The Right Wines to Pair with Tricky Food

Dinner in your bathing suit, barefoot on the deck, farmstand produce that barely makes it to the fridge … Summer eating is casual, but the ingredients themselves aren’t always so easy. High-acid tomatoes, sweet grilled peaches, briny shellfish – these ingredients don’t always play nicely with whatever is already open.

When food gets tricky, the right wine can smooth it all out – highlighting the best parts of each bite without getting in the way. This guide focuses on six of summer’s most temperamental ingredients, with wine pairings that make the most of their quirks and keep the season’s best flavors front and center.

TOMATO

Why it’s a challenge: Tomatoes are high in acidity but also slightly sweet and deeply savory – a rare combination that can make many wines taste flat, bitter, or overly sharp. The brighter and fresher the tomato (think peak-season heirlooms), the more pronounced the acid. Cooked tomatoes add umami and a deeper, often more bitter flavor. Toss in vinegar-based dressings, garlic, or herbs like basil or oregano, and it becomes extremely difficult to pair wine.

Best bets: Look for wines with naturally high acidity, low to moderate tannins, and a savory or herbal note that can complement tomato-based dishes.

Provençal Rosé has the lift and herbal edge to handle raw tomatoes and simple salads.

Try: 2024 Fleur de Mer Rosé (Côtes de Provence, France)

Frappato or Dolcetto offer juicy fruit with low tannins, making them great with pizza, tomato sauces, or roasted tomatoes.

Try: 2020 Luigi Einaudi Dolcetto di Dogliani (Piedmont, Italy)

Lambrusco brings brightness, bubbles, and just enough fruit to play nicely with red sauce.

Try: 2023 Cleto Chiarli Lambrusco di Sorbara Secco Vecchia Modena Premium

Keep in mind: Avoid bold reds with lots of oak or tannin – they tend to clash with the acidity in tomatoes, making both the wine and the food taste off.

BASIL

Why it’s a challenge: Basil contains aromatic oils that can dominate a wine’s flavor – especially if the wine is too subtle or leans sweet. It is also intensely herbal and often paired with garlic, nuts, and cheese (in pesto, for example), all of which can compete with delicate wine styles. Raw basil can make wines taste bitter or grassy in the wrong context.

Best bets: Look for wines with herbal or green flavor profiles of their own. Matching like with like works well here.

Sauvignon Blanc (especially from the Loire or New Zealand) has natural herbal tones and the acid to cut through pesto or caprese.

Try: 2023 Saint Clair Dillons Point Sauvignon Blanc (Marlborough, New Zealand)

Vermentino is citrusy, slightly saline, and often comes with a touch of Mediterranean herbs – a natural pairing.

Try: 2023 Banfi “La Pettegola” Vermentino (Toscana IGT, Italy)

Grüner Veltliner has peppery freshness and works particularly well with basil in Asian-style dishes.

Try: 2023 Sohm & Kracher Gruner Veltliner (Austria)

Keep in mind: Don’t go oaky or rich – it muddies the herbal clarity of the dish. Stick with lean, aromatic whites with some zip.

CORN

Why it’s a challenge: Corn – especially when it’s fresh, grilled, or buttered – leans sweet and rich. That natural sweetness can make dry wines taste harsh or sour by contrast. And buttery preparations can overwhelm anything too lean or acidic. You need wines that can handle sweetness without going flabby and that have enough weight to match the texture.

Best bets: Seek wines with texture, some fruit or floral lift, and (depending on the prep) either a touch of sweetness or roundness.

Chenin Blanc has juicy fruit and gentle texture that works with grilled corn and butter.

Try: 2023 Denis Meunier Vouvray “Expression de Silex”

Unoaked Chardonnay (or lightly oaked Mâconnais) brings a roundness that complements corn without overwhelming it.

Try: 2023 Domaine Talmard Mâcon-Uchizy (Burgundy, France)

Skin-contact whites (orange wines) offer structure, spice, and grip that can be delicious with charred or elote-style corn.

Try: 2023 Gulp Hablo Orange Wine (Spain)

Keep in mind: Wines that are too light will get lost. But overly rich or creamy wines can make the pairing feel heavy. Aim for balance.

