Food and Wine Pairing in Alsace

Alsace Riesling with choucroute garnie

The textbook Alsace pairing. Riesling's racy acidity cuts through the pork brine, lard and slow-cooked kraut while its citrus and stone lift the dish's saltiness without competing.

Alsace Gewurztraminer with Munster cheese

The classic Vosges valley pairing. Munster's pungent washed-rind cream meets Gewurz's rose, lychee and ginger; the cheese's traditional caraway or cumin echoes the wine's exotic spice.

Alsace Riesling with coq au Riesling

Coq au Riesling is the Alsace cousin of coq au vin, braised in dry Riesling and finished with cream. The same wine in the glass amplifies the dish's herbal lift and creamy backbone.

Alsace Pinot Blanc with tarte flambee

Tarte flambee, the Alsace cream-and-bacon flatbread, calls for a gentle, refreshing white. Pinot Blanc-Auxerrois soft fruit and salt frame the creme-fraiche and lardons without overshadowing.

Alsace Pinot Gris with baeckeoffe

Baeckeoffe is the Alsace casserole of lamb, beef and pork marinated in Riesling and slow-baked. Pinot Gris's smoky pear, weight and gentle off-dryness carry the long-cooked meats and root vegetables.

Gewurztraminer or Pinot Gris with foie gras

The Alsace luxury pairing. Honeyed exotic Vendanges Tardives Gewurztraminer or SGN Pinot Gris cradles foie gras's richness while the wine's acidity stops the combination from cloying.

Cremant d Alsace with bretzel aperitif

The bar-stool Alsace ritual. Cremant's traditional-method bubbles and biscuit lees ageing meet the warm pretzel's salt; a perfect winstub aperitif before the choucroute lands.

Alsace Pinot Noir with presskopf

Presskopf, the Alsace pork head terrine cured in vinegar and herbs, finds a peer in Pinot Noir's cherry, acid and gentle tannin; the wine cuts the rich aspic without overpowering.

Alsace Gewurztraminer with creamy spaetzle

Egg spaetzle with melted Emmental or Munster and caramelised onion is a winstub staple. Gewurztraminer's gentle sweetness lifts the cheese and onion while its acidity stops the dish from feeling heavy.

Dry Muscat with white asparagus

Dry Muscat is one of the few wines that handles white asparagus, the seasonal Alsace vegetable. Its grape-on-the-vine lift mirrors the spear's vegetal sweetness rather than fighting it.

Alsace Sylvaner with quiche Lorraine

Sylvaner's herb, salt and bright acid frame the cream-and-bacon classic. The wine's understated personality is the antidote to Riesling overload at a Sunday lunch.

Vendanges Tardives Gewurztraminer with kougelhopf

Kougelhopf, the rum-soaked yeasted brioche cake of Alsace, finds its match in honeyed late-harvest Gewurz. The wine's exotic fruit and rose petal weave through the cake's almond and raisin.

Grand Cru Riesling with plateau de fruits de mer

Top-tier Alsace Riesling, with its saline mineral and racy acid, is the great non-Champagne French shellfish wine. Granite and volcanic Grand Crus particularly amplify oyster brine.

Alsace Pinot Gris with roast pork and apples

Pinot Gris's smoky pear, almond and gentle off-dryness mirror the apple sweetness of a herbed roast pork loin. A classic Alsace Sunday-lunch pairing.

Klevener de Heiligenstein with white tarte flambee

Klevener de Heiligenstein, the rare Savagnin Rose appellation north of Andlau, gives an aromatic but restrained white that handles the white tarte flambee variants with extra cheese or mushroom.

Natural Pinot Noir with pain d epices glazed pork

Pain d epices, the Alsace spice bread of honey, anise and cinnamon, often glazes a pork rib. A light natural Pinot Noir matches the warming spice without competing for weight.

Complanted Grand Cru with roast goose

The complanted Grand Crus of Marcel Deiss, Binner and the Ribeauville cooperative pair the noble grapes for a multi-axis aromatic profile that handles the richness of festive game bird.

