How young? Could I get away with a Vina Cubillo?
Rioja and seafood sounds all kinds of wrong to me, but I did just enjoy a sausage pizza with red sauce that paired beautifully with a light bodied Champagne, so I am prepared to throw all the rules out the window.
I like the suggestion of white Bordeaux, I will try both pairings next time I make it.
I like your thinking but I am still wed to Alfred Gratien Rose if I go this route. The roundness and weight with itâs electric acidity seems like a winning mix in my mind.
Yeah, Iâm afraid I donât have much to offer the OP here, if LdH Tondonia Blanco and paella donât work together for them. Match made in heaven for me. As is Gravonia and a Jamon and Manchego plate. And Bosconia with a grilled lamb platterâŚ
Michael
Musar Blanc would also be good.
Frustrating. I thought they would be a perfect match and I love those wines. Maybe I just had a heavy hand with some ingredient that didnât play nice. I would be willing to revisit. Love both of those wine with squid based tapas.
For seafood paella (which is delicious, but wholly untraditional), my picks are:
I had that thought about the RhĂ´ne blends, which is why I paired it with a few Viognierâs, but the bottles I tried were pretty thin and not of great quality. Latta Cellars in Seattle makes a full bodied, fresh and reasonably complex single vineyard Roussanne which I absolutely love. I should definitely try that pairing.
Lawrence Vineyard?
If so, yeah, I could see that. Havenât tried that pairing, but it makes sense in theoryâŚ
Michael
Except for the second reply, you mean? 
Vintage Corpinnat⌠but itâs not widely available in the USA.
I am positively convinced that a good Ribolla Rialla would be a terrific match. Good acidity, minerality, salinity, texture (if not too simple), and good fruit and intensity in general without overpowering dishes.
Works great with seafood, salami, risotto, etc.
The best pairing I had was with slightly mature Soave (3-5 years) and slightly mature Franconian Silvaner (3-5 years). But not even these were great in the sense that food and wine where better together than separate.
I think the challenge is not only the soffron but the rice. That rice is full of starch and the soupy part of a paella is actually flavoured starch.
Craig,
The one mention was the second reply.
Scott,
I think Cubillo would be fine, although I was thinking of something younger, without oak.
Dan Kravitz
LoL, I need to learn to read better!
I love Paella! Iâm not a pro but own a pan and have been making it every couple of months for the last year. I pair one red and one white with it even if itâs just our family (only my wife and I drinking) because Iâm still trying to figure out the pairing.
My favorites so far-
White: Francois Cotats Sancerre (Caillotes, young), Enfield Citrine Chard (young), Villa Eden Chard (aged). Was surprised how much Iâve like Chards with Paella, wasnât expecting that.
Red: Jolie Laide GSM, Beaujolais, Crianzas.
The last couple times weâve done paella we drank:
Pescina gran riserva (not sure what vintage, but it was from msg)
17 Rousseau CSJ
09 Dom
All of them seemed to go great with the paella.
The cheap Chardonnay was easily the best pairing with the Paella. The paella really coaxed a lot of flavor and body out of it. I am resistant to trying more Chardonnay because there are so few I really enjoy. Itâs what made me think RhĂ´ne whites and their roundness might work well.
For a seafood paella I would go with Manzanilla or Fino Sherry. For a Valenciana a young Bobal.
I had never made Andalusian style paella, but tried it last night. Blending up nuts with sherry and saffron was a new step for me.
I did switch out asparagus for yellow wax beans, which I think worked well.
There was a side of plantains and green beans fried in butter plus garlic
I thought it paired well enough with 2010 Montecillo âGran Reservaâ [Rioja]. These are widely available, classically proportioned examples of the DOC. Lots of balsalmic flavors, sour cherry, and juicy acidity, no tannins left. Smooth texture, then some tobacco leaf on the nose. Should not be put into panel tastings, but a proper Rioja. My enthusiasm for this ilk of commercial GR is price related; $20 for a B+ wine is the top of what this is worth for my palate & purse. Good dark hue, perfect natural cork, hardly any sediment, and Iâd expect this to keep for a long time. It didnât fade over 3 days.
Paella for me calls for Cava, Txakoli and/or Garnacha; maybe MencĂa. Though a wood-aged AlbariĂąo might go well with a paella without any pork.
