Biryani’s no light affair. The combination of tender meats or vegetables, basmati rice, and a deep, aromatic blend of spices makes it a tough contender for wine. Pair the wrong bottle and suddenly the spices turn bitter, the wine feels flat, or the whole thing just doesn’t work. Together with two friends (a wine importer and 3-Michelin-star head sommelier) we went on a quest to discover the ideal pairing for mutton biryani:
1. **Wine #1: Keigetsu Cel24 Junmai Daiginjo** I call this one rice on rice. This one’s all about aromatics. A clean, refreshing sake with an explosion of pineapple, mango and banana. With its complexity it’s designed to slice right through the richness of biryani and reset your palate after each mouthful. Was the winner in the pairing and such a great surprise. 2. **Wine #2: Les Bariolés Les Sables des Grès 2022** For this choice, we went full throttle – blazing acidity, slightly grippy tannins, deep fruit and umami flavours. We wanted to see if a more eccentric mutation of Chardonnay – Chardonnay Musqué – could complement the spices without disappearing into the complexity of the dish. Worked well – to a point. The body was not enough to carry the wine to the finish line. 3. **Wine #3: Domaine Geschickt Cadavre Exquis NV** Our wild card – a fascinating solera-blend of 4 different Pinots (Blanc, Gris, Noir and Auxerrois). Hints of residual sugar with a touch of spice. We were curious to see if its fruit-forward nature and gentle sweetness would balance out the heat of the biryani and create an unexpected pairing. Good pairing, but for people that don’t like overly rich wines, this may not be the sane choice.
wine-o-saur
Was this a chicken biryani? And from which region? More saucy or drier? Did you add raita? Did it include any dry fruit? There are so many variations on biryani that I’m having trouble visualizing this pairing, but cool experiment and nice notes nonetheless.
rnjbond
I have and had great success with it. I actually think red wine pairs far better with spicy Indian food than people respect. I’ve had paneer biryani with a Syrah and it worked well!
disco_cerberus
Robert Sinskey’s Abraxis
grumpygrumpybum
Love these suggestions!
wolfandthesheep31
Shiraz would be just fine since it’s known for those spicy notes. It should go well with biryani imo.
7 Comments
Biryani’s no light affair. The combination of tender meats or vegetables, basmati rice, and a deep, aromatic blend of spices makes it a tough contender for wine. Pair the wrong bottle and suddenly the spices turn bitter, the wine feels flat, or the whole thing just doesn’t work. Together with two friends (a wine importer and 3-Michelin-star head sommelier) we went on a quest to discover the ideal pairing for mutton biryani:
1. **Wine #1: Keigetsu Cel24 Junmai Daiginjo** I call this one rice on rice. This one’s all about aromatics. A clean, refreshing sake with an explosion of pineapple, mango and banana. With its complexity it’s designed to slice right through the richness of biryani and reset your palate after each mouthful. Was the winner in the pairing and such a great surprise.
2. **Wine #2: Les Bariolés Les Sables des Grès 2022** For this choice, we went full throttle – blazing acidity, slightly grippy tannins, deep fruit and umami flavours. We wanted to see if a more eccentric mutation of Chardonnay – Chardonnay Musqué – could complement the spices without disappearing into the complexity of the dish. Worked well – to a point. The body was not enough to carry the wine to the finish line.
3. **Wine #3: Domaine Geschickt Cadavre Exquis NV** Our wild card – a fascinating solera-blend of 4 different Pinots (Blanc, Gris, Noir and Auxerrois). Hints of residual sugar with a touch of spice. We were curious to see if its fruit-forward nature and gentle sweetness would balance out the heat of the biryani and create an unexpected pairing. Good pairing, but for people that don’t like overly rich wines, this may not be the sane choice.
Was this a chicken biryani? And from which region? More saucy or drier? Did you add raita? Did it include any dry fruit? There are so many variations on biryani that I’m having trouble visualizing this pairing, but cool experiment and nice notes nonetheless.
I have and had great success with it. I actually think red wine pairs far better with spicy Indian food than people respect. I’ve had paneer biryani with a Syrah and it worked well!
Robert Sinskey’s Abraxis
Love these suggestions!
Shiraz would be just fine since it’s known for those spicy notes. It should go well with biryani imo.
Gewurtz for me. Everytime