Which wine to choose with charcuterie like Catalan fuet?

Wine, cheese and charcuterie go well together, they say. Choosing the ideal wine to accompany charcuterie remains difficult for most consumers. Directos.eu presents here the best wines to accompany your dry sausage and the criteria for choosing them.

Red wine and Spanish charcuterie

Red wine does not necessarily go well with charcuterie. Fat has a rather negative effect on the tannins of red wine. The latter indeed become hard and dry, giving an unpleasant sensation in the mouth. You will have the impression of consuming a metallic object.

However, for raw sausages like Catalan Fuet, well-acidified red wine is a great accompaniment. This drink is more interesting if it has a fruity taste. Be sure to choose traditional red wine, but not very tannic. In this sense, a Beaujolais Primeur, Pinot Noir from Alsace, a Chiroubles or Brouilly are an excellent choice. You can also opt for red wines such as Saumur-Champigny or Cadillac Côtes de Bordeaux. The latter are a little more structured and go perfectly with Catalan fuet.

White wine and Catalan fuet: the ideal couple

To taste your dry Spanish sausage, dry white wine is the ideal accompaniment. The unsweetened dry white wine gives pleasure to your taste buds. Instead, prefer a woody dry model with an intense smell. Here is a selection of French white wines that go well with Catalan sausage:

• Minervois Corbières,
• the Coteaux-de-Die,
• Pinot blanc from Alsace,
• the white Montravel,
• the white Ventoux,
• white Bordeaux,
• the white Luberon,
• the white Côte Vermeille,
• Clairette de Bellegarde,
• the white Rhodanian Counties,
• the White Moors,
• the white Périgord,
• white Corrèze wines.

The fruity and spicy white wines with an apple freshness are also perfect to accompany Catalan fuet.

Rosé wine and charcuterie: perfect harmony

If you prefer rosé, opt for a dry wine, not sweet, but powerful. Rosé wines with these characteristics exist in a wide variety. You will indeed be spoiled for choice between:

• the Collioure rosé,
• Bandol,
• Cabardès,
• the Cairanne,
• Corbieres,
• Côtes-du-Rhône Brézème,
• the Tavel,
• the Côtes-du-Rhône Villages.

These different rosé wines will go perfectly with your dry sausage dish to delight your taste buds. If you are a wine specialist, you can also opt for combinations. An alliance of Catalan fuet with wines produced in Spain or Catalonia will give an exquisite and original flavor.

Criteria for choosing the ideal wine with your Catalan fuet

If there are three families of wines to accompany Catalan fuet, certain criteria must be considered for a judicious choice.

Take into account the vintage of the wine and its provenance

The vintage of a wine indicates the year in which the fruit was cultivated, harvested and then vinified. Thus, due to climatic influences, the flavors of the wines vary from year to year. Summer, spring or autumn wines are generally from a good vintage. White, red or rosé, it is best to opt for wine from the 2005, 2009, 2010, 2015 and 2016 vintages. As a general rule, choose wine that is at least 3 years old to accompany your espetec dish.

Apart from the vintage, the origin of the wine is a selection criterion to be taken into account. Concretely, it is for you to check the growing region and the grape variety (production method) of your drink. In some regions in France, few grape varieties grow side by side on the same soil. Wines from these regions therefore certainly have similar tastes and flavors. To know the origin of a wine, you just have to look at the label on the bottle of the drink. The mentions "Bottled at the château" or "Domaine" guarantee the origin and the grape variety of the wine.

Trust the professionalism of your wine merchant

If you don't know anything about wine, your wine merchant can lend you a hand. The latter will be happy to advise you on the best wine to accompany your Catalan fuet. In addition to considering the different families of wines, your wine merchant will take into account your specific needs and your tastes. Some wine merchants also offer wine tastings to allow you to understand the flavor of the drink. According to your needs and the advice of the wine merchant, you will find, after tasting, the ideal wine to accompany your dry sausage.

Directos.eu also recommends not relying on the price to choose your wine. Price is no guarantee of quality. Some wine bottles are adorned with a sticker with the mention “gold medal”. These are medals awarded to these brands during competitions with various criteria and requirements. They have marketing aims and do not always guarantee a good quality wine.