Many are familiar with the old adage “white wine with fish, and red with meat.”
This is a mess of a statement because it excludes rose and sparkling, forgets that some red wines can pair wonderfully with certain fish, and forgets that fish is a meat too.
Salmon is one of those fish that can sing with red, white, rose, and sparkling if the preparation of the fish and the grape varietals are matched up right.
Salmon is found grilled, baked, glazed, smoked, and in cream sauces. Let’s explore 5 popular salmon preparations and the wines that pair best with them.
What Wines Pair With Grilled Salmon?
Light-bodied, low-tannin red wines like Pinot Noir, Gamay, and Grenache are wonderful with grilled salmon.
The cherries and other red fruit characteristics of these grape varietals are heightened against the earth of the char from the grill.
Other more tannic red wines like Syrah or Cabernet Sauvignon would react with the iodine in the fish to create a metallic taste.
Rosé made from Grenache (France) or Garnacha (Spain) is wonderful with grilled salmon because it too brings red fruit, but it also brings that slight chill in temperature to balance the char.
Rosé made from Pinot Noir is usually a little too light bodied to work as well as Grenache based Rosé.
What Wines Pair With Smoked Salmon?
Grenache (Garnacha) Rosé and sparkling Rosé pair well with smoke salmon.
The strawberry notes of the Rosé really come forward when they meet the smoky flavor and smell of the salmon.
The chill of the wine adds refreshment, and a choice to go with bubbles will add a helpful palate cleansing experience.
What Wines Pair With Herbed Salmon?
Herbed Salmon calls for white wines like Sauvignon Blanc and Gruner Veltliner, known to work with herbs and complex green flavors.
Try to aim for a warm climate Sauvignon Blanc from Napa rather than a lean French Sancerre, as the salmon has fat and oil and needs a broader shouldered version of the grape.
What Wines Pair With Glazed Salmon?
Chenin Blanc, Pinot Blanc, dry Riesling, Lambrusco, and Grenache Rosé pair very well with Teriyaki or honey glazed salmon because they all bring a fruit compliment to the glaze, while not adding a cloying sweetness.
Glazed Salmon can sometimes include a touch of ginger, soy, or spice. If this is the case, try an aromatic Gewürztraminer for a wild experience!
Gewürztraminer has a complex, circus of a bouquet, with ginger, cinnamon, lychee, pineapple, mango, pear, peaches, clove, and allspice.
Lambrusco brings deep, grapey flavors with a rich set of fine bubbles that can compliment the glaze, lift the palate, and cut the fat.
What Wines Pair With Salmon In Cream Sauce?
The classic pairing for salmon in cream sauce is an oaked Chardonnay, but a white Rhone blend will work as well.
What you’re looking for is a rich, broad shouldered white wine that still has some acid and a tart finish.
Chardonnay from Burgundy, Maconnais, or Oregon are great choices if the sauce has a mustard cream base.
If the cream sauce is heavily herbed, look to a Gruner Veltliner or Napa Sauvignon Blanc to bring that green on green action in.
Gruner also has a fun and vibrant, fresh, active mouthfeel that can match the fat of the dish while cutting the fat of the fish and sauce.
You may notice that even though specific wines are called for specific preparations of salmon, the overall group of grapes discussed will work when you’re in a pinch or have a limited selection to choose from.
Grenache Rosé and sparkling wines like Champagne, Cava, and Prosecco can work across the board with salmon, and are especially exquisite with a smoked salmon eggs benedict..
Enjoy exploring the delicious wine and salmon combos that exist out there!
Cheers!
