Best Wines For A Summer BBQ Party #SundaySupper

This week’s #SundaySupper theme is a Summer BBQ Party.

Perfect.

That’s because Summer is my favorite season.  Always has been.  I love the warmer weather, the longer days, my favorite fruits (yes – including wine grapes;-)} and vegetables are ripe or ripening.  And I get to use my Weber grill more often than not.

Which brings me to this week’s virtual Summer BBQ party.  The #SundaySupper family of food bloggers dishing up a diverse Summer BBQ party menu.  And I’m offering recommendations for all the dishes.

While beer is probably the top of mind beverage for barbecues for most folks, don’t forget about wine! A glass of wine alongside your grilled favorites can elevate a meal from mundane to memorable.

Here are some of the things you need to know to successfully add wine to your list of favorite adult barbecue beverages!

  • If your meat, or vegetable has a sauce, salsa, chutney, etc. that dominates the flavors of the dish, let the sauce dictate which wine to pair with the food. BBQ Chicken is a good example. If you follow the cliché white wine with white meat “rule”, it could be a challenge to find a white wine to stand up to the bold flavors of the BBQ sauce. It’ll be much easier to find a red wine, or a Rosé that will complement BBQ chicken. In other words, think of the meat, or vegetable as a “vessel” for the sauce. Pair to the sauce, not the “vessel”.
  • Smoking, grilling, and blackening all transform the flavors of food, so that will dictate which wines to serve with the food
  • Spicy (hot) foods like sweet. Pair spicy hot foods with wines that have low to moderate alcohol levels (less than 14.5% generally), no or minimal oak, and some residual sugar (sweetness)
  • More red wines than you think work well during the summer.  Just chill them in an ice bath for 20-30 minutes.  Look for lighter bodied, less tannic wines like Pinot Noir, Dolcetto, Beaujolais, or Grenache.  Also look for reds from cooler climate wine regions like Loire, Alsace or Germany.
  • BBQ wines should be inexpensive
Best Wines For A Summer BBQ Party #SundaySupper
Image courtesy of Pico Communication

Check out the awesome Summer BBQ menu and my wine pairing recommendations.

Pair these sides and accompaniments with a glass of sparkling wine.  My everyday bubbly these days is Kirkland Prosecco. It has a clean, refreshing apple, pear, mandarin orange and honey character.

Pair these dishes with a food friendly Sauvignon Blanc. Look for the 2012 Robert Mondavi Fumé Blanc.  It’s a blend of mostly Sauvignon Blanc with a bit of Semillon for body.  It has nicely textured lime zest, lemon curd, slightly herbal character underscored by some minerality which adds a bit of complexity. 

Pair these dishes with Gewürztraminer.  Look for the Dr. Konstantin Frank Gewürztraminer. It’s from the Finger Lakes wine region in New York State.  It’s fragrant, and medium-bodied with sweet citrus, stone fruit, and baking spice flavors with a touch of sweetness.  

I like a Riesling with theses appetizers and sides.  Look for the 2013 Kung-Fu Girl Riesling from Washington State. It shows gobs of white peach, apricot, and mandarin orange flavors with an alluring off-dry sweetness and lively acidity. 

Pair these appetizers and main dished with a Rosé.  It’s my favorite summer time wine because it’s so food friendly.  It’s served chilled, which make it refreshing, while at the same time being “bolder” than the most popular white wines when it come to pairing with grilled, and smoked foods.  Look the 2013 Tablas Creek Vineyard Patelin de Tablas Rosé.  It’s a blend of  Grenache, Mourvedre and Counoise with lively, refreshing wild strawberry, spiced citrus character.  

Pair these side and main dishes with a red Rhone blend.  One of my recent favorites which offers great value is the 2012 Château Pesquié “Terrasses” Côte du Ventoux.  It’s a blend of 70% old-vine Grenache and 30% Syrah that combines the generous fruit of Grenache with the spice, mineral, and acidity of Syrah that shows a juicy cherry liqueur, mixed berry, and licorice character. 

Pair these dishes with Malbec.  I recommend Pascual Toso Malbec from Argentina.  It has a red cherry, blueberry character with a hint of smoky earthiness that makes it a good match for the flavors of Summer BBQ! It’s a red wine that can take a bit of a chill too.  Go ahead and throw it in the ice bucket for 10-15 minutes.  

