What wine goes with Shrimp?
I was recently asked by a friend what wines to pair with various foods. In thinking of the questions, I felt it would be a great subject for a series of postings.
It seems that shrimp seems to be as readily available as chicken in the supermarket. It’s favorable cost makes it a wonderful dish or appetizer. Yet, it is a finicky little guy when it comes to wine. My advice with shrimp is to think of the opposite. Pairings should always compliment the dish, not mirror it.
For me, I’d go with a well-bodied white. My first idea would be a sparkling wine. Sparkling wines do two things. They lighten the atmosphere and clense the palate. I’d even go with a Brut Rosé when it comes to shrimp. To get even more precise, I’d look for a Brut Rose with either a Grenache grape or a Pinot Noir. These will soften the sharpness of the Sparkling Wine and smooth out the acidity in the shrimp.
My other wine would be an abariño, of course, from Spain. The abariño is a tad bit thicker and will quench your palate after the first sip, especially if you’re dipping it in cocktail sauce. It might be hard to find this particular varietal in your normal supermarket, so you’re probably going to have to find a specialized wine shop. BevMo and/or Cost Plus might have a few, but I wouldn’t count on them. Bigger stores buy wines that sell, and, unfortunately the poor abariño has been hidden away under the bigger boys, Sauvignon Blancs, Chardonnays and Rieslings. But with most abariños coming in well under $20, it is not hard to find that wine that will meet or exceed your budget.
While you might default to a Sauvignon Blanc, it’s characteristics are too similar and it won’t add much to the dish. The acidity in both pieces will mute themselves out. Playing it safe is fine, but wine should bring out the taste, not just help it along.
Here are a few wines that I’d recommend:
- Bodegas Martin Codax Albarino 2006 (Retails for $14.95)
- J Brut Rose ($40.00)
- Cristalino Brut Rose Cava ($7.99)