Everyone I know who has a barbecue has been grilling every day during the recent heatwave, which really blows the idea that barbecues are purely about weekends, large crowds and meat out of the water. These days we cook anything and everything outside: fish, veggies (even for a salad), halloumi … I suspect we’d grill pasta, if we could. (Someone will no doubt tell me you can.)
So really there’s no such thing as a wine to go with a barbecue, but – and it’s a big but – other than what your friends expect, which is generally a big, boisterous red. Admittedly that happens to be the type of wine that goes with a sweet, smoky, spicy barbecue sauce, the only element of barbecuing that really causes a problem. But not everything you grill is slathered with that.
What people expect to be drinking often gets in the way of what they might enjoy if they could open their mind to the possibility. A good example being red wine with cheese; in fact, white wine often goes much better, but cheese generally comes at the end of a meal when you don’t want to switch back to white. So in the interests of keeping your friends in their comfort zone, reds it is.
Personally I like a fresher, lighter red, like the Gaillac or the Curioso tempranillo in today’s pick, with my barbecue rather than a full-bodied one, but I know that’s not universal. Many of my mates (mainly male) who are predominantly red wine drinkers are malbec lovers, and a bit sniffy about wines that are under 14.5%. But the downside to 14.5% plus wines is that the outside temperature tends to accentuate the alcohol and make them taste hot and soupy. Barbecue wines should be a refreshing contrast to the heat and spice of the food – hence the popularity of a cold beer – so try and keep your reds in a cool box or give them a dip in an ice bucket or trough. (If any resident buffers question it, point them to the back label which will generally advise the wine should be served at 17-18C.)
It’s best to treat barbecuing like other more intense cooking methods, such as roasting or searing. The more char you have on a piece of meat or fish, the more spicy marinades and rubs, the more punchy accompanying salad dressings, the more robust your wine needs to be. Think rustic not refined, young and unoaked rather than mature and mellow. Summer wines, in other words.
Five light reds to serve at a barbecue
Granite Earth Swartland Red 2020 on offer at £6.50 Morrisons, 14%. An exuberant blend of red wine varieties from one of South Africa’s most exciting wine regions. Could handle a bit of spice.
Kleine Zalze Shiraz Cabernet Sauvignon 2020 £7.50 Tesco, 14.5%. Solidly reliable belter of a South African red. Good with a steak, too.
Taste the Difference Gaillac Rouge 2019 £8 Sainsbury’s, 13.5%. Appealing whoosh of wild berries for those who like a slightly lighter red. Pop it in the fridge for half an hour.
Curioso tempranillo Vinos Para Intrépidos 2020 £9.50 Somerset Wine Company, 13.5%. Lip-smackingly delicious new Spanish red for the “intrepid” among you.
Forage Supply Co ‘Caveman’ Barossa Valley Carignan 2021 £20 The Wine Society, 13.5%. Vibrant, young natural-ish Aussie red brimming with glorious ripe cherry fruit. Part of the profits go to help housing projects.
For more by Fiona Beckett, go to fionabeckett.substack.com
