Wine with Seafood

Albariño from Rías Baixas in Galicia is perhaps the world's most perfectly calibrated seafood wine: saline, citrus-forward, with a slight spritzy quality that echoes the Atlantic coast where both the wine and the seafood originate. The local expression — "what swims together, drinks together" — captures a truth that extends far beyond Galicia: coastal wines almost always pair beautifully with coastal food. Vermentino from Sardinia and Liguria offers similar virtues with a Mediterranean warmth, its slightly bitter, herb-flecked finish complementing grilled fish and olive-oil-based preparations.

For fried seafood (tempura prawns, fish and chips, calamari), something with bubbles and acidity — Cava, Muscadet, or Champagne — provides the contrast and palate-cleansing lift that fried food demands. The effervescence cuts through the oil, and the wine's acidity prevents heaviness. A Champagne with a basket of langoustines is one of life's great pleasures.

For richer preparations (butter-poached lobster, crab bisque, bouillabaisse), a full, textured white Burgundy or an oaked white Rioja provides substance without overwhelming the delicate flavours of the sea. Bouillabaisse, specifically, has a traditional partner in Provence rosé — the saffron, fennel, and tomato in the broth find natural allies in the wine's Grenache and Cinsault fruit.

Raw seafood — oysters, crudo, ceviche — requires the leanest, most mineral wines available. Chablis, Muscadet sur Lie, and unoaked Assyrtiko from Santorini are wines whose saline minerality makes them taste as though they came from the same water as the shellfish.