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Summer is just around the corner, so we’ve got all the details on wine pairings for your barbecue favorites.
While it might technically still be spring, we’re ready to bring out the barbecue and start summer socializing. And who could blame us?! Lighting up the barbecue is the perfect excuse to invite your friends and family over, share some delicious food, and enjoy your favorite beverages. If you’re like us, your favorite beverage just happens to be wine 😉
Sure, some attendees may want an ice-cold beer. However, there’s something to be said for an elevated barbecue party that perfectly pairs grilled foods with wine. Whether you prefer a juicy burger or even grilled shrimp, there really is a perfect wine pairing for all your barbecue favorites.
Best Wine Pairings for Different BBQ Sauces
If your barbecue cooking is all about the sauce, then it’s best to pair your wine with the sauce instead of the actual meat. This is particularly important if your sauce is packed full of finger-licking flavor. Need specifics? No worries, we’ve got your back!
For sweet barbecue sauces, like a classic North Carolina sauce, you’ll want to stick with a wine that matches and balances that sweetness. We’re opting for wines that have notes of tart blackberries to cut through the sweetness of the sauce. Something like our Guadalmare, Morellino di Scansano will elevate all those juicy barbecue flavors with its aroma of blackberries, cherries, and violets.
A spicy mustard sauce, on the other hand, requires complementary flavors to round out your palate. Something with lots of tannins will overpower everything, so we recommend a light-bodied red wine with fruit-forward flavors. When we come across a South Carolina barbecue sauce like this, we always reach for our ALIBEA, Toscano Rosso. The low ABV keeps it light while the notes of strawberries and raspberries tame the spicy notes of the sauce.
If you’re planning on adding sauce but still unsure what wine to pair, you can’t go wrong with a good Pinot Noir. While it may seem intense and mysterious, this light to medium-bodied dry red wine is surprisingly fruit-forward with a tantalizing blend of herbs, spice, and then more tart fruits like cherries or currents. Our Pinot Noir – Terre Siciliane hasn’t let us down yet.
Best Wines Pairings For Burgers
Is a juicy burger the first thing on your grilling list? Then you’ll want to pay attention to the type of meat you’re using. A lean and light burger requires an equally light wine so as not to overpower the meat. We’d recommend something with a soft texture and delicate flavors like our CABERNET – Sauvignon Terre Siciliane.
A classic burger (with an 80/20 blend), however, can handle something medium-bodied. We love our Campomaggio Chianti Classico with this type of burger because it harmonizes beautifully with dark red fruits and a touch of balsamic.
If you prefer a burger with lots of fat (think high-fat content, added cheese, mayo, etc.) then you’ll need something big and bold to stand up to it. We’re big fans of pairing fatty burgers with medium to full-bodied wines with notes of tobacco. Our Castellani Filicheto Vino Nobile di Montepulciano brings the smokiness of tobacco while softening your palate with aromatic notes of violet.
Best Wine Pairings For BBQ Chicken
If you’re marinating your chicken, then we actually recommend pairing your wine with whatever flavor profile is in your marinade. However, that doesn’t mean you can’t grill a simple chicken dish and highlight the wine (Psst! We do it all the time.).
While you can certainly find a light red wine to pair with barbecue chicken dishes, we’re opting for white wines with subtle complexity. When chilled, our PALO61, Toscana Bianco is delicate, floral, and adds a beautiful element to any chicken dish with its subtle balsamic notes.
Best Wine Pairings For BBQ Seafood
While it’s a bit more adventurous, barbecued seafood is positively mouthwatering. The only thing that could make it even better is a delicious wine pairing! Since a good deal of seafood ends up getting drenched in butter (yum!), you’ll want an equally buttery wine. If you couldn’t guess by now, we’re obviously talking about a nice glass of Chardonnay.
In this particular instance, we’re obsessed with our CHARDONNAY – Terre Siciliane. This versatile wine is elegant, crisp, and has phenomenal notes of pear and apple. We’ve enjoyed this bottle with grilled salmon, shrimp, and even a crab roll or two. Trust us, when it comes to seafood, this bottle is your new best friend.
Enjoy Low-Carb Wine At Your Next Barbecue
Not all wine pairings have to be tricky and complicated. Sometimes the simplest things are the best. In fact, we’re giving you a bit of homework. Don’t worry, you’ll love it. 😉
For the rest of the summer, it is now your responsibility to take a few moments every day and enjoy your life. Maybe that means enjoying every sip of wine from your glass, maybe it means taking a morning walk, or it could even just be grilling out and enjoying quality time with friends and family. Just take time to enjoy the simple pleasures of your life. Your welcome.
Let us know how your wine and barbecue pairings turned out in the comments! For a chance to be featured on our Social Media, feel free to tag us in your gram-worthy food pics, and don’t forget to stock up on all your favorite bottles for your next food and wine pairing.
