The best food pairings for Lambrusco (updated)

If you’re wondering why I’m devoting a post to Lambrusco you obviously haven’t tasted the real thing!

Forget the weedy, sickly-sweet lambruscos you may have tasted in your youth - most authentic lambrusco is seductively crimson, frothy and totally dry.

So what should you eat with it? Well, in Emilia-Romagna where it’s made they almost certainly go for pork as I’ve suggested before - salumi (cold meats) such as salami, prosciutto (ham), mortadella and bresaola, porchetta (rolled pork with herbs) and Italian-style sausages with fennel.

I love the idea of it as a Boxing Day wine with cold turkey and ham.

It’s fantastic with pizza (you should definitely try it with pizza!) You could even drink it with lasagne and other richly sauced pasta dishes.

But I reckon it’s also a brilliant barbecue wine - drink it lightly chilled with grilled chicken, lamb or pulled pork or even a burger or steak. It will offset fatty meats such as duck or goose - it would be great with confit duck. And there’s no reason not to drink it with meaty or oily fish such as grilled tuna or sardines.

Cheese-wise you could pair it with hard sheeps’ cheeses like pecorino and with aged cheeses such as parmigiano reggiano and grana padano - or drink it - as you would drink Beaujolais with a terrine, fromage de tête or brawn.

You can also find rosé lambruscos which again work well with salumi and other antipasti.

And sweeter (amabile) lambruscos are delicious with summer fruits, especially peaches and nectarines

Image by Vic E from Pixabay

The best food pairings for Mencia

When I scoured the website for existing pairings with mencia I was amazed how many dishes I’d suggested it with. It really is an incredibly versatile food wine.

For those of you who are not familiar with it it’s a grape variety which is grown in the Bierzo and Ribeira Sacra regions of north-west Spain and produces a vibrantly juicy red that reminds me of Beaujolais with a dash of Loire cabernet franc.

Top food matches for mencia

Cecina

Cecina is a really delicious deeply savoury cured smoked beef from the same region as mencia and goes brilliantly with it as you can see from this match of the week. So does chorizo and rough country hams

Almost any kind of grilled meat especially pork and lamb

Which makes it a good wine for a barbecue. That also applies to spiced meat like kebabs or these seftali

Hearty stews

The Spanish are not renowned for their vegetarian dishes so I’m thinking meat here. Robust dishes of pork and beans for example.

Empanadas

Again from the area they have these delicious tuna and red pepper pies called empanadas. Mencia would be good with the smaller Latin American version too

Sheep cheese

Mencia is a good all-rounder with cheese but especially hard sheep cheeses which are what you tend to find in the area.

Warm salads

I suggested mencia as a pairing with this warm lamb salad with a pea, mint and feta cheese dressing. It would be great with other warm salads too.

Pizza and pasta

Almost any kind of pasta with a meaty sauce. Spaghetti and meatballs for example. It’s the perfect pizza wine too.

Roast turkey

I know there are a lot of other great pairings for roast turkey but a vibrant mencia works surprisingly well with all the sides as I discovered one Christmas.

The best food pairings for cabernet franc

Cabernet franc can be the most food-friendly of wines, as good with fish and veggies as it is with meat but it comes in several styles. If you’re looking for a food match for cabernet franc I’d be mainly thinking of the lighter more fragrant Loire type which stars on its own in such appellations as Saumur, Saumur-Champigny, Bourgeuil, St Nicolas de Bourgeuil and Chinon. Even then it can vary from vintage to vintage and from lighter wines to more serious oak-aged examples. 

In this post, you’ll find the best food pairings (and some favourite recipes) for

* Fresh, young Loire cabernet franc

* Mature, oak-aged Loire cabernet franc

* More full-bodied cabernet franc from countries such as Argentina, California and South Africa

Fresh young Loire cabernet franc

Young cabernet franc has a distinctly herbal quality and tends to pair well with dishes flavoured with herbs, especially dill, fennel, rosemary and tarragon. Think chicken with herbs like roast chicken with herby crème fraîche or this lavash, chicken and herb pie with barberries, both from Olia Hercules, a herb-crusted rack of lamb or a navarin of lamb

It also has an affinity with green vegetables especially when they’re grilled or roasted - such as grilled asparagus (as you can see here), purple sprouting broccoli and even grilled artichokes. If you’ve got a vegetarian dish of spring vegetables such as asparagus, peas and broad beans you should reach for a bottle. And while it wouldn’t be my first choice with a spanakopita (Greek-style spinach pie) - I’d rather drink a crisp white - it would definitely work.

Pair it with herby Ottolengi-ish salads with bulgur, freekeh or other grains, especially with a herb dressing.

Evan Goldstein in his book Daring Pairings suggests enchiladas verdes, a combination I haven’t tried but I can definitely see would work. Anything with a tomatillo salsa too.

Like gamay, Loire cabernet franc also works well with charcuterie especially terrines and patés

Lightly chilled it can be a really useful pairing for fish, especially grilled tuna or salmon

It’s also good with goats cheese, young pecorino and other young sheep cheeses

and like Beaujolais you can pour it over or drink it with strawberries

More mature oak aged Loire cabernet franc

I’d be thinking of lamb again though maybe slow roast shoulder or a butterflied leg of lamb rather than rosy little lamb cutlets. Steak frites too.

I’d be more inclined to go for duck than chicken and feathered game such as pigeon (squab) pheasant and partridge

It would also work with light offal dishes such as kidneys or sweetbreads. Classic French bistro food.

Riper, more full-bodied cabernet franc from countries such as Argentina, California and South Africa

These behave quite like malbec in terms of wine pairing so red meat, especially steak, is an obvious go to. You could easily drink it with a barbecue including spicy sausages such as chorizo and merguez or with kebabs.

Read more about my take on cabernet franc in my recent Guardian column.

Note: Cabernet franc also plays a major part in Bordeaux blends including some of the most famous Bordeaux reds such as Cheval Blanc and in South America where it is generally riper and more full-bodied.

If you’re looking for a match for Bordeaux blends check out this post: What food to pair with red Bordeaux 

Image by VICUSCHKA at shutterstock.com

Wine, beer or cocktails - what’s the best match for a 4th July barbecue?

If you’re celebrating July 4th this week and haven’t yet made up your mind what to drink here are some last minute suggestions.

American BBQ has much more complex flavours than the typical British affair with sweet, sticky ribs and wings, smokey slow-cooked brisket and elaborately topped ‘dogs’ (there are some amazing topping ideas on the epicurious site).

Wine

To kick off with I’d offer a zesty sauvignon blanc or a refreshing riesling both of which would work the tangy dips that generally accompany an American barbecue and any seafood that is going on the grill. After than think in terms of a young fruity red with a bit of a kick: my choices would be syrah/shiraz or GSM (grenache/syrah/mourvèdre) blends, petite sirah or an inexpensive zinfandel.

Tip: Keep your reds cool. Even full-bodied reds can do with a short dunk in an ice-bucket.

Beer

Lager may be traditional but there are so many beers with fantastic flavours these days you can do much better than that. There are some great suggestions here and here. Crowd-pleasing options would be pale ales and IPAs but if you’re feeling more adventurous try German-style hefe-weisse, particularly with dogs and wings and porter with smoked brisket.

Cocktails

A mint julep would be the traditional July 4th cocktail though with peaches in season I prefer a softer, sweeter peach julep - a great match for sweet sticky ribs.

Non-alcoholic drinks

More and more people aren't drinking these days. Homemade lemonade and iced tea are popular choices: try this easy version from BBC Good Food. Floats are another great option - this watermelon soda float looks fabulously refreshing.