Grenache Blanc pairs best with grilled tuna steaks, swordfish, grilled snapper, and mahi mahi. Grenache Blanc’s creamy texture also complements creamy lighter-fare such as butter chicken, chicken satay, pasta with Seafood in a white sauce, or Aioli sauce.
Grenache Blanc is a full-bodied and dry white wine that, when aged in oak, delivers toasty, and spicy notes of dill, cumin, and nutmeg, along with fruit flavours of green apple, lime zest, peach, apricot, honeydew melon and pear.
Grenache Blanc may come as a single varietal grape or you might find it in blended white Rhône wines such as white Vacqueyras or a white Châteauneuf-du-Pape. Grenache Blanc may also come unoaked or as a sweet and desert styled wine.
Best Food with Grenache Blanc
Grenache Blanc & Grilled Tuna Steak Pairing
A thick and meaty tuna steak demands a full-bodied white, such as Grenache Blanc, that has seen some oak aging. The toasty notes of oak aging ensure the wine complements the charred flavours of your Tuna Steak. Furthermore, the intensity of this wine and its lean green herbal and fruit flavours ensure that the wine will hold up to the meatiness of a grilled Tuna Steak while adding a bit of extra flair to the finish.
Grenache Blanc is also excellent with a grilled Swordfish steak!
Grenache Blanc & Tempura Shrimp Pairing
Tempura Shrimp is shrimp dredged in flour, dipped in egg, then coated in breadcrumbs before being deep-fried a mouth-watering golden brown colour. Grenache Blanc’s citrus notes assist in electrifying the delicate shrimp flavour, while the salty minerality aspect of the wine complements the dish. Meanwhile, the lemon and lime flavours of this full-bodied white wine help cut through the deep-fried breading, keeping your mouth refreshed.
Grenache Blanc & Butter Chicken Pairing
Grenache Blanc is an intense wine that can stand up to the curry-driven flavours of Butter Chicken while complementing it with its toasty and creamy, full-bodied texture. With its green apple, pear, peach, and lime notes, the wine brings the slow-roasted chicken meat into focus while softening any spicy herbs.
Grenache Blanc is higher in alcohol content than your typical white wine. (It ranges from 13%-15%, while the average wine is 12.5% or under). With this in mind, ensure your Butter Chicken isn’t overly spicy, as higher alcohol content will make the capsicum content found in spicy peppers burn hot.
Grenache Blanc & Seafood Pasta in a Cream Sauce
Grenache Blanc has a rich and creamy texture that complements any cream-based sauce. In addition, the green apple, lemon and lime flavours draw out the subtle seafood flavours, while the wine’s mineral finish seals the deal.
I’d put Grenache Blanc at a medium to light wine in terms of acidity. Thus, Grenache Blanc will struggle to cut through a very rich cream sauce, meaning it may not be powerful to lift out the flavours all those expensive chunks Seafood in your pasta. For a heavier Cream Sauce, I’d suggest either an unoaked Grenache Blanc, which will have more acidity, but less of a complementary creamy texture, different wine, or substituting the seafood with chicken.
Grenache Blanc & Aioli Sauce
The creamy texture of Grenache Blanc ensures it will complement almost anything Aioli sauce accompanies. For example, Grenache Blanc will have no issues holding up to grilled Seafood, potatoes, canned tuna, or even a roasted leg of lamb with Aioli sauce on the side.
The green herbal notes of dill and cumin seed found in Grenache Blanc complement the garlic found in the Aioli, as does the creamy texture of the wine. Meanwhile, the juicy green fruit flavours of lime, pear, melon, and apple cut right through the richness of the Aioli sauce.