Sure, you know the basics: White wine goes well with fish, red wine with red meat—a perfect rule for the simple week-night dishes you whip up at home. Going out and want something more complicated? You can just ask your waiter, or the restaurant’s sommelier, for suggestions.
But what happens when two culinary worlds collide, and you order out to eat in? You’re probably in that situation a lot lately. (Here’s a statistic for you: in May, DoorDash—the online delivery service that also owns Caviar—reported orders were up 110 percent since the beginning of the year. During lockdown, people were stuck inside, and therefore ordering in more.) It often presents a pairing predicament: what, exactly, goes well with spicy pad thai, Shake Shack, or the sausage pizza you ordered hungover on a Sunday night?
In an act of extremely important service journalism, Vogue asked sommeliers and wine experts from across the country to help us solve this particular quandary. Without further ado, our definitive guide on the best wines to pair with your takeout, from fried chicken to Chinese food.
Pizza
Pinot Noir. “In today’s time of take-out and eating at home—a personal favorite (and minor guilty pleasure) is pizza and a good bottle of Pinot Noir. If we have classic Margherita or mushroom pizza, a great pairing can be red Burgundy, preferably Gevrey-Cambertin or Nuits-Saint-Georges, as their fruit expression will not overpower the taste of the simple ingredients. If we have pepperoni or pizza with any type of meat or spice, some great pairings would be with Nebbiolo or Sangiovese because of their raspberries, cherries, dried fruit and leather notes, as well as higher tannins that can hold their own when up against that type of food.”
-Marija Mijic, sommelier and beverage director at La Mercerie
Sparkling wine. “Sparkling wine is a great style to have in the fridge because it pairs excellently with many takeout options. It will enlighten a vegetarian dish, cleanse your palate when eating fried food, balance out a spicier dish, and, my personal favorite, will pair beautifully with white pizza.”
-Geneviève Pelletier, partner at Lieu Di
Lambrusco. “Lambrusco and pizza are one of my favorite pairings. It has a little fizz to cut through the melty cheese plus a savory side for the tomato, spices, and pepperoni. Vigneto Saetti Lambrusco is a slightly earthy bottling that is great with mushroom pizza and the nuttiness of parmesan.”
-Amy Racine, beverage director of JF Restaurants
Barolo. “I cooked in Piemonte for two years and naturally ate a lot of pizza and drank a lot of red wine. On pizza nights (or afternoons), Italians didn’t shy away from opening a nice bottle of red wine which always elevated the experience. The dusty fruit and juicy tannins of Nebiollo’s like A. & G. Fantino “Cascina Dardi” Barolo cut through the rich mozzarella and transports me back to Piemonte.”
-Kelly Mariani, culinary director at Scribe Winery and former chef at Chez Panisse
Sushi
Champagne. “Raw fish and bubbles work really well together. I had this fun pairing last week with Marie-Noelle Ledru Extra-Brut Grand Cru. It’s all about clean fresh flavors and rich textures. This combo feels luxurious and celebratory!”
-Kelly Mariani
Riesling. “When it comes to sushi, it depends largely on what type of sauces are used and the way it’s prepared. Riesling—especially semi-sweet to sweet style—is the perfect pairing if there is wasabi or ginger. Riesling’s apple, pear, quince and sometimes even expressive citrus notes, along with the residual sugar and bracingly high acidity, are magically harmonious with spice.”
-Marija Mijic
Assyrtiko. “A colorful and fresh array of sushi calls for an equally fresh and tart wine. Assyrtiko is a Greek grape variety that has a tone of mineral that pairs well to fresh fish and anything briny like the seaweed wrapper on your favorite roll. Sigalas makes a great Assyrtiko from Santorini, where ocean winds are constantly whipping around the grapes. You can taste that saline quality in the wine so it pairs perfectly to any sushi or sashimi.”
-Amy Racine
Mexican Food
Chenin Blanc or Chardonnay. “Sonoma has some excellent Mexican food and I’m often grabbing Mexico City-style street tacos with friends. Alongside tacos, I love drinking crisp and textural white wines, like Chardonnay or Chenin Blanc, especially our friend Joel’s Las Jaras Chenin.”
