Six of the best wines with a nut roast

You might be surprised that a nut roast isn’t that different from a conventional roast when it comes to finding a wine pairing.

The savoury flavours are designed to act as a satisfying substitute for meat and so work best with similarly full-bodied red wines.

Especially at Christmas you’re likely to be having them with the same kind of vegetables to the turkey - and possibly even the same gravy (so long as it’s not turkey stock-based, obviously).

There is one wild card though I probably wouldn’t serve with a turkey but would be terrific with a nut roast ....

Go on - be bold. I dare you!

Robust rhone or Languedoc red

Based on local grapes like grenache, mourvedre, cinsault and syrah the robust flavours of southern French reds work really well with the intensely savoury flavours of a nut roast. Other GSM (grenache/syrah/mourvèdre) blends should work too as would a northern Rhône syrah such as Crozes Hermitage

Cabernet sauvignon

Lots of nut roasts contain cheese and so pair well with cabernet, especially a cab with a couple of years’ bottle age

Pinot noir

If your nut roast contains mushrooms you’ll probably find a pinot goes well with it but I’d make it a medium to full-bodied one as opposed to a light youthful red burgundy

Chardonnay

Also a good match for a mushroom-rich nut roast, especially with a wild mushroom gravy. Though if there are chestnuts and a red wine gravy involved as in this recipe I’d again go for a red like a merlot or malbec.

Oaked white rioja

I’m sure the Spanish wouldn’t dream of it (I doubt they eat nut roasts anyway) but why not? One of the world’s most underrated whites

Amontillado sherry

Now this is a wild card and I wouldn’t serve it to a tableful of guests but if there’s just a couple of you and you’re sherry fans a medium dry amontillado sherry would be great.

Whatever wine you choose if you’re a veggie, or serving a nut roast to one, you need to check whether the wine is suitable for vegetarians - in other words that it’s not fined with any animal-derived products.

Photo © Monica Shaw

Top wine and beer matches for game

We Brits have always had a reputation for liking our wines old and our game high but times have changed. Today the key factor in matching game tends to be not how ‘gamey’ it is but how it’s cooked and what is served with it.

In many restaurants now game is cooked quickly and served rare so can take a younger, more tannic wine than would have once been the case. Accompanying sauces also tend to be robust, and wine-based, bringing more full-bodied reds into play. Nevertheless the reason for serving wild game such as partridge or venison - as opposed to chicken or beef - is that it does have a distinctive flavour for which you generally pay a premium so you want to pick your wine with some care. Here are the sort of wines you might go for.

* Simply roast birds such as partridge, pheasant, or grouse with simple accompaniments (e.g. roast potatoes, bread sauce and a light gravy rather than a heavy wine-based jus)
These remain the ideal opportunity to bring out a serious bottle of burgundy, a mature red Bordeaux or their New World equivalents (see here) If you like your birds underdone a younger wine may be a more flattering accompaniment. A good Chianti is always a reliable match for more everyday occasions.

The best wine pairings for partridge

Belgian sour red ales such as Rodenbach are also delicious with simply roast game.

* more elaborate game roasts with foie gras and/or truffles or a concentrated ‘jus’
Similar wines to the above but from a more recent vintage. The richer accompanying flavours can handle a more tannic wine.

* pheasant casseroled with apples
Apples tend to lead in the direction of a white (a dry Riesling with a couple of years’ bottle age would be perfect) rather than a red, particularly if the sauce has some added cream. You could equally well serve a French cidre bouché (semi-sparkling cider) or a gueuze (a Belgian lambic beer brewed with wild yeasts) especially if you’re serving braised cabbage as an accompaniment.

The best wine pairings for pheasant

* pot-roast pheasant
With any other flavourings or a red wine sauce a robust red should work well, especially reds that contain Grenache, Syrah, Mourvèdre, Tempranillo or Malbec. (So good quality Côtes du Rhône Villages, southern French reds and Rioja all make good choices, and a wine like Côte Rôtie a sublime one). I’d avoid very muscular young reds which are likely to overwhelm the flavour of the meat.

* Venison
Generally you can serve similar wines to those you would serve with beef though as the game flavour is more pronounced you might want to choose accompanying wines with a slightly gamey flavour of their own. Good examples would be Hermitage, Bandol and Ribera del Duero (or other examples of mature Syrah or Mourvèdre) though be careful of flavour overload with very concentrated sauces. Sometimes it can be better to serve a slightly lighter (though still well-structured) wine when your sauce is particularly dense and rich.

The best wine pairings for venison

So far as beer is concerned, venison dishes can be an excellent match for porter, a strong Trappist ale like Chimay or a French bière de garde.

* Cold game/game pie
As with simply roast game this is a great opportunity to drink your favourite red burgundy but cold game is also a treat with a full bodied vintage rosé Champagne such as Ruinart (or, of course, Krug). If your game is in a salad (like a warm pigeon salad or a smoked duck or venison one) you could also try a sour cherry beer such as kriek.

Vegetables with game
Vegetables that will flatter fine wines include mashed potatoes and pureed root vegetables such as celeriac (good combined with potato) and parsnips. Carrots and mushrooms also work well. Take care though with braised cabbage particularly red cabbage cooked with sugar and vinegar which can be a wine killer. (Fruity young reds like Shiraz, Barbera or Zinfandel should survive)

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

What to pair with artisanal cheddar?

By artisanal cheddar, I mean cheddar that is mature, full-flavoured, and unpasteurised (learn more in this post: So what makes a great cheddar?). It isn't the easiest cheese to match with wine.

One’s instinct is to drink red but it’s a struggle. You don’t want anything too light and graceful or, conversely, too full-bodied and tannic. There can be some wild flavours in a cheese like this which I think are best matched by an equally artisanal wine - and old Syrah/Shiraz, Grenache or Mourvèdre, maybe - or a blend of all three. Or a good Zinfandel. But don’t introduce blues or smelly washed-rind cheeses to the cheeseboard as well.

Vintage port is surprisingly - or not so surprisingly - good as we confirmed at a cheese and wine tasting I conducted for Decanter last year. One associates it more with stilton but it’s equally good with a fine cheddar. But it’s not the type of wine to open with a ploughman’s or other light lunch.

That distinction goes to a traditional British ale which I’m not sure isn’t the best pairing for this kind of cheese, especially if you serve it with an onion pickle or a chutney. Something like Adnams Broadside or Young’s Special. If you find British beers too bitter a sweeter-flavoured American IPA may be more to your taste, being a classic example.

If you’re looking for a terroir-based match a farmhouse cider would be the obvious choice for an authentic Somerset cheddar, especially if you serve it with apples or an apple chutney. Personally I prefer a medium-dry style but that’s up to you.

Apple-based aperitifs or digestifs such as Pommeau and Pomona which is made by the Somerset Cider Brandy Company can also work very well. Obviously they’re more alcoholic than cider but you could serve them instead of port for after dinner drinking.

Other possibilities, less mainstream: a full-bodied oaked Chardonnay pairs surprisingly well with cheddar as does a good rich whisky like The Macallan or Famous Grouse. Sherry can also work well particularly if you serve your cheddar with nuts - I’d choose something like a palo cortado. Other possibilities would be a medium-dry Madeira or a 10 - or 20 - year old tawny port.

See also: The Best Wine Pairings for Cheddar Cheese

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