Wine for veggies & vegans

Are you cooking for your vegetarian friends? Then you have to think twice—not once—about the wine. Because there is wine that pairs with vegetarian food and wine that suits vegetarians. Finding a suitable veggie wine is already quite difficult. But strangely enough, serving one without animal ingredients is even trickier.

For a good vegetarian wine-and-food pairing, you naturally think about the flavor first. How do you choose that one good vegetable wine? But in many wines—seemingly plant-based, because they are made from grape juice—animal products are used without you realizing it. And no matter how delicious it may be, a vegetarian or vegan might be seriously put off by something like that.

Cow’s blood in wine
Those animal products (such as gelatin, isinglass, casein, or albumin) are used in fining, or filtering, wine. This process removes organic particles and protein molecules, resulting in clear wine that keeps better. In some cases—even worse!—cow’s blood is used, although this has not been permitted in European wines for some time. Isinglass (dried fish particles), casein (milk protein), and albumin (egg white) may still be acceptable to some vegetarians, but gelatin (mammalian cartilage and bones) is definitely a no-go.

Do you want to be completely sure? Then choose a biodynamic or natural wine (vin nature) with a vegan logo.

So if you want a truly vegetarian meal, serve at least an organic wine. It is usually fined with bentonite, a clay-like mineral substance that works in the same way. Do you want to be completely sure? Then choose a biodynamic or natural wine (vin nature) with a vegan logo. These days, most organic shops stock good wines. Many wine shops and even supermarkets have also added organic wine to their range.

Best with vegetables
But whether it is vin nature or not, it still has to taste good with your vegetarian dish. Just as with meat or fish, you should consider the main ingredient of your meal, as well as the sauce and cooking method. Fresh, crunchy, and raw vegetables call for a light wine. A lively one with a pleasant acidity, such as a Sauvignon Blanc or a Riesling Kabinett. Vegetables with an earthy flavor, which are often also boiled, baked, or grilled, call for different styles. Specific cooking methods often make fuller-bodied wines taste better.

And with vegetarian food, just as with meat and fish: when in doubt, simply open a good bottle of bubbly.

A classic Parmigiana di melanzane (eggplant baked with Parmesan) is—as is often the case with meat—best with a full-bodied red. Something robust also tastes good with grilled vegetables, such as a beautiful Pinot Noir. Or a full-bodied white, such as an oak-aged Chardonnay or Viognier.
And with vegetarian food, just as with meat and fish: when in doubt, simply open a good bottle of bubbly.

DELICIOUS VEGGIE WINE TIPS:

Roasted cauliflower with grilled halloumi
Verdejo, Pinot Grigio, Zweigelt, Tempranillo

Parmigiana di melanzane
Nero d’Avola, Syrah, Malvasia Nera, full-bodied rosé

Risotto with mushrooms and Parmesan
Soave, Gavi, Pinot Noir, Nebbiolo

Sweet potato with peanut gratin
Oak-aged Chardonnay, fruity Merlot

Mexican bean soup with tomato
Fruity Sauvignon Blanc, Sangiovese

Stuffed portobello
White Côtes du Rhône, Dolcetto, Nebbiolo, Pinot Noir

Ratatouille
Dry rosé, young Rioja, Sangiovese

Quiche
Rosé, Grüner Veltliner, Sylvaner