Team C&J
The season of the summer BBQ is here! With so many types of food – some rich and a little fatty, others light and lean, getting your wine and BBQ pairing right can be a little tricky. Not to mention navigating everyone’s palate!
To help you select the best wines to pair with your summer BBQ, we’ve put together this easy-to-reference list so that you can turn an average backyard affair into a magical afternoon!
It’s impossible to scroll through Instagram and not see photos of chilled glasses of rosé being served alongside summer salads and grilled veggies. It goes without saying that everyone’s favorite pink wine is synonymous with summer sipping. Rosés can be sweet and juicy, crisp and refreshing, or bone-dry and mineral, depending on the grape variety used and the style of the winemaker.
Sweet rosé is an acquired taste, and that sugary palate doesn’t appeal to everyone or pair well with food, for that matter. To please everyone’s palate, select a crisp, dry rosé like this Alianico-based bottling from Ryme Cellars.
If your BBQ includes grilled chicken or fish, consider a bottle or two of chilled Sauvignon Blanc. The naturally high acidity in this French grape, along with its crisp herbaceousness, makes it a winning combination with summer favorites like ceviche, shellfish and appetizers like bruschetta.
We’ve recently started digging into the beautiful Sauvignon Blancs of Marlborough, like this 2022 Sauvignon Blanc from Catalina Sounds. Ripping acidity, crisp citrus, and a threaded minerality that develops into a satisfyingly long finish. If you’re looking for a white wine to pair with your cookout, give Sauvignon Blanc a try.
Have you tried Txakolina? This Basque Country wine doesn’t get the same airtime as the hyper-commercial wines or the mass-produced, reliably popular wines like Chardonnay, Cab, or Pinot Noir. Txakolina flies under the radar for a lot of wine lovers because it simply does not have the name recognition outside its native Basque home, but its cool, refreshing palate, combined with its incredible drinkability and ever-so-slight fizziness, has it becoming the beverage of choice for wine enthusiasts during the hottest summer months.
Not to mention, bottles of Txakolina are a veritable bargain. You can pick up a bottle at Whole Foods, BevMo, or your favorite online wine retailer for between $14 to $22 a bottle. Did we mention that it goes well with coastal fare like fish tacos and grilled shrimp? This 2021 Doniene Gorrondona, Bizkaiko Txakolina we popped open is a great place to start your Txakolin journey.
Syrah and BBQ go hand-in-hand. The dark berry fruit, pepper, and mild smokiness in these wines go well with just every smoked or sauced meat. BBQ pulled pork, slow-cooked brisket, hamburgers, and spare ribs transform from humble BBQ dishes to ethereal meals, which is why you will always find Syrah on lists of ‘the best BBQ wines’.
Paso Robles has a plethora of bold Syrahs. We especially like the style being produced at Halter Ranch and Clos Selene. If cool climate Syrah is more your style, you can’t go wrong with one of Pax Mahle’s Sonoma Syrahs or one of Beauregard Vineyards Santa Cruz Mountain Syrahs.
Zin is always in when it comes to the best wine to serve at your BBQ. With its juicy berry fruit and what is sometimes described as “brambly” or jammy fruit, plum, ripe cherries, and hints of pepper, Zinfandel’s bold palate can stand up to popular BBQ foods like juicy burgers, brisket, and any type of meat you might want to throw on the grill.
This grape also complements sides like grilled onions and bell peppers. If you’re looking for a good California Zinfandel recommendation, we really enjoyed this old vine example from Michael Klouda Wines, which exhibits tremendous grace and power.
When deciding which wines to serve at your summer gathering, consider this: Malbec wines reach their apex in Argentina, and Argentina is also known for its incredible grilled steaks. If steak is on the menu, Malbec is a must! We’re partial to the high-altitude Malbecs of Argentina, which tend to be softer than France’s tightly structured, “meaty” Malbec wine. The juicy, dark fruit palate, combined with ultra-silky tannins, is a win-win.
We can’t mention Malbec without giving a shout-out to our friends, Jack Galante and Galante Vineyards. The Malbec he’s crafting down in Carmel Valley is soft, balanced, and has the characteristic dark plum and cherry fruit that makes this wine so appealing.
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