-Kelly Mariani
Pinot Noir. “A hearty burrito with a spicy salsa calls for a juicy, but low tannin red wine so it doesn’t amplify the spice (in a bad way). Willamette Valley makes excellent Pinot Noirs in Oregon that fit the bill perfectly. Ken Wright makes a style that has a smokey tone for the beans and char on the tortilla. It’s fruitiness comes by way of plum and blackberry flavors, which are especially great for a beefy carne asada burrito.”
-Amy Racine
2018 Ken Wright Cellars Willamette Valley Pinot Noir
Champagne. “Champagne can be sweet and toasty, but a Gronget Blanc de Blancs Brut is bright, citrusy, and savory. It’s my go-to for anything spicy and smokey. Mexican flavors just seem to be the perfect match.”
-Christine Collado, general manager at Parcelle Wines
Pet’Nat. “I eat Mexican food about three times a week because there is a good place across the street from work. I usually get a crispy fish taco, guacamole and chips and then build from there. The Texan in me always wants a Mexican beer to wash it all down, but for a wine substitute, Pet’Nat gets the job done. It’s a little more raw and extremely expressive. Those ingredients work well with a lift of acidic bite and bubbles make every bite brighter.”
-Zwann Grays, Wine Director at Olmsted
Fried Chicken
Rosé. “A dry rosé is great with fried chicken. You need something really dry and tart to be refreshing between those crunchy bites of chicken. Plus, if it’s a well-seasoned fried chicken or has a little spice/hot sauce, the fruit from rosé cools you off and gets you ready for the next piece. La Fête du Rosé is one of my favorites from Saint-Tropez—it’s dry, crisp, and refreshing.”
-Amy Racine
Chardonnay. “Chardonnay from Burgundy can take any chicken dish and make it fancy. Even if it’s from Chick-Fil-A.”
-Christine Collado
Chinese Food
Chablis. “Chablis and Crab Rangoon are a knockout. The region of Chablis in France only works with Chardonnay, but doesn’t use new oak, so it isn’t too heavy or buttery. It just has a creamy texture to it which echoes the filling of the Rangoon. The flavors of the wine are slightly nutty, like blanched almond, which pairs to that flakey wonton wrapper.”
-Amy Racine
Rosé. “When I’m not drinking Scribe rosé I’m drinking Domaine Tempier thanks to my years in the kitchen at Chez Panisse. Tempier’s Matriarch Lulu just passed, giving us yet another reason to raise a glass of this delicious wine. This iconic rosé is refreshing and rich enough to compliment the myriad of flavors and complexities of Chinese cuisine.”
-Kelly Mariani
Thai Food
Riesling or Pinot Noir. “Our favorite wines to drink with Thai food are either an off-dry Riesling or Pinot Noir. The sweetness of the riesling goes well with the mouth watering spiciness, and a lighter pinot noir complements the full flavors of the food.”
-Bobby Leonardo, bartender at Wayla
Rosso Sicilia. “Have this delicious Sicilian red with a chill. Pair it with noddles or a curry. It’s great.”
-Christine Collado
Burgers
Nouveau or Beaujolais. “Nouveau is our first glimpse into this year’s harvest and we’re bottling our 2020 vintage this week. Alongside a burger, I want to drink a chilled, crushable red wine from California or Beaujolais in France with enough body to stand up to the juicy meat and smokey char.”
-Kelly Mariani
Australian Grenache. “The only thing to order from In-n-Out is the Double-Double with cheese, and the only thing to drink with it is Australian Grenache. Because burgers are primarily defined by grease and heaviness, they call for wines that are big on flavor, body, and alcohol so they don’t get buried in the starch-and-fat groundswell. This down-under twist on the classically European grape is thick and dense, making for a heavy hitter combo of high tannin and alcohol that washes away any lingering grease from the meat and cheese. If you ask for your burger ‘animal-style,’ you’ll get it with mustard fried into each patty, plus pickles, chopped grilled onions and an extra helping of In-N-Out’s famous sauce (think Thousand Island Dressing). They all blend beautifully into the spiced plum, new leather, stewed berries and dried herbs that typify hot-climate Aussie Grenache.”
-Vanessa Price, author of Big Macs & Burgundy