Wine pairing can be tricky old affair, especially when it comes to rosé due to the fact that it is of course a hybrid of red and white grapes. You may be surprised to learn however, that this actually makes it quite easy to match with some fantastic dishes.
We recently undertook some tasting here at Octavian as we looked to see which dishes you should be serving with your pinker wines this summer. You can of course tinker and experiment yourselves to see what combinations you can come up with, but these should get your started nicely and well, we had great fun sampling them.
Starters & Appetizers
Our favourite appetizers for complementing rose were rather predictable, but they really helped the wine to flourish and in turn, the dishes really came into their own.
We sampled some anchovies, melon and Parma ham, fresh home-made hummus and of course, olives. These all worked superbly and a crunchy, fresh salade nicoise really pulled it all together. We were drinking the Domaine de Montmollin, Oeil de Perdix from 2016 but any rosé of this ilk would work.
You could put these dishes together quite easily at any dinner party or summer get together and they would undoubtedly bring the best out of any reputable rosé wine.
Main Courses
Main courses are really when food and wine pairing becomes fun and although we can’t list every dish that will bring the best out of your rosé, these are our current favourites.
Seafood featured prominently in our wine food pairing as you can see from the starters and this continued to be the case with the main dishes. Crab and fried fish worked really well, as did prawns in garlic and of course lobster.
The acidity of the rose and the sweet aftertaste really complements the meatier seafoods out there and any rich sauce is also the perfect foil.
Salmon dishes were also a profound success and the pink on pink combination really set the scene too and would look simply fantastic at any summer garden party or barbecue. When pairing with seafood, we would recommend going for a rosé such as Bodegas Julian Chivite, Vino de la Tierra 3 Riberas. Its clean and crisp nature brought the best out of our langoustines and sashimi too.
Don’t be fooled however, into thinking that it is only seafood one can enjoy with rosé in terms of main courses. We also found success with white meats such as turkey and also eggs or quiche. As you can see these main courses were actually quite healthy and thoroughly enjoyable, making the session a double win.
Don’t be scared to add some corn fed chicken to the mix either, a few of our team found this to be a great combination.
Themes
If you are not on the lookout for individual dishes to serve with your rose, but perhaps a theme for an event or get together, then fear not as we have this covered too. The summer tends to mean an abundance of social gatherings in our circles, and having a theme to your party is a great idea.
Due to the fact that rose wine is invariably consumed in sunnier climes, these themes are the ones we recommend – but as we have mentioned, don’t be scared to tinker with this a bit.
- Indian Food – the herbs and spices used in Indian food can really take your rose up a level
- Greek Food – the obvious seafood presence here, makes it a winner
- Thai – Light and fresh, just like rose!
- Mexican – not dissimilar to Indian in terms of heat, pick a full bodied rose when opting for this theme
Express Yourself
These are our suggestions for the best food pairings for rosé wine, but we really can’t urge you enough to put your own twist on things and express yourself. All of the above will work superbly but be sure to go for pairings you have tried and tested and remember to check with your guests in terms of tastes and allergies.
Organising a wine tasting event is a great chance to put your personal twist on things and create a menu that shows off your personality. Lastly, be sure to pick some excellent wines – rosé can be an acquired taste but if you pick the very best then your guests are almost certain to be impressed. Find out more about the best rose wines currently on the market by clicking here.
We hope these food pairing ideas gave you some inspiration for the next time you’re drinking rosé wine. If you enjoyed this article, then why not take a look through the rest of the Octavian blog for more fine wine based inspiration?