What wine to drink with scallops?

The Saint-Jacques, named after the pilgrims on their way to Santiago de Compostela and believed to bring good luck, is a marine mollusc.

 

All you need to know about wine and scallops

? Shellfish is most often fished at sea, with specialized boats called coquilliers, and fishing is only permitted from October 1st to May 15th.
Gustatively speaking, its flesh is delicate and tender, its taste marine, iodized and fine. That's why it's so important to choose the right wine, so as not to alter the taste of the fish.
Whatever the recipe, dry white wines are a must. The sweetness may be too strong and overpower the shell, and red wines may do the trick if they are very light and delicate.

 

 

For scallops with mushrooms 

? For scallops with mushrooms, we're going to concentrate on the mushrooms. We already know that you need a delicate dry white and now we're going to look for the association with the mushroom. On forestry aromas chardonnay can be interesting. Slightly matured wines bring out notes of white truffles and mushrooms, which recall the aromas of the dish.
We recommend a chardonnay de Burgundy a minimum of 4-5 years to ensure a perfect match.

 

 

Scallops with lemongrass and vegetable risotto

? This time we have a more Mediterranean recipe. The name of the dish suggests freshness on the palate, so choose a dry, lively white wine to match the style of the dish.
This time, there are several options open to you, if you love the Rhône Valley of the Crozes-Hermitage or Saint-Joseph white will be very interesting. Opt for cuvées with a good Marsanne base, a grape variety that gives lots of citrus and mineral aromas.
You can also choose wines from Provence, which can sometimes have vermentino or the rolle on the inside, these two grapes offer minty nuances that can enhance the dish's iodized notes. The idea is to combine a wine with a fresh, light aroma with the marine flavors of the dish to create a harmonious taste experience.

 

Scallops with cream and curry sauce

? For lovers of slightly spicy dishes, scallops with curry cream will surprise you.
Slightly spicy scallops are more powerful and richer on the palate, so you'll need a white with character or a supple but peppery red.
For white wine, we recommend a Alsace white wine. A Gewurztraminer with little residual sugar will be interesting with its sweet spice finish, a Riesling very mineral with its romantic empires notes will also manage to balance with the curry.
For red wine, a Syrah will be fine. Take a vin de pays or a rhodanian hill with winemakers who prefer to work the grapes without the wood, and you'll get a light, supple red with spicy aromas.

 

 

With Grandma's recipe for scallops

? We've all eaten a scallop in cream sauce with mushrooms that grandma used to make for Christmas.
This recipe is very similar to our first food-and-wine pairing, but generally more flavorful.
The key is to find a wine that matches the cream, i.e. a dry wine but not too dry, and also matches the richness of the dish, i.e. a highly aromatic wine.
Visit chenin !! This grape variety is emblematic of Loire whites such as Chinonthe Saumuror the Savennières, they give dry but full-bodied wines (like a Chardonnay), very mineral with notes of juicy fruit, slightly jammy. The perfect combo!

You now have all the keys you need to select the right bottle for your scallop pairing. We haven't talked about vintage in these pairings, so you need to play the freshness card, except when you select a Chardonnay for its tertiary aromas.

Very good tasting and see you soon.