The 10 Best Types Of Wine For Your Summer Barbecue
The summer barbecue is an ode to the season of leisure. These are the months when the weather gets warmer and people take a breather from the grind. Aside from vacations, entertaining company is one of the most memorable experiences that we all enjoy each summer, and throwing a barbecue is a great time to enjoy the sunshine, slow-cooked meat, and all of the fixings.
Nothing goes better with well-prepared food than a nice glass of cold wine. When you're learning your wine, you need to start embracing the taste notes and characteristics that come with each kind. Part of being a connoisseur involves matching the right wine with the perfect food pairing. The summer barbecue is as good a time as any to expand your palate.
There are a variety of wines made from different grapes that come from different regions all over the world. The food that you enjoy at the barbecue will bring out the flavor and characteristics of any wine that you enjoy. In this guide, you will learn about the ideal wine pairings for different types of food that are commonly served at the barbecue, and you'll be prepared for each barbecue that you have on your calendar this summer with this breakdown of the best types of wine to try.
1. Dry rosé
Few things are as fulfilling and aromatic as a nice, tall glass of rosé. This type of wine wakes up different areas of your palate and provides a complex challenge to your tastebuds. Rosé is a dry, low-sugar wine with a fruit flavor and roughly 11% to 14% alcohol by volume (ABV). It's an excellent choice for any gathering during cookout and barbecue season because it pairs well with a variety of the foods commonly served here. A dry rosé pairs well with foods like veggie skewers on the barbecue, pork chops, grilled salmon and shrimp, and hot dogs. This is an all-rounder that goes well with just about any food at the barbecue.
This works whether you opt for a less expensive rosé or one of the higher-end bottles. A glass of dry rosé goes just as well with a hot dog with mustard and relish as it does the food enjoyed at a celebratory pig roast. Regardless of what food you're sampling, a dry rosé is excellent for you and the whole crowd. If you're hosting company and want to choose one bottle of red, a dry rosé is a can't-miss option.
2. Pinot Noir
Pinot Noir is another timeless, pleasing wine that has a place at any summer barbecue. This is a favorite wine made from dark grapes. Pinot Noir is popular because it is fragrant, refreshing, and aromatic, with plenty of texture and taste notes. This form of red wine veers dry and is typically medium in the body, and has an ABV between 12% and 15%. You will pick up taste notes like raspberry, mushroom, vanilla, and of course, densely flavorful red grapes.
When it's barbecue season, a glass of Pinot Noir will pair well with all types of chicken dishes. This applies to grilled chicken, deep-fried, honey mustard, and barbecue chicken. You will love it with chicken salads, tacos, and so many other food options. In addition to chicken, this wine pairs well with foods like sausage, pork chops, hot dogs, and smoked fish.
Experts put Pinot in the all-rounder category, making it perfect for any barbecue gathering. It is also an excellent choice because it is one of the most widely produced types of wine that you will find. You can find it in glasses bottles that cost $10 or less and large boxed wines that keep everyone's glasses full throughout your barbecue.
3. Malbec
Malbec is a bit of an exotic type of wine that is also excellent for a summer barbecue. This is another red wine that derives from purple grapes, and the grapes are typically found in regions of Argentina. This wine features characteristics like oak, blackberry, coffee, and several other flavor notes. Having a glass of this dark red will serve you well if you're the type of person who goes all out at the barbecue. This wine pairs well with food offerings like lamb, steak, pork, salmon, chicken wings, and grilled sausage.
If you're health-conscious, Malbec is a type of wine that is also healthy because it features large doses of antioxidants. This is due to the fact that these grapes have a thicker skin, so the amounts of quercetin and resveratrol are higher. According to the National Library of Medicine, antioxidants like resveratrol are excellent for your heart, are neuroprotective, and have anti-inflammatory properties. Sipping on a glass of this at the barbecue is a no-brainer for its quality and versatility. What's more, this wine is also typically less expensive than other types, making it easier to buy plenty of bottles for your gatherings.
4. Shiraz
Shiraz is a popular red wine option that is native to France and found all over the world. This is a wine that contains a wide variety of flavonoids and is packed with antioxidants. It will tickle your taste buds with juicy flavor when you sip on a glass of Shiraz, which features flavor notes such as spice, sweet fruits, smoke, flowers, pepper, and tobacco. It is a wine that has a slight sweet leaning but is not fruity in the way that a dessert wine is. This is a popular red wine that people love whether they veer toward dry or sweet preferences. It features an ABV between roughly 13% and 16%, depending on the season and the region of the grapes.
Go with Shiraz if your barbecue has plenty of meat offerings. You'll find that it pairs well with burgers, steaks, lamb, bison, and other heavy meats. You will appreciate the way that this wine accentuates the spice and savory nature of your grilled, slow-roasted, or other meats. It's ideal whether you are going all-out with the barbecue or simply throwing something on the grill really quickly. The rich, dark flavor notes will make you appreciate wine and your time with your loved ones.
