Does champagne go with Mexican food?

Chiles often play a starring role. Spicy, peppery foods can be difficult to pair with wine, so I’d start with the most versatile wines in your cellar. Lime, cilantro and tomatillos will pair well with crisp white wines like Sauvignon Blanc or Albariño. Grilled dishes with smoky chipotle flavors might pair better with Malbec, Tempranillo or Syrah. Carnitas or other pork dishes might go well with Pinot Noir. Moles would play nicely with a fruit-forward Zinfandel or Barbera. Also keep in mind that Baja wines are much easier to find these days. Mexican wines are delicious and made in a range of styles. There are also many Hispanic-owned wineries in California and elsewhere that are well worth checking out.

Mexican food has come on in leaps and bounds in the last 10-15 years, but it’s not so widespread outside the country that the habit of drinking wine has grown up around it. Even though Mexico has its own wine industry, it’s far more common to drink beer, cocktails such as margaritas and soft drinks such as agua fresca than wine with Mexican food. ‘There are some really good wines from Baja California, but the import taxes make them expensive,’ says Natalie Diaz-Fuentes, co-founder of Santo Remedio, which has three branches in London. They do, however, stock three wines from leading Mexican estate LA Cetto – the Chardonnay in particular consistently goes well with their food. The former is relatively straightforward – it’s the toppings rather than the corn-based bases that tend to dictate the match, though the Chardonnay-friendly taste of corn is always present in the background. Luis Sánchez, the sommelier at Michelin one-star Rosetta in Mexico City, agrees: ‘A wine with too much tannin, for example, can intensify the heat and create a harsh sensation,’ he says. ‘The ideal is to look for harmony in fresh wines with good acidity, which complement and highlight the dishes without overpowering them.’

El autor recomienda pareja de vino con comida mexicana en casa o cuando come fuera. El sommelier Christopher Janz destaca vinos y variedades que funcionan bien con la cocina latina. Janz sugiere seguir la tendencia actual en Argentina, Chile y España de reducir la fruta y encontrar un equilibrio de acidez y notas terrosas. El Condado de Haza rojo de España es el vino más popular en su lista, y otro rojo de la misma región, Hacienda de Monasterio, es perfecto con moles. Janz también ofrece consejos para elegir vinos para acompañar comida mexicana, como evitar mezclar calor y alcohol, elegir vinos con alta acidez para contrarrestar el picante, y considerar vinos espumosos como el cava o el sauvignon blanc sancerre para los ceviches. Janz considera que la calidad de los vinos mexicanos ha mejorado mucho, especialmente los de la Península de Baja California, y destaca el vino Monte Xanic como uno de los mejores vinos mexicanos en términos de calidad y capacidad para acompañar comida.

The same characteristics that make Mexican food so exciting – the boldness, complexity, intense spices, and flavors – are also what makes the process of pairing Mexican food with wine daunting. The team noted when pairing wine with Mexican food, don’t be afraid to drink red wine with spicy, smoky dishes. Something like Pinot Noir is excellent – you have the fruit, but you also have earthiness. Pinot Noir is also great because you can have intensity without having high alcohol and high tannins. When it comes to white wine, look to aromatic varieties. Rieslings, with their bright acidity, provide great pairings with many Mexican dishes. Manuel Rios, Founder of Rios Wine Co., in Napa Valley and member of the Mexican-American Vintners Association, noted that we shouldn’t be constrained by “what’s right or wrong pairing suggestions,” but that people should explore freely instead, enjoying the discovery process of finding what they like paired together. His favorites are the 2021 Rios Sauvignon Blanc with ceviche or fish tacos, and he loves the 2017 Rios Cabernet with Enchilada Picadillo or his other favorite, Bistek Ranchero. With the above tips in mind, here are a few Mexican food and wine pairings to explore: Corn Tortillas and Champagne Mildly nutty with a bit of natural sweetness and deliciously rich in corn flavor, tortillas are a tasty pairing with bready, yeasty, and toasty Champagne. Carnitas and Pinot Noir Carnitas translates to “little meats.” Making the dish involves braising pork in lard or oil and spices for several hours until it’s tender enough to shred apart. The result is tender, smoky meat in tacos, enchiladas, or on its own. Pinot Noir has just the right level of tannins to deal with spicy meat and is also acidic enough to stand up to any toppings that traditionally go with the dish. Ceviche and Sauvignon Blanc As noted by Manuel Rios, high-acid Sauvignon Blanc pairs perfectly with the fresh, citrusy flavors of ceviche. Sauvignon Blanc also holds herbal notes that complement any fresh herbs sprinkled on ceviche or used in the marinade. Notes of stone, mineral, and slate also lie within Sauvignon Blanc, complementing the saline notes found in fresh seafood. Mole Poblano and Zinfandel Mole poblano, a sauce consisting of peppers, tomatoes, dried fruits, seeds, and chocolate, pairs beautifully with Zinfandel’s rich, dark fruits, cocoa, and smoke flavors. Its soft tannins are another plus, avoiding any hints of bitterness on the palate. Al Pastor and Rosé Al pastor is pork or goat that’s seasoned with chiles and slow-roasted on a spit grill with onions and pineapple. You’ll typically find this type of meat in tacos (Tacos Al Pastor), a Lebanese-influenced taco topped with roasted pineapple, red onion, and fresh cilantro. Finding a wine to go with the pineapple in al pastor can be challenging, but a Rosé will complement the pork, spices, and fruit of Tacos Al Pastor and avoid overpowering it. A sparkling Brut Rosé would also make a lovely pairing. Enchiladas and Riesling Enchiladas consist of tortillas stuffed with any number of ingredients and topped with a delicious red sauce. A Riesling is a great option here. The acidity of the wine helps to cut through the fattiness of the cheese, bringing harmony to the dish. Tamales and Cabernet Franc Tamales are corn dough packed with cheese, meat, beans, vegetables, or some combination of these ingredients. The stuffed dough gets wrapped in corn husks and steamed or boiled. The sweet, earthy flavors of tamales pair exceptionally well with Cabernet Franc, as the body of the wine is light enough to complement the braised or slow-cooked meat filling, and its earthiness will flow well with the dense masa exterior. You could also pair tamales with Tempranillo. Chiles Rellenos and Syrah Chiles Rellenos are green chiles stuffed with cheese, breaded in masa, and deep-fried. They’re typically topped with chile sauce. Syrah is the perfect wine for this dish as the meaty, almost bacon-like flavors in the wine pair perfectly with the sweetness and spiciness of the dish.