Once upon a time, I fancied myself a Paellaro. I used to make it once a month and invite all my friends over to gorge themselves and get a little drunk. I must have had hundreds of different wines with seafood Paella, and not a single satisfying pairing. I think the best pairing was with an under $10 bottle of Chilean Chardonnay. I have tried it with Sancerre, dozens of sparkling wines (none of them terribly expensive), Lopez de Heredia Gravonia and Tondonia whites, Huet Vouvray, Alsatian Rieslings, a few different Viogniers, and plenty of roses from all over the world. Everyone of those wines was overwhelmed by the Paella. I don’t understand why it would be such a hard dish to pair with wine, it’s not especially spicy, and all of it’s components play nicely with a variety of white wines. I have got the itch to make it again, and I want to drink good wine with it, damnit!
The sparkling wines were a disaster but I am still inclined to think that’s my best bet, though I may need one with more heft. I am thinking maybe an Alfred Gratien Rose or Raventos Blanc de Nit might work. Perhaps I should try a Jerez? Any suggestions are very welcome.
Whenever I´m in the South of France and eat Paella I drink something red from the region …
(I don´t like rosé … and it´s hard to find a lively white in the south, but Picpoul de Pinet would be a good choice) - so most of the times I have a red Languedoc, La Clape, Roussillion, Minervois, Corbieres, Fitou, Provence or Cotes-du-Rhone …
You fools! You’re doing it wrong.
The dominant flavor here is saffron; the best white wine compliment to seafood saffron dishes (paella and bouillabaisse), is a sémillon forward white Bordeaux (ex. Graves).
The earthy character of saffron marries perfectly with the character of sémillon’s beeswax and orange blossom.
I think a dry, acidic wine w hints of citrus and something that is palate cleansing, a has smooth mouth feel and a bitter quinine grip on the end. I alway serve my paella with my Veleta Vijiriega.
I also make a Vijiriega Saffron Jelly with it, so I know it pairs well w saffron.
Agree with comments above that the difficulty probably comes from the saffron, not the rice or seafood which, as you point out, usually pair nicely with many different wines. I find saffron to have both earthy and perfumey characters, so you might try finding a wine with similar.
All your choices were white and rose, and since those didn’t work, maybe try a light red. Given the saffron characteristics I described maybe Beaujolais with a little age, Burgundy with a little age, a light bodied Nebbiolo from alto Piemonte. These are just thoughts, never tried the pairing myself. Give it a try and report back!
The paella with sausage and duck that the Soccarat chain in NYC serves goes well with hearty reds like Ribero del Duero. But that’s a very different set of paella flavors than the classic version with seafood.
I just had seafood Paella Tuesday evening at Alma Cocina in Baltimore. It was delicious with 2014 Louis Michel Vaillons, which was in a great place, crisp and clean, with oyster shell and saline on the nose. It presented as a bit salty and green apples on the palate. The pairing worked very well. I think any of the 2014 or 2017 Louis Michels would work.
This is my favorite dish! I usually make a Paella or Arroz con Mariscos at least twice a month. I recently paired it with a Calluna Estate Blanc (Sem/Sav Blanc Blend) and it paired very nicely.
I have Penelope Casas Paella! book and recommend it. I have only made some of the recipes, and some of the more exotic ones (snails+rabbits, or black squid) are well beyond my ken, and purvey. But it’s a practical, sensible guide and I’ve shared her page on wine pairing.
I’d note that although saffron is included in most of her recipes, there are some where it is omitted. So if its flavors are colliding with your goblet, it’s ok to leave it out.
19 posts and one mention of young Rioja… with a disclaimer from the poster that it’s not what he would choose.
YOUNG RIOJA!!!
is my preferred pairing.
For me, paella is absolutely a dinner where the food is the point and wine is a complementary side dish. The young Rioja (all Tempranillo is OK, maybe better if it has a good dollop of Garnacha) happily handles the saffron, and is friendly with the fish. It washes everything down in an extremely adequate fashion, and has the added bonus of containing alcohol!
I love paella, used to make it regularly, but would mix it up. Sometimes classic shellfish, or land paella, but more often a mix of the two. A long time favorite was clams, shrimp and rabbit (no fin fish). For land paella, rabbit, snails and mushrooms are a beautiful mix. For straight seafood, clams, mussels, shrimp and monkfish are wonderful.
For any and all of these variations, young Rioja is impeccable.
