Wine Pairing With Salmon
Order the best salmon for wine pairing
What wine pairs best with salmon? Wild caught salmon is a fairly versatile fish, so it’s going to depend on the type of salmon you’ve bought and what you do with it. Order sustainably caught wild salmon with Lummi Island Wild and pair your wine with the richest and best tasting salmon. We deliver wild salmon that arrives frozen fresh in dry ice to preserve the salmons flavor and texture. Treat yourself to something truly special with amazing taste.
What Wine Pairs Well With Salmon?
The traditional wine pairing rules mandate that white wines pair with white meat and red wines with red meat, but what about wine pairing with salmon?
Because salmon is incredibly versatile and can arrive on your plate in many guises, the answer to “What wine pairs with salmon?” can range from red to white to rosé. Read on to discover wine pairings with salmon that will take your weeknight dinners to the next level.
Choosing Wine Based on Salmon Preparation
How are you preparing the salmon? Some cooking methods will change the flavor of the fish.
Grilled Salmon
Grilling commonly adds a smoky flavor to the salmon. Fuller bodied wine with notes of smoke and earth, such as Grenache or Syrah, will pair well with grilled salmon.
Salmon With Citrus Based Sauces
Salmon can be wonderful with yogurt and dill, but the tartness of the yogurt may be better complemented with a slightly sweeter wine such as Riesling, Lambrusco, or Moscato.
Sweet Glazed Salmon
If you use a sweet glaze, such as maple syrup or honey on your salmon, you may not want such a sweet wine choice. Instead, choose a wine with citrus notes or a mineral character to cut through the sweetness of the glaze such as Albariño or Sémillon.
Raw Salmon
Additionally, you may choose to serve uncooked salmon in the form of sashimi, gravlax, or another ethnic dish. Acidic and sparkling whites, such as Grüner Veltliner, Chablis, Sancerre, or Prosecco, work well with raw salmon
Salmon Pairings for Red, White or Rose
How are you preparing the salmon? Some cooking methods will change the flavor of the fish.
White Wine
White wine usually pairs well with a variety of fish dishes, including white fish filet and salmon.
Here are a few quick food pairing ideas:
- Sauvignon Blanc: This white wine’s fresh acidity and citrus flavor pairs well with salmon cooked with lemon juice or fresh herbs.
- Chardonnay: Whether you like unoaked Chardonnay or fuller-bodied oak aged Chardonnay, you won’t go wrong pairing it with a salmon with creamy sauce or butter.
- Riesling: This delightful white wine is an excellent choice for a salmon dish with more subtle flavors (e.g., baked salmon or poached salmon.)
- Gewurztraminer: This wine has exquisite tropical aromas and citrus flavor notes that complement any spicy or savory-sweet salmon dish. So, this is your go-to wine if you like your salmon with ginger, brown sugar glaze, or sweet syrup marinades.
- Pinot Gris: This light fruity white wine matches well with most meaty fish and seafood dishes, including salmon.
Red Wine
You might’ve heard that red wine doesn’t pair well with a fish fillet. However, salmon is an exception.
If you’re a red wine lover, the only thing you should keep in mind is not to pair a full-bodied wine with high tannin levels (like Cabernet Sauvignon or Barolo) with your salmon dinner. That’s because such intense wines can easily overpower the subtle salmon flavors.
However, you can definitely pair your salmon with light-bodied red wines like:
If you’re unsure which wine to pick, you can go for the most popular choice – Pinot Noir. This wine offers a more acidic profile that goes well with the salmon’s savory flavor.
And the best part is that Pinot Noir is a great companion to most salmon dishes – from baked to slow-cooked and even smoked salmon.
Rose and Sparkling Wine
If you feel like steering away from the classic white and red wine salmon pairing options, you can always go for a bottle of rose or, even better – a pink Champagne.
Rose has the qualities of both red and white wines – it has pleasant acidity, a hint of fruitiness, and irresistible minerality.
Salmon pairs wonderfully with white sparkling wine as well. The bubbly’s distinct yeasty flavor entertains the palate while the wine’s high acidity elegantly cuts through richer and fattier salmon meals.
