinds of Mediterranean food and wine, I may explore these additional vibrant flavors in the future.
Best White Wine With Mediterranean Food In Summary
Choosing the right accompaniment to meals is a wine skill best developed through experience. Pairing Mediterranean food with white wine is easy when you keep a few rules in mind. Salads and most seafood dishes tend to pair well with most white wines (just keep in mind the answer to How Long Does White Wine Last After Opening). Embrace the true “Travel By Glass” philosophy by trying lesser-known local wines like Godello and Malagousia.
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