The best food pairings for syrah

Syrah and shiraz, as you may know, are the same grape variety but quite different in character. Syrah, especially from the Northern Rhône, tends to be savoury, shiraz from Australia, far more sweet-fruited.

In this guide, I’m concentrating on food pairings for syrah. Learn, for example... 

*Which meats and cooking styles bring out the best in syrah’s savoury notes?

*Are there surprising vegetarian or cheese pairings that work beautifully with syrah?

*How do you pair high-end syrahs like Côte Rôtie or Hermitage with food?

*What unexpected dishes, like fish or Moroccan tagines, pair well with syrah?

What sort of food goes with syrah?

In a nutshell, meat, especially steak and other beef dishes. Particularly if it’s grilled or cooked on an open fire. With an inexpensive syrah think steak frites: a rib of beef with a finer, more expensive wine.

Pork is also good, especially if it’s grilled.

Garlicky Toulouse sausages are divine. In fact garlic generally makes syrah sing as do fragrant herbs such as thyme, oregano and rosemary (think Provençal and southern French food generally). Be wary about black pepper though. Just because there are peppery notes in syrah doesn’t mean you should pair it with peppery food. Something like a steak in pepper sauce can cancel out the pepper notes in the wine.

Oh and black olives. Great with syrah if you want to add them to a dish.

Why not lamb? Personally I think there are better matches for lamb. For me lamb is best with cabernet, tempranillo (especially rioja) and Italian reds but I’m not going to get precious about it. Go for it!

In terms of pairing syrah with vegetarian dishes I’d go for hearty dishes based on beans or lentils and intensely flavoured vegetables like aubergines and mushrooms. And syrah is one of the best red wines with cheese.

I’d also suggest different food pairings for different styles of syrah.

Young quaffable syrah

These are often natural, brimming with fresh, bright berry fruit - real vins de soif (thirstquenching wines) as the French call them. Perfect with charcuterie and cheese - so the wine for your fancy meat and cheese platter. Especially with olives!

Young syrahs are also good with lighter meats like grilled and sautéed chicken and rabbit like this braised rabbit dish.

Medium bodied syrah around 2-5 years old

e.g. Crozes-Hermitage, or Saint-Joseph (sometimes referred to as cool climate syrah)

We’re talking slightly more substantial, more full-bodied syrah here, with a bit of bottle age. Typically from the northern Rhône.

So grilled meat again, obviously but also think braises and daubes which are excellent with this style, especially beef short ribs (especially with Cornas). Oxtail and ox cheek too. And I do like black pudding with a syrah. (Haggis too, come to that)

Although I prefer a ripe new world style with barbecue (see below) they’re also tops with a fatty lamb belly kebab according to my colleague Zeren Wilson. And, to my surprise, with this pairing with coffee and maple syrup-brined pork though I’d probably still go for the fruitier type of syrah below.

Think cheese too with this style of syrah. Aged Comté can be bliss.

Ripe fruity syrah from e.g. California and Chile.

Typically fruitier than Northern Rhône syrah but less ripe and full-bodied than an Australian shiraz.

Great with American-style barbecue and spicy marinades, especially with pork (think pulled pork. Look at this pairing of spicy grilled quail and a Boekenhoutskloof Syrah too. They work with hoisin duck too.

You could even try it with seared or grilled meaty fish like tuna as in this pairing with Elephant Hill syrah.

If your wine is labelled shiraz, particularly if it comes from Australia, click here.

Posh syrah

Syrah produces some of the most seductive wines in the world - think Côte Rôtie, Hermitage and Grange (which in my view counts more as a syrah than a shiraz from a pairing perspective) If you’re lucky enough to get your hands on a bottle what should you pair with it?

Basically the answer is the same sort of food you’d eat with a cheaper syrah, only up the quality. Think rib of beef, Chateaubriand, Wagyu beef and aged Galician beef. Venison and wild boar will also show off a top syrah as will feathered game such as grouse, pheasant and pigeon/squab (see also below). Same goes for goose - top Rhône syrah is a great wine to put on the Christmas table. It also has the intensity to handle rich wine-based sauces or ‘jus’.

You might also think of veal kidneys if you like them.

Syrah (along with syrah blends) also handles cheese better than more fragile burgundies or Bordeaux so they’re a good wine to drink with a cheeseboard as long as you avoid pungent washed-rind cheeses and strong blues.