GRILLED PEACH

Why it’s a challenge: Grilling caramelizes the sugars in fruit, adding smoke and char that can throw off dry, linear wines. Add herbs, cheese, or vinaigrette to a grilled peach salad and suddenly you’ve got a complex flavor profile that needs a wine with both fruit and finesse.

Best bets: Wines with a touch of sweetness, bubbles, or fruit-forward energy will enhance grilled fruit without competing. Off-dry Riesling has acidity to cleanse the palate and sweetness to echo the fruit.

Try: 2024 Weingut Leitz Rheingau Riesling QbA Feinherb Trocken

Sparkling Rosé adds lift, texture, and berry notes – a natural with grilled stone fruit and creamy cheeses.

Try: 2020 Schramsberg Brut Rosé (North Coast, California)

Moscato d’Asti is low-alcohol, lightly sparkling, and gently sweet. Its floral aromatics and juicy stone fruit flavors make it an excellent match for grilled peaches, especially if you’re adding herbs, cheese, or a touch of balsamic.

Try: 2024 Elio Perrone Moscato d’Asti “Sourgal” (Piedmont, Italy)

Keep in mind: Bone-dry whites can taste sour next to grilled fruit. A hint of sugar or ripeness in the wine is a strength here, not a flaw.

SEAFOOD

Why it’s a challenge: Most seafood is delicate and can be easily overwhelmed by high alcohol, oak, or tannin. If it’s grilled, smoked, or dressed with lemon, that complicates things further – you need a wine with acidity, but not too much weight or intensity. Shellfish can also bring briny or iodine-like notes that clash with richer wines.

Best bets: Wines with saline notes, crisp acidity, and lower alcohol make the best pairings for summer seafood.

Muscadet is a classic with oysters, clams, or anything briny. It is dry, mineral-driven, and built for seafood.

Try: 2023 Domaine de la Pépière Muscadet Sèvre et Maine Sur Lie (Loire, France)

Albariño is citrusy and floral with a touch of salinity – excellent with shrimp, scallops, or grilled fish.

Try: Pedralonga Albariño “Serea” (Rías Baixas, Spain)

Champagne or other quality sparkling wines work with everything from lobster rolls to fried seafood thanks to their acidity and bubbles.

Try: NV Banfi Brut Metodo Classico (Piedmont, Italy)

Keep in mind: Avoid anything oaky, buttery, or too fruity. You want a wine that tastes like the ocean breeze – crisp and clean.

ASPARAGUS

Why it’s a challenge: Asparagus contains sulfur compounds that clash with many wines, especially reds and oaky whites. It’s grassy, bitter, and green – all traits that highlight any clumsiness in a wine. If it’s grilled, those compounds intensify. Many wines taste metallic or oddly sweet against asparagus unless they are chosen carefully.

Best bets: You need wines that echo the green flavors without being overwhelmed by them – high acid, no oak, and preferably a mineral or herbal backbone.

Grüner Veltliner is asparagus’s best friend. It is peppery, crisp, and green in all the right ways.

Try: 2023 Schloss Gobelsburg Grüner Veltliner (Kamptal, Austria)

Sancerre (Sauvignon Blanc) brings citrus, herbs, and flinty minerality – a great match for grilled or steamed asparagus.

Try: 2024 Kévin et Karine Lauverjat Sancerre Rosé “Moulin des Vrillères” (Loire, France)

Dry rosé can work in a pinch, especially if the asparagus is part of a composed dish (with egg, cheese, or seafood).

Try: 2023 Domaine Bart Marsannay Rosé (Burgundy, France)

Keep in mind: Most red wines are a no-go here. Stick to unoaked whites with nerve and a bit of texture.

From weekday lunches on the porch to drawn-out dinners by the bay, these wines take the guesswork out of pairing. You don’t need to micromanage the meal – just open something that plays well with others. The ingredients might be a little particular but the wine doesn’t have to be. With the right bottle, summer eating stays exactly how it should be: unfussy, generous, and easy to enjoy.

Please drink responsibly.