5. Chardonnay
Chardonnay is a wine lover's paradise and quite often a wine newbie's first experience developing their palate. This is a type of white wine that's one of the most aromatic, flavorful, and colorful and is made from one of the most popular grapes in the world. Chardonnay is a full-body white wine that offers a variety of fragrance notes, such as citrus fruit, green apple, butter, and nuts.
The taste does not disappoint, as Chardonnay has a zesty flavor, featuring notes of lemon, pear, apples, and other fruits. Since the wine is so popular, you'll find that there are a variety of regions that have perfected the Chardonnay. Some of the best places that produce this wine include California, South Africa, New York, Italy, and Quebec.
This bodes well if you're looking for the perfect bottle to bring to your barbecue. A delicious Chardonnay pairs well with foods like BBQ chicken, scallops, grilled shrimp, grilled chicken, and all types of fish. It's also an excellent wine to pour when you're setting out a charcuterie or wine and cheese board for people to munch on.
6. Riesling
Riesling is another popular white wine option that is found regularly in the United States, Australia, Italy, New Zealand, and other countries. There are a variety of fruit flavors found in a glass of Riesling, as it includes taste notes like pear, apricot, and apples. Riesling typically is on the dryer end of the spectrum, but you can still find some that are sweeter to the palate. Depending on the type of Riesling, the color ranges from a pale straw color to a deep yellow hue. In addition to the flavor, Riesling includes aromas like minerals, pineapple, lime, and a variety of floral scents.
It is a versatile one that you can pair with some of the finest meats and spices that you'll get at a summer barbecue. You can pair a Riesling well with foods like pork, ribs, duck, crab, bacon, and steak. This is an excellent wine pairing to have if you want to hand glasses out while people place personal orders on their steaks, courtesy of the host. You can also pair this wine with vegetables like eggplant, bell peppers, squash, lyrics, and red onions.
7. Chianti
Chianti is ideal for people looking for a kick of complex taste when they take a sip of wine. This is a ruby red wine with a juicy and tart flavor profile. It is native to central Tuscany, an excellent wine for a collector, and the perfect wine to have at your barbecue. In general, Chianti wines are made from Sangiovese grapes. There is a wide gamut of flavors that you will experience when enjoying a glass of Chianti, including red fruits, leather, flowers, earth, pepper, and spice. It is full-bodied and adds so much texture and profile to any food that you pile on your plate.
You'll be able to pair this wine well with foods like salmon, brick oven pizza, chicken, and shrimp at your summer gathering. The deep, smoky flavor of the wine will accentuate the flavors that you enjoy in that thick and juicy steak, or burger with all of the toppings. This red wine goes particularly well with red meat and is also a joy to drink by itself.
8. Cabernet Sauvignon
You can never go wrong with a nice cab. Cabernet Sauvignon is the most popular red wine that anyone can get into. Consider this a go-to wine option to enjoy at the barbecue this summer, no matter what flavors you tend to lean toward. It's a type of dry wine that comes from red grapes. Some of the best Cabernet Sauvignon wine options are produced in regions like Napa Valley, Santa Cruz Mountains, Tuscany, Australia, and France. Because Cabernet Sauvignon is so popular, you'll be able to find an excellent bottle at any price point.
When you sip a glass of Cabernet Sauvignon, you will appreciate taste notes like bell pepper, black cherry, spice, and wood. It has an ABV between 13.5% and 15%. This wine pairs nicely with succulent cuts of steak, ribs, lamb, pork chops, and any other red meat. Mark this one on the list of excellent choices to grab if you can only get one bottle of red.
9. Chenin Blanc
Chenin Blanc is a fun white wine that is a bit of a break from the typical offerings. It's a dry white wine that is perfect for the summer because it often comes in the sparkling variety, which is ultra refreshing during warm weather seasons. Though this is a dry wine, it is often made in a variety of points on the taste spectrum. Chenin Blanc delivers plenty of flavor in a glass, as it features a kick of flowers, lime, apples, honey, peaches, honeydew, and lemon. This wine also has an ABV of between 12% and 14.5%.
Since this wine is so versatile, it's easy to shop around for the perfect bottle for any setting or situation. It pairs well with veggie skewers, lamb kebabs, grilled shrimp, and other seafood that you will prepare at the barbecue. When you stop by your local wine store for a bottle of Chenin Blanc, you will find that the best come from regions like South Africa, Argentina, and France.
10. Sauvignon Blanc
Sauvignon Blanc is a popular white wine that comes from green-skinned grapes. The grapes that this wine is made from are found in abundance in parts of France, Italy, California, South Africa, and New Zealand. If you're looking for a white wine option for your summer barbecue, this is one that has plenty of flavor and lots of pairings.
When you take a sip of Sauvignon Blanc, your palate will appreciate taste notes like apple, peach, oak, honeydew, grapefruit, and passionfruit. This dry, medium to light-bodied wine is excellent for the summer months. It's refreshing and will accentuate the flavor that you'll get from all of your barbecue food items. You'll find that Sauvignon Blanc pairs well with foods like salads, seafood, cheese, and chicken. It adds balance to the spice and zest of your food and will make for an aromatic and flavorful experience across the board.