Older syrah vintages

Syrah ages well, often developing a gamey note which itself goes well with game, especially pheasant, pigeon and woodcock as you can see from this report about a spectacular Cambridge college dinner. That’s true of ‘new world’ syrah too as this pairing of a 17 year old Californian syrah and venison proves.

Think too of well matured beef like Pete Hannan’s Himalayan salt-aged beef which will bring the fruit in an older vintage to the fore.

And you might be surprised but the gentle spicing of Moroccan food, especially tagines, seems to work well with mature syrah. Worth thinking about them with middle-eastern and Persian food too.

What are your favourite pairings with syrah?

Read this post if you’re looking for matches for shiraz though there is obviously some overlap.

Top photo ©chiyacat at shutterstock.com
Charcuterie photo ©rawpixel at shutterstock.com
Wagyu beef photo ©hlphoto at shutterstock.com

8 great wine matches for brussels sprouts

The idea of doing a post on wine matches with brussels sprouts might strike you as a tad over the top - after all who eats sprouts on their own? (Answer: me. Whenever I get the chance.)

I’m not the only one it seems. When I've posted these sprout pictures on Instagram they've got an amazing number of ‘likes’. There’s some serious sproutlurve out there.

For those who are resolutely anti-sprout a reminder that they are no longer the soggy, sulphurous veg of your youth but can be served all manner of delicious ways. And it’s a myth that none of them work with wine. Here are 8 and the wines (and other drinks) that match with them.

Sprouts with bacon or pancetta and chestnuts

Probably the favourite sprout dish of the festive season. I’d be inclined to serve them with the same sort of red as the turkey - in other words a gutsy Rhône or Languedoc red. If they’re roasted or pan-fried they can handle a bit of tannin

Sprouts with chorizo

Has to be Spanish really. I’m rooting for Rioja reserva.

Stir-fried sprouts

Any sprout dish with Asian-style seasonings such as fish sauce, sesame and soy would be good with a Gruner Veltliner. Or a dry-ish riesling. Or, better still, a sake.

Sprouts with cheese

Roast sprouts and baked Camembert is a surprisingly good combination and one which goes well with a simple white burgundy like a Maçon Villages. Or a medium-dry cider. You should also try sprouts with Tallegio (once sampled - and never forgotten - on a pizza in New York). I’d drink a Gavi with that.

Sprout gratin

Involves cream so think Chablis or chardonnay again

Shaved sprouts with pecorino (or parmesan)

Enjoyed at my favourite Bristol wine bar Bar Buvette. With a dry Vouvray which was perfect.

Sprout slaw

Depends a bit on the seasoning and what you serve it with. With the Christmas leftovers, for example, I’d quite fancy a Beaujolais or other chilled gamay. With Ottolenghi’s brussel sprout and ginger slaw I’d go for a Clare Valley riesling

Sprouts with citrus

Ottolenghi again. Needs a white with some tropical fruit character such as a lush sauvignon-semillon blend or a New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc

If you're a leafy green vegetable fan you can also check out my drink pairings for kale and cauliflower

Planning ahead: The best wines to pair with your Christmas dinner

I suspect many of you decide what you’re going to eat for Christmas and buy in wine without connecting the one with the other. From a food pairing point of view ,however, it would obviously be better to plan your drinking around the meals you’ve decided to make.

So what are the best wines to pair with Christmas dinner? Here’s a quick guide, pulling together the various Christmas posts on the website to help you choose what to buy

Which wine should I serve with the turkey

First of all the centrepiece of the traditional Christmas dinner. If you’re serving turkey what is the best wine to choose? Remember it’s more about the stuffing, sauces and sides than the bird itself - you want a wine as bright and fruity as the cranberry sauce you dollop on the plate! I’d go for a fruity red like a Central Otago pinot noir, a velvety merlot or a shiraz. You can find other suggestions here

Top wines to drink with turkey

What wine goes with Christmas ham?

There’s usually a glaze on Christmas ham which calls for a wine with a touch of sweetness - much the same type as you’d serve with turkey, actually which makes life easy if you’re serving them both at the same time. I also have a soft spot for Beaujolais, especially once the ham is cold or a rich jammy grenache

Six of the best wine pairings with Christmas ham

I’m having goose - what wine should I pair with that?

Ah, slightly different register here. Goose is a darker, more savoury meat then turkey but also quite fatty so you need a wine with the acidity to cut through. Personally I’d go for an Italian red like a barolo or chianti but a spätlese riesling from Germany or grand cru riesling from Alsace would also be delicious if the family don't insist on a red.

What wine to pair with goose

How do I kick the day off? Which wine should I serve before the Christmas meal?

Well champagne’s the obvious festive choice isn’t it or, a sparkling wine that's more local to you (an English sparkling wine in my case). Both are perfect if you’re having a few nibbles before the meal rather than a starter which is what we tend to do. You could also serve a good Chablis or Loire sauvignon blanc like Sancerre or Pouilly Fumé both of which go well with seafood like oysters or smoked salmon.

10 different drinks to pair with smoked salmon

Should I serve wine with the Christmas pudding?

Go for it! I prefer a richer dessert wine like muscat or moscatel rather than a light, lemony one like Sauternes. Moscatel de Valencia or passito di Pantelleria would both be delicious with all that dried fruit.

What’s the best wine to drink with Christmas pudding?

If you’re serving a French style buche de Noël or other chocolate yule log, you could could go for a sweet RED like a Maury or a recioto della Valpolicella

The best wine and liqueur pairings for a chocolate yule log

And does it have to be sherry with mince pies?

Of course it doesn’t *have* to but Santa might be disappointed if you forgot his glass. Cream sherry, of course! A sweet madeira is also great with mince pies as is mulled wine . . .

8 great drinks to match with mince pies

What about a pairing for Christmas cake?

Whisky! Honestly! Trust me. It’s so delicious particularly if it’s been aged in a sherry cask. Or a rich Irish whiskey like Midleton Rare. Or try an Aussie Rutherglen muscat.

What about the Christmas cheeseboard?

Cheese is a whole other subject! Port of course is traditional at Christmas, particularly with Stilton but there are other good options such as sherry (yes, again) and madeira. Or whatever red wine you’ve been enjoying with the main course ...

Dive into into one of these posts:

8 great drinks to match with stilton

How to create a great Christmas cheeseboard

Photograph ©Lightfield Studios at shutterstock.com

Wine with lobster: 6 of the best pairings

There’s such an obvious wine match for lobster (great chardonnay) that you might wonder if it was worth considering anything else but there are other interesting alternatives.

Most of them are admittedly similarly weighty whites - white Rhône, oaked white Rioja, white Bordeaux and Viognier but you could if you were feeling adventurous consider a red, especially with a powerful sauce like a thermidor. A full-bodied red burgundy like Volnay should be able to cope.

Despite the fact that lobster has become a lot cheaper in recent years it’s still a luxury ingredient which makes a good excuse to splash out. Here are my top 5 choices:

Premier or grand cru Chablis

The best match with cold lobster with mayo on the evidence of this pairing I enjoyed in Ireland a few years ago with a just-caught fresh lobster from Ballycotton. No reason why you shouldn’t drink such shellfish favourites as Albarino, Sancerre or Pouilly Fumé of course

Meursault, other serious white burgundy or world class chardonnay

The ideal match for grilled lobster. Also works brilliantly with a lobster burger as you can see I discovered here.

Vintage - or good non-vintage - champagne

Great for a splash-out occasion. Particularly good with lobster and chips

Condrieu

A recent discovery as you can see from this Match of the Week. (A rare, glorious and expensive appellation for viognier, if you haven't come across it before.)

Gewurztraminer

One of the best lobster pairings ever was at a restaurant called Everest in Chicago run by an Alsace-born chef called Jean Joho. It was a dish of lobster cooked with ginger and gewurztraminer (the two have a great affinity) and served with the same wine. Ever since I’ve thought gewurz the perfect match for spicy lobster dishes.

Bandol rosé or other top-of-the-range Provençal rosé

An unusual pairing but one I think works with lobster dishes with an intense shellfish sauce like lobster thermidor or even a lobster bisque (though those will go with chardonnay too). Tavel would be another good pairing.

In the unlikely event you have any leftover lobster you may enjoy this recipe for Lobster thermidor baked potatoes from Mark Hix and there’s a ‘cheat’s’ way of jazzing up a cooked lobster here.

Image © Olga Lyubkin - Fotolia.com