Alsace orange wine with spiced washed-rind cheese or curry

Alsace orange wine (skin-macerated Pinot Gris or field blend) has gentle tannic grip and dried apricot weight that loves pungent washed-rind cheese and mild curries with cumin and coriander.

Riesling with oysters and shellfish

Plateau de fruits de mer

Saline lift for a seafood platter.

Zind Humbrecht Clos Saint Urbain Rangen Riesling, Domaine Zind-Humbrecht →

Riesling with fish

Sole meuniere

Citrus and limestone slip alongside the brown-butter fish.

Hugel Schoelhammer Riesling, Famille Hugel →

Riesling with cheese

Munster cheese

Vosges washed-rind cow's milk needs Riesling's acid to scrub the pungent cream.

Clos Sainte-Hune, Maison Trimbach →

Gewurztraminer with cheese

Munster with caraway

Vosges washed-rind cheese for the complanted aromatic lift.

Marcel Deiss Altenberg de Bergheim Grand Cru, Domaine Marcel Deiss →

Gewurztraminer with duck and goose

Foie gras au torchon

Honeyed unctuousness pairs with the duck-liver classic.

Hugel Selection de Grains Nobles Gewurztraminer, Famille Hugel →

Gewurztraminer with spicy and Asian dishes

Pad Thai

Floral, exotic, gently sweet wine works with peanut, lime and chilli.

Weinbach Furstentum Gewurztraminer Cuvee Laurence, Domaine Weinbach →

Pinot Gris with duck and goose

Foie gras

Volcanic mineral cuts through, gentle sweetness cradles.

Zind Humbrecht Clos Saint Urbain Rangen Pinot Gris, Domaine Zind-Humbrecht →

Pinot Gris with cheese

Munster with caraway

Vosges washed-rind cheese for the complanted aromatic lift.

Marcel Deiss Altenberg de Bergheim Grand Cru, Domaine Marcel Deiss →

Pinot Gris with pork

Roast pork with prunes

Sweet-dark dish meets volcanic-mineral Pinot Gris.

Schoffit Clos Saint Theobald Rangen Pinot Gris, Domaine Schoffit →

Pinot Noir with cheese

Munster cheese

Pinot Noir's earth softens the pungent washed-rind.

Albert Mann Pinot Noir Grand H, Domaine Albert Mann →

Pinot Noir with duck and goose

Roast duck

Cherry-and-graphite Pinot for the game bird.

Rene Mure Clos Saint Landelin Vorbourg Pinot Noir V, Domaine Mure - Clos Saint-Landelin →

Pinot Noir with chicken and white meat

Roast guinea fowl

The producer names fine poultry, with roast guinea fowl as its example.

Marcel Deiss Gruenspiel, Domaine Marcel Deiss →

Pinot Blanc with lamb

Lamb tagine with dried fruits

Named by the producer; the sweet fruit meets the tagine's dried fruit and spice.

Marcel Deiss Huebuhl, Domaine Marcel Deiss →

Pinot Blanc with aperitifs and small plates

Aperitif amuse-bouches

Long-lees biscuity Cremant for canapes.

Barmes Buecher Cremant d Alsace Extra Brut, Domaine Barmes-Buecher →

Pinot Blanc with oysters and shellfish

Oysters

Bone-dry bubbles for raw shellfish.

Rene Mure Cremant d Alsace Brut, Domaine Mure - Clos Saint-Landelin →

Auxerrois with aperitifs and small plates

Aperitif amuse-bouches

Long-lees biscuity Cremant for canapes.

Barmes Buecher Cremant d Alsace Extra Brut, Domaine Barmes-Buecher →

Auxerrois with lamb

Tarte flambee

Cream-bacon flatbread for the wine's almond and peach.

Schoffit Clos Saint Theobald Rangen Pinot Auxerrois, Domaine Schoffit →

Auxerrois with oysters and shellfish

Oysters

Bone-dry bubbles for raw shellfish.

Rene Mure Cremant d Alsace Brut, Domaine Mure - Clos Saint-Landelin →