The best food pairings for Grenache

Although grenache is a grape variety that is not often celebrated, it’s one that deserves a closer look. As usual it’s hard to pin down a definitive style but it’s fair to say grenache is usually full-bodied, soft and low in acidity. Some grenaches are pretty powerful - usually due to natural bedfellows like syrah and mourvèdre being blended in - others, like Côtes du Rhône, are easy-drinking.

Its natural homeland is the Southern Mediterranean, especially France and Spain where it is called garnacha but there are some fine examples from Australia, California and Washington State. It’s a great wine for autumn and winter drinking.

But what truly makes Grenache shine is its ability to pair beautifully with a wide variety of foods. Whether it’s robust braises and stews or classic British pub dishes, Grenache has no difficulty standing up to big flavours. In this post, we’ll explore the best food pairings for Grenache, with tips and insights that will help you make the most of this versatile wine. 

Top Food Pairings for Grenache

Braises and stews

My favourite type of food for grenache is braises and stews: long slow cooked roasts of pork or lamb that may even be a little bit fatty (shoulder of lamb and lamb shanks, for example). It suits daubes and stews with dark, winey sauces too

I like grenache too with classic French bistro dishes such as rabbit and hearty Spanish or Portuguese country cooking. It can take a bit of spice - I think there’s a particular affinity with paprika and pimenton. I enjoy a grenache with a goulash - and it would certainly go with milder curries like a rogan josh though I wouldn’t serve it with lighter Indian dishes. Grenache-based wines tend to go well with the slight sweetness of Moroccan tagines too.

British pub classics

A simple grenache or grenache blend like a Côtes du Rhône is a versatile match for many British pub classics like sausage and mash, shepherds pie and steak and kidney pie. Its absence of tough tannins also it a more accommodating match for cheese than many more structured reds, especially British regional cheeses such as Cheddar and Red Leicester. Grenache also pairs well with cooked dishes like macaroni cheese and with veggie bakes and lentil or bean-based dishes. Lighter, fruitier styles such as cheap Garnachas from Spain make good barbecue drinking - Grenache seems to like a bit of smoke.

Even the Christmas turkey!

A serious Grenache dominated red such as Châteauneuf-du-Pâpe is good with richer and gamier birds - I think it makes a great match for the Christmas turkey but you could also pair it successfully with guineafowl, pheasant or pigeon, especially if accompanied by caramelised roast root vegetables like carrots, beets and parsnips.

Priorat can take even more robust dishes such as venison and oxtail as you can see from this post though other grapes may have a more dominant influence.

There are of course also Grenache - or Garnacha - whites (characteristically earthy/Rhôneish) and strong, dry rosés - good partners for charcuterie and Spanish classics like paella and pork and beans and porty southern vin doux naturels like Maury, Banyuls and Rasteau which, like port, pair particularly well with chocolate, grilled figs and blue cheese (not all together, obviously!)

What not to pair with red grenache?

Well, it’s usually pretty high in alcohol so it wouldn’t be my ideal choice for steamed or raw dishes such as seabass or salads - even ones including meat - or subtle cuisines such as Cantonese or Japanese. It’s not great with citrus either which, for me, rules out Thai. And I think there are better matches for Italian food (most Italian ones) although Grenache is oddly good with dishes that contain cooked tomato and aubergine. But it’s a great seasonal wine - a warming, welcoming bottle to serve for the coming days of autumn and winter. Grenache should have its place in every cellar.

Photo ©Rostichep @fotolia.com

The best wine pairings for mangoes and mango desserts

Mango is often incorporated into drinks but what should you pair with it if you are eating it as a fruit or an ingredient in a savoury dish like a salad?

Mango has a natural affinity with citrus, especially lime which makes riesling a natural go-to for any mango-based salad or dessert. With a dessert like this luscious chilled rice pudding with alphonso and lime syrup from Yotam Ottolenghi I’d serve a late harvest or young auslese Riesling or a citrussy late harvest Sauvignon blanc

New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc with its passionfruit flavours would be a good match for salads which feature mango - as would a Colombard or Colombard-Chardonnay blend with its own tropical fruit flavours.

Richer slghtly sweeter styles of Chardonnay match with savoury mango dishes like this opulent dish of chicken supremes with mango and cream, again from Ottolenghi.

With spicier mango dishes I’d try an off-dry Pinot Gris or, particularly if there was a ginger note*, Gewurztraminer. Come to think of it, a late harvest gewurz would be pretty sensational with a mango dessert too.

* As author and sommelier Francois Chartier points out in his book Tastebuds and Molecules ginger has an affinity with mango and consequently with gewurztraminer.

Image by candoyi from Pixabay

What wine to pair with cherry desserts

Cherry is one of the fruit flavours most often found in wine and liqueurs so does that make them a good pairing for cherry desserts? It depends how intense the cherry flavour is.

A clafoutis, for example, (a French batter pudding with cherries) is as much about the crisp batter as the cherries so it could take a light sweet dessert wine such as a Monbazillac while a boozy dish of macerated cherries might well need something stronger - or given the booze is in the pud - arguably nothing at all!

With a black forest gateau or other dessert that combines chocolate and cherries try a sweet red wine such as a Recioto della Valpolicella, late harvest Tannat or late harvest Zinfandel. Alternatively you could opt for a cherry-flavoured liqueur such as cherry brandy which you could either serve in a pretty liqueur glass or as a frozen shot. (That’s also a good pairing for cherry ice-cream, cherry sundae or cherry trifle.)

Cherry-flavoured beers e.g. Kriek are also a great match with cherry desserts, as you can see from my recommendation with this chocolate roulade recipe from my book An Appetite for Ale. I also like their slight tartness with a cherry-topped cheesecake. They make delicious fruit jellies too - as in this recipe, again from the Appetite for Ale book.

And cherry pie? I’m never totally convinced about wine and pies especially if they’re served hot. It depends on the proportion of pastry to filling. If it’s more about the pie crust go for a standard sweet dessert wine as with clafoutis or a gently sparkling brachetto d’acqui. If there is more filling than pastry I’d be inclined to go for a sweet red again, maybe even a fruity young ruby port.

The best pairings for apple desserts

Apple tarts are one of the most flattering desserts to match with sweet wines but what do you drink with other apple-based desserts?

Crumbles are another hugely popular pud but are they as easy a proposition (especially if they’re served with custard).

Are there some sweet wines that are better with apple-based desserts than others - and what about sweet ciders?

Read on to find out

Light apple-flavoured mousses, parfaits and sorbets 
Try an off-dry Prosecco, Moscato d’Asti or a German spätlese Riesling

Traditional apple pies and crumbles
Generally served hot or warm which can complicate the pairing. A Gewürztraminer is the best pairing I’ve found, especially if the dessert includes a little cinnamon. An orangey Moscatel such as inexpensive Moscatel de Valencia can also work well or you could try a sweet cider as in this former Match of the Week.

French-style apple tarts
A classic partner for fine dessert wines such as Sauternes or similar sweet wines from Bordeaux and south-west France - in fact almost any late-harvest Sauvignon Blanc or Semillon. Chenin-based dessert wines from the Loire such as Coteaux du Layon and Vouvray or Montlouis moelleux are also delicious as is a late harvest Riesling 

Tarte Tatin
Tarte Tatin is richer and more caramelly - a Muscat - or even liqueur Muscat from Australia would work better

Baked apples
Best with a vintage or festive ale or a barley wine.

See Sybil Kapoor’s lovely recipe for apple and blackberry meringue