Intro
So you are looking for a chicken and wine pairing right? What’s the problem? “Everyone” knows that the right wine to serve with chicken is white. Well, there are two problems with that theory. Number one, it’s too general. A sweet Riesling and a dry Roussanne are very different wines, so trying to generalize on the right wine with chicken makes no sense whatsoever. The second problem…”everyone” is wrong. Have you ever tasted chicken with no seasoning or sauce? Pretty bland right? It’s about as neutral a flavor as you will find with any meat. OK, if some one actually serves you unseasoned chicken, you can open a bland, non-descript white wine and it will probably pair ok but it really wouldn’t be too appealing.

Chicken and wine pairings have less to do with the chicken and more to do with how the chicken is prepared. Think of chicken as a blank canvas waiting to carry an artist’s vision, who in this case is a chef. Still don’t believe me? Try this test. Cook two chicken breasts…one just seasoned with salt and pepper and the other liberally seasoned with Cajun spices and then topped with a bold BBQ sauce. Now open a mild white wine and try it with the lightly seasoned piece. Odds are it will work pretty well. Now take a couple of bites of the other piece and then try the wine. Odds are, the wine will taste so mild, that you might as well be drinking water. Chicken and other mild meats have different rules than stronger flavored ones. Once you know the guidelines, it’s a piece of cake to make a good chicken and wine pairing so we’ve distilled them down into two easy to remember rules.

Basic Rules
Rule number 1: When pairing chicken with wine, it’s what accompanies the chicken that is most important. Match the wine to the sauce or seasoning and you’ll have a perfect wine and chicken pairing.

Rule number 2: If the chicken is cooked with wine, then serve the same wine with the meal.

That’s it. Pretty simple right? Now…if some one knowingly says, “I always serve white wine with chicken”, you have a couple of choices. You can walk away secure in the knowledge that they are clueless or you can laugh and point at them and impart your newfound wisdom. We recommend number two so we can finally put and end to the most common misconception about pairing wine and food. With that in mind, we’ve presented a examples of the right wine to serve with chicken.

Suggested Food Pairings

Grilled Chicken

This grilled chicken recipe with oregano has a tart flavor that is nicely complimented by the crisp flavor of the Pinot Grigio or Albarino.

Cru Wine Company Pinot Grigio
Vino Noceto Pinot Grigio
Fenestra Pinot Grigo
Cru Wine Company Albarino

Roasted Chicken

Roasted Chicken is an American mainstay and one of these wines a great accompaniment. Try a  dry Riesling or Sauvignon Blanc, assuming that you like either of these wines of course.  I can’t believe that I actually recommended a Sauvignon Blanc for anything other than taking up space unnecessarily in your fridge but in this case, it is one of the classic wines to accompany this dish. If you are like me and feel that drinking most Sauv Blancs is only slightly preferable to a root canal, go with the Riesling.  The few that we’ve recommended are good examples and some of the few Sauv Blancs we enjoy   Also, the two wines listed with the grilled chicken recipe presented above will work nicely as well.

Westbrook Wine Farm Riesling
Tanis Vineyard Sauvingon Blanc
Cuda Ridge Sauvignon Blanc

Chicken Piccata

This classic northern Italian dish is normally done with veal in its homeland but the US has embraced the chicken version. It’s one of my favorite chicken dishes but my wife hates it so I don’t make it too often. It’s tart and savory and is great with wine. This recipe calls for a dry white wine. I recommend a crisp Chardonnay that is not overly oaked or buttery.

Burrell School Chardonnay
Silver Mountain Chardonnay
Satori Cellars Winery Chardonnay

Coq Au Vin (yes its chicken)

Coq Au Vin is chicken stewed in a red Burgundy wine which gives it a rich savory flavor. In the US, red Burgundy means Pinot Noir. It takes a while to cook but it if you like meats simmered in wine, this is one of the “go to” dishes.

Thomas Fogarty Pinot Noir*
Wrath Pinot Noir*
Sarah’s Vineyard Pinot Noir*
* Note that all of these wineries produce multiple Pinot Noirs.  Any of their offerings will pair nicely with Coq Au Van.

Chicken Cacciatore

Made all over Italy and in many different ways, Chicken Cacciatore provides a different take on a classic Italian red sauce with meat. This is a good all purpose recipe and goes great with a Sangiovese, the main wine grape in Italy’s famous Chiantis.

Solis Winery Sangiovese
Borjon Winery Sangiovese
Lorimar Estate Sangiovese (Vivace)

BBQ Chicken

I suppose we had to end with the quintessential American Chicken dish. BBQ chicken is served all over the US. From spring to fall (even in the winter for those of us lucky enough to live where we can BBQ all year long), this is always a favorite. The classic American feast goes great with the closest thing we have to a classic American wine – Zinfandel (yes, we know its actually from Croatia originally but no one has embraced Zin like the US).

Satori Cellars Winery Zinfandel
Borjon Winery Zinfandel
Domenico Winery Zinfandel
Les Chenes Estate Vineyard Zinfandel

So there you have it…six different chicken and wine pairings and only three of them are with white wines but all pare nicely complimented by the wines we’ve suggested.

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