Wine and Pizza Pairings

This may sound like an unlikely match to many of you, but after you try out some of these pairings, I think you will have a change of heart!

I love a pizza that has high quality ingredients and isn’t filled with grease. White pizzas are a hit in our house, like a chicken and spinach pizza with white sauce. Get in my belly!

Here are a couple wine and pizza pairings that work really well together. If you aren’t in the mood for the traditional “beer and pizza”, try out one of these tasty match-ups.

Pizza and Wine Pairings

White Pizza: Try it with a Pinot Noir or Pinot Grigio. These wines are a little bit bolder and clean/crisp in flavor, which will balance out the heaviness of the cream sauce that most white pizzas can have. This Pacific Redwood “Organic”  Pinot Noir would be an excellent choice. If you really want to go out of the box and get fancy with your pizza meal, try a semi-sweet Champagne.

Pepperoni Pizza: California Zinfandel’s are a great choice with plain old, go-to pepperoni pizzas. They carry a lot of rich berry, cherry and plum notes, which pairs well with the spice from the pepperoni. Try this- Smoking Loon Old Vine Zinfandel.

Hawaiian Pizza: Since these types of pizzas are a little bit more on the sweeter side, with the typical toppings of Canadian bacon and pineapple, a good Riesling aids in bringing out the naturally sweet flavors in these topics even more.

Meat Lovers Pizza: The hearty flavors of pizzas topped with various types of meat calls for an equally as hearty wine. A Malbec hasa strong and somewhat of a peppery finish and compliments meat pizzas really well. It stands up to pizzas that are filled with steaks and sausages, especially. Cabernet Sauvignon’s are equally as full-bodied as meat pizzas tend to be in flavor.

Veggie Pizza: A lighter type of pizza calls for a lighter bodied wine. Sauvignon Blanc’s are usually very crisp, served cool and have a lot of acidity, which goes great with a classic veggie pizza. One of my favorites is 2011 Little Black Dress Sauvignon Blanc. It’s not only on the cheaper end in terms of pricing, it also has a great flavor that is fantastic with a lighter, vegetable-topped pizza.

Any Pizza With Tomato Sauce: Because of the acidity in tomatoes and in tomato sauce, a red wine with a medium depth and low acidity will pair well with it and really decrease this acidity. Syrahs, Cabernet Sauvignons and red blends are some great options. My favorite red wine blend is Dreaming Tree Crush Red Wine Blend.

Do you like wine and pizza? What’s your favorite combo?

Remember to come back every Wednesday for a new Wine Review or Wine Pairing:)

*Here’s to not always having to have beer with pizza*