What wine to drink with cuttlefish

Cuttlefish is a pain to prepare as Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall points out in the Guardian today but it is particularly delicious to eat. It’s often partnered with robust flavours so you need to think in terms of equally intense flavoured wines.

Slow-braised cuttlefish with fennel and white wine
A recipe that uses cuttlefish ink which will give it a dramatic black colour but won’t affect the flavour overly much (apart from enhancing its fishiness). More important are the citrus and fennel seeds. I’d be thinking of a crisp unoaked dry white - a good quality Pinot Grigio or a Vermentino - a frugal choice as the recipe contains white wine itself. You could also serve a strong dry rosé like a Bandol.

Cuttlefish with chorizo and rice
Although this recipe also contains fish stock it also includes chorizo and sherry which gives it much more of a Spanish feel - and a meaty one at that. I’d be looking for a young Spanish red to drink with this like a Rioja crianza or other young Tempranillo. But again a dry wine rather than a super-ripe one (some modern Spanish reds come too much in the ‘fruit bomb’ category for this type of dish IMO).

Cuttlefish salad
Again this recipe includes orange together with chilli and cardamom which is going to give it quite a sweet, exotic flavour. I’d be looking for a fruity white or rosé with this - not too dry this time - maybe an Australian Sauvignon-Semillon blend. A ripe fruity rose (not the Provençal stye) would work well too.