Spinach and Ricotta Cannelloni pairs best with acidic Italian red wines such as Sangiovese, Barbera, Dolcetto, and Valpolicella Classico. Italian white wines such as Trebbiano, Fiano and Soave will be excellent with your Cannelloni. If any of these wines sound confusing to you, grab a bottle of Zinfandel, Pinot Grigio or sparkling wine, and you’ll be certain to have a wonderful match with your Cannelloni dinner.
Acidic red wines are essential if your Spinach and Ricotta Cannelloni is smothered in a tomato sauce as wines with more tannin than acidity will end up tasting harsh and metallic. Acidic red wines are lighter in body and have wonderful cherry flavours that bring out the tanginess of the tomato sauce that is smothering your Cannelloni.
Best Wine With Spinach and Ricotta Cannelloni
Trebbiano d’Abruzzo & Spinach and Ricotta Cheese Cannelloni Pairing
Trebbiano d’Abruzzo is a floral, chalky and nutty white wine with restrained flavours of lemon, pear, apple and herbs. The nutty or almond flavour gives Trebbiano a savoury aspect which makes it wonderful with the cheese and tomato sauce. Trebbiano d’Abruzzo is also crisp, ensuring it cuts through the rich body of the Ricotta cheese while brightening the earthy and green spinach flavours.
The spinach also makes the wine taste a little more complex, as the spinach draws out the herbal and grassy flavours of Trebbiano d’Abruzzo.
Trebbiano itself is a grape and may come from different regions such as Abruzzo, Lugana, Soave and Toscano. In all instances, you’ll find a wonderful pairing with Trebbiano with Spinach and Ricotta Cannelloni, as you’ll find a light-bodied white wine that is high in acidity, slightly savoury, floral, and has a beloved hint of almond on the finish.
Fiano & Spinach and Ricotta Cheese Cannelloni Pairing
Fiano is a medium-bodied Italian White wine from Campagna and features a zippy acidity that cuts right through the creamy Ricotta cheese. Hazelnuts often dominate the nose of Fiano and this adds a touch of elegance when blended in with the cheese. Flowers, honey, pears, smoke, apples and peaches also come forward with this rich white wine and these flavours mingle nicely with the cheesy cannelloni filling.
Sangiovese Matched With Spinach and Ricotta Cannelloni
A Sangiovese-based Italian red wine will always work wonderfully with Cannelloni as it has the perfect amount of acidity to handle the wine’s tomato sauce. Sangiovese goes beautifully with the Ricotta cheese as well, as the cheese helps soften the tannin of the red wine.
Cherry and Plum are the dominant flavours found in Sangiovese, but you’ll also find complex notes of herbs, earth, leather, tobacco and spice. All of these flavours are delivered in a rich and smooth red wine that won’t overpower the ricotta cheese or spinach flavours.
If Italian wines confuse you, seek out a Chianti Classico, which is 80% Sangiovese. Chianti Classico is not overly expensive and produced to high standards. It’s also easy to pick up off a shelf as you’ll see the silhouette of a black rooster on the label around the wine bottle’s neck.
Barbera & Spinach and Ricotta Cannelloni Pairing
Barbera is produced in many countries, but Italy (particularly the Asti, Alba and Monferrato areas in Piedmont) produces some of the finest examples. Light in alcohol, Italian Barbera is bursting with fruity flavours of cherry, plum, blackberries and raspberries, which all work perfectly with the tangy tomato sauce. Barbera’s high acidity gives it a velvety texture that blends in well with the creaminess of the ricotta cheese.
Barbera isn’t all fruit and giggles, and you’ll find some excellent notes of herbs, earth and spice that complement the green spinach notes of your meal.
Prosecco & Spinach and Ricotta Cannelloni Pairing
If red and white wine aren’t your thing, Prosecco, which is an Italian sparkling wine, is exceptional with Spinach and Ricotta Cannelloni. The bubbles in Prosecco help cleanse your mouth of the taste bud clogging cheese, while the high acidity of Prosecco holds up to the tangy tomato sauce. Prosecco also has a slight almond or nutty flavour to it, which goes amazing with the Ricotta Cheese.
With Prosecco, you won’t find much complexity, instead, this wine is all about keeping your mouth fresh and your taste buds alive with its flavours of apple, pear, apricot and lime. This makes Prosecco wonderful for a large banquet where Cannelloni is served. For example, you might see Cannelloni served as an intro meal at an Italian wedding before the main course. Prosecco makes for a good pair in this instance as it is a celebratory wine that gets you in the mood of eating well, plus it is low in alcohol and lively so that it won’t weigh your guests down.