Deep-fried shrimp tacos and Mexican sauvignon blanc

By and large I’ve been drinking beer and cocktails while we’ve been in Mexico but I was curious to see what the country had to offer in the way of wine

So when we were at a seafood restaurant Entremar yesterday I ordered a glass of De J Rivera Mexican sauvignon blanc from Guadalupe.

Wine isn’t cheap here - a glass is around the same price if not more than a cocktail - - but it worked perfectly with the small plates we were sharing, especially the deep fried shrimp taco - one of the myriad corn-based dishes you’ll find on every menu. It even stood up to the punchy pickled chile and onion condiment we had on the side.

It’s frustrating that restaurants don’t tend to put vintages on their wine list which doesn’t matter so much in the case of cheaper wines which more people are likely to order but might make the choice of a more expensive wine disappointing.

I can’t find any UK or US stockists for this particular wine but frankly any unoaked fresh sauvignon blanc should work equally well.

For other shrimp and prawn pairings see here

and for other sauvignon blanc pairings click here

Sopa Azteca with pale ale

One of the things Mexicans seem to be particularly good at is soup and there’s a special one that is served around Day of the Dead called Soap Azteca which I tried in a restaurant called La Casa del Gigante in Patzcuaro.

It’s - or at least it was at this restaurant - a thick soup of blitzed beans and tomatoes topped with fresh cheese, avocado, smoky chiles, sour cream and crispy tortilla strips though there seem to be other versions including this recipe from the James Beard Foundation. (I don’t recall mine including chicken). 

Because it was so hearty it wasn’t a difficult dish to pair (soups can be tricky as you can see below) and went particularly well with the local Victoria beer which was basically a pale ale. (Wine is mega expensive here in Mexico so we’ve been mainly drinking beer.)

Anyway it was delicious and well worth trying to recreate at home.

See also Matching Wine and Soup

Wine, beer and other pairings with Mexican food 

Mature gruyère and white port

I don’t drink a lot of white port, I must confess. More often in summer with tonic rather than at this time of year.

But now I’ve discovered how well it goes with gruyère, I may.

Port is an obvious pairing with cheese*, I know, but a mature white port like the Kopke White Colheita 2010 my fellow wine writer Kate Hawkings produced the other night adds a different dimension.

At that age it’s showing a degree of oxidation, not unlike a vin jaune but with a sweetness that works well with the deep savouriness of gruyère. There’s a touch of quince and orange peel in there too.

You can buy it, somewhat to my surprise, from Waitrose - though only in a few branches, I imagine - and online from their website and Waitrose Cellar for £42.99 which is obviously not cheap but would make an interesting Christmas present for a winelover.

*I was reminded, going through the archives, that 20 year old tawny port is also a great match for gruyère

See also Christmas pairings with port, sherry and madeira 

The best wine matches for Comté (which is very similar).

Gruyère photo by barmalini at shutterstock.com

Aubergine (eggplant) tart and Chianti Classico

It’s more common to think of pasta, roasts and grills as natural accompaniments to Chianti Classico than vegetarian dishes but I had a tart at Terra di Seta that turned out to be a perfect match.

It was an upside down tart, also including sun-dried tomatoes and pine nuts, with a rich concentrated flavour - with maybe a dash of balsamic vinegar - that gave it a sharpness which worked really well with the 2019 riserva we were tasting.

Terra di Seta is a family-run organic kosher winery in Vagliagli in the south of the Chianti region. You can visit their estate for food and wine tastings. It also has an agriturismo with a stunning infinity pool.

You can buy the wine in the UK from The Grapevine for £36.99 though it doesn’t specify the vintage and in the US from Brighton Liquor in Brooklyn amongst other suppliers.

For other Chianti Classico pairings see here

Six other good wine pairings for aubergine/eggplant