Pairing wine with fish or seafood can be daunting and a bit confusing. Most of us tend to be of the mindset that white wine is the best wine for seafood with popular choices being Sauvignon Blanc or Chardonnay. However, red and rosés all have a lot to offer to a seafood meal.
Red flesh fish like Tuna, Marlin, Salmon are a few favourites that match red wines; oysters and other shellfish are perfect with Pinot Noir. Rosé wines are versatile when it comes to seafood and able to hold their own with intense spicy seafood dishes or a succulent cold platter of crab and prawns.
Australia has some excellent sparkling wines which go perfectly with oysters or fish & chips.
But you can’t beat an ice-cold Coopers Pale Ale to go with your fish & chips!
Here’s a quick guide to what goes with what, but don’t worry if you can’t get the exact wine – experiment with them and enjoy!
White Wine
SAUVIGNON BLANC AND SEAFOOD PAIRINGS:
Crab, Moreton Bay Bugs, Mussels, Snapper, Salmon, Prawns, Tuna, Baked Fish, Smoked Salmon, Fried Fish, Cajun Seafood Dishes, Oysters and Barbecued Prawns
CHARDONNAY AND SEAFOOD PAIRINGS:
Crab, Moreton Bay Bugs, Lobster, Snapper, Reef Fish, Salmon, Prawns, Tuna, Poached Salmon, Grilled Salmon, Fried Fish, Baked Fish, Oysters, Scallops and Barbecued Prawns
CHENIN BLANC/PINOT GRIS/VIOGNIER AND SEAFOOD PAIRINGS:
Prawns, Mussels and Oysters
RIESLING AND SEAFOOD PAIRINGS:
Sushi, Grilled Tuna, Fried Fish, Crab, Lobster, Moreton Bay Bugs, Oysters Rockefeller, Oysters Kilpatrick, Prawn Cocktail and Smoked Salmon
SEMILLON AND SEAFOOD PAIRINGS:
Salmon, Tuna, Fried Fish, Poached Fish, Barbecued Fish and Baked Fish
Red Wine
MERLOT AND SEAFOOD PAIRINGS:
Tuna, Swordfish and Marlin
PINOT NOIR AND SEAFOOD PAIRINGS:
Salmon, Tuna, Baked Salmon, Grilled Salmon and Lobster
SHIRAZ AND SEAFOOD PAIRINGS:
Smoked Salmon, Tuna and Swordfish
Rosé Wine
ROSÉ WINE AND SEAFOOD PAIRINGS:
Prawns, Crab, Moreton Bay Bugs, Fried Fish, Cajun Seafood Dishes, Spicy Seafood Dishes and Prawn Cocktail
Sparkling Wine
SPARKLING WINE AND SEAFOOD PAIRINGS:
Smoked Salmon, Crab, Moreton Bay Bugs, Prawns, Lobster, Oysters, Scallops, Sushi and Fish & Chips