Pair these delectable desserts with 10-year-old Tawny Port.  I recommend a Tawny because unlike vintage port it can take a chill.  In fact, it should be served at cellar temperature (about 55 degrees) to maximize its enjoyment.  And that’s important when you’re looking for something cool to enjoy with your dessert on warm (if not hot) Summer day. Look for Warre’s “Otima” 10-year-old Tawny Port. It’s a rich tawny port with a toffee, caramel, honey and dried fruits character. You know what else I like about Tawny?  It’ll last for months after opening!

Pair these delightful desserts with Moscato d’Asti.  Look for the 2013 Cupcake Moscato d’ Asti.  It’s slightly fizzy and shows lovely floral, and bright fruit aromatics with peach, lychee and tropical fruit flavors.

And last, but not least, check out this stellar line up of other Summer BBQ Beverages

*Clink* – Here’s to you and your Summer BBQ Party!

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46 Comments

  1. Good tips! I had a lightly oaked chard with our grilled swordfish, but think your choice of rose would have been better.

  2. Love your recommendations and thanks for pairing the perfect wine with my Blueberry BBQ Chicken Pizza. I need to find myself a bottle.

  3. You’ve convinced me I need a membership to the Kirkland store to try their Prosecco. Great suggestions and pairings!

  4. Tara says:

    Love your summer wine picks!!! I would like to try many of them!!

  5. Alice says:

    HI! I’ve never had that wine or heard of it before, I’m going to try it out the next time I make the sanma! : )

  6. rozpaige says:

    What a wonderful post . . . I, for one, know very little about which wines pair with different foods! I will have to pick up some Moscato d’Asti to enjoy with our peaches and peach dessert recipes! Thank you for teaching me so much in this post! Roz

  7. Always love reading your recommendations!

  8. I love these suggestions, moscato and gewürztraminer are two of my favourites personally! So refreshing!

  9. This is such a great post! I was talking to my other half on Saturday night, wondering how to pair wines for a BBQ party. I will pair for the sauce since the flavor of the vessel is hidden or complimented with sauces and/ or spices.

  10. Thanks for all the terrific wine pairings! Have a great week, Martin!

  11. kudoskitchen says:

    This is so helpful for me because I never know what wine to pair with food. Thanks for your recommendations, Martin!

  12. marbaird says:

    A Savignon Blanc for both Noshers recipes. Awesome

  13. Kimberly says:

    Great tips … and awesome pairings! I will definitely try the Moscato with my blueberry and raspberry galette!

  14. Summer is the best season by far. When I was a kid I loved it because it meant carefree living without school and now I love it because of the warmth and produce. It’s awesome!

  15. You know i never thought to let the sauce make the wine choice for a pairing, what a great tip.

  16. What a treat to have someone like you make wine recommendations. I’m such a lummox when it comes to pairings.

  17. hezzid says:

    Yes! There are a few new wines on this list I can’t wait to try!

  18. I love all of your tips. I wouldn’t know where to start!

  19. Great tips! I never thought to pair with the sauce, but that makes so much sense! Thanks so much!

  20. Thank you for pairing my dish!

  21. Great tips as always, Martin! I’m curious, you say it’s ok to chill reds in summer that are lighter reds? I love that. So often, I know a red would go better with a dish, but it’s just too hot outside. Chilling doesn’t contract the flavor of the wine?

    1. Martin D. Redmond says:

      Hi Susan – No, if you have a lighter red that is low in tannins and alcohol, it will still taste fine. You wouldn’t want the wine to be too cold, but most of the times red wine is served too warm anyway. You could stick a bottle of Grenache, or Pinot Noir in a bucket of ice for 15 or so minutes and it should be fine. Don’t know if you like Rose, but you generally get a red wine fruit profile (cherries, strawberries) with a wine that can be chilled like a white…It’s the tannins and alcohol which make a wine taste “funny” if chilled too much…

  22. Thanks for the tips! I’m more of a red wine drinker, so I almost never serve white wine, even with chicken lol I love the idea of prosecco, especially for the summer months. Trader Joe’s has a decent one, but I haven’t tried the Costco one yet … I’ll have to pick some up next time I’m there!

  23. Eric Heng says:

    Nice suggestions!! I am great wine lover…You have shared the best wines it should be on our summer drinking list.

  24. this is a great list. we’ll have to break some out of these for the summer parties

    1. Martin D. Redmond says:

      Thank you. And thanks for stopping by

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