Expert advice from sommeliers around the world on what they are serving and drinking this blissful season.
With winter well and truly behind us, oenophiles are swapping out robust reds which pair well with warming casseroles and opting for fragrant wines that resemble the very essence of spring: fresh, fruity and refreshing.
Spring has indeed sprung and many oenophiles surely have already uncorked their favourite sparkling brut or champagne, tested out fruity roses and even dabbled into organic orange wines (whether you are a fan or not!). However, if you are thinking of being more adventurous this spring, here is some expert advice from sommeliers around the world on what they are serving and drinking this blissful season.
Le Chiberta (Paris, France)
What are you drinking this spring?
We recommend a light and fruity white wine. Faune du Moulin de Gassac IGP Pays de l'Hérault. A very fine wine that goes well with fish, shellfish and white meat. It is a 50% Viognier and 50% Chardonnay, a very nice balance with a nice length in the mouth.
Recommended food pairing?
You can accompany it with dishes from our spring menu, for example Langoustine, Caviar Rova Impérial, nasturtiums, celery and on the quail, braised endives.
Restaurant Project, Gothenburg, Sweden
What are you drinking for spring?
Champagne, Riesling, Chardonnay but more specifically Riesling Kabinett Trocken 2018 from Sybille Kuntz, I really like the young fruity fresh style for spring.
Recommended food pairing?
I pair it with a Sashimi of Hamachi with a pure on mint and lime together with some compressed seaweed. It makes a nice combination with the freshness in both wine and food. Perfect for spring
Džiaugsmas, Vilnius, Lithuania
What are you drinking this spring?
In Lithuania we have very long and harsh winters, so naturally, when the weather gets warmer and spring comes, you want something light and funky to start celebrating the warm season and life. For this case, I am always sticking with pet nat. Spring is a wonderful time not only for having nice warm weather, but we also get more local vegetables and lighter, more earthy dishes that you can enjoy with white natural wines, that have a bit more acidity, but at the same time have a bit more complexity in it. If we talk about Džiaugsmas I really like to start dinner with Weinhof Haider Jung&Sexy Pet nat - it is light with very funky bubbles and tastes like cherries and it almost says “that the weather is getting better.”
Recommended food pairing?
In Džiaugsmas we change the menu very often, because we work with eco farms and at the moment we have a cheese crisp, beef tartare, cheese cream dish which I recommend best paired with Lise & Bertrand Jousset Exile rose petillant to elevate the starters, notes of strawberry, cream and light acidity helps to highlight the starters even more.
Bellevue Gstaad Hotel, Gstaad, Switzerland
What are you drinking this spring?
I like to drink fresh white wines and wines with lots of purity and freshness for Spring and at the moment my favourite is Carthology, Chris Alheit 2021.The cuvée is composed of rare and extraordinary parcels of mature dryland bushvines, of heritage grapes, namely Chenin Blanc and Sémillon. These grapes have been planted in the Cape for centuries. It is very pure and has no “extra weight”. Otherwise, I am also a big fan of Alsace Grand Cru Engelberg Riesling, Mélanie Pfister 2020 too this season. This house offers a range of a very good level, with a lot of purity, and gives the opportunity to discover the Engelberