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Wine and beer matches for Mexican food

Mark Hix may have been knocking back the tequila on his recent trip to Mexico but if you’re not made of such stern stuff try my alternative suggestions for his Mexican-inspired recipes in the Independent today.

Tacos with prawns
Tacos, as Mark points out, are popular Mexican street food so you really can’t go wrong with a lager like the ubiquitos Sol. On the other hand he’s using some quality seafood so there’s an argument for cracking open a decent crisp dry white. A fresh-tasting young, unoaked Sauvignon Blanc from, say, Chile or South Africa will handle the citrus, chilli and tomato.

Ceviche with fried plaintains
Slightly trickier because there’s a lot of lime in this dish which will have the effect of making any accompanying wine taste sweet. A very dry white like Picpoul, Pinot Grigio or Albariño should work or try a cloudy witbier like Hoegaarden or Celis White.

Rabbit with Bohemia Obscura and chocolate
For this riff on a mole Mark uses a dark beer called Bohemia Obscura. I can’t find it online but Beers of Europe stock the more widely available Negra Modelo or you could use a dark Belgian Trappist ale. The net effect however won’t be too obviously beery. There’s a lot of chocolate in this dish and a fair whack of chilli that leads me to think that a stout or porter might be a better pairing. And wine-wise you’d be looking for something like a medium-bodied Cabernet or Zinfandel.

Ocho Blanco jelly
A wine pairing? You’re kidding! Not with that amount of tequila This is basically jellied booze - not that there’s anything wrong with that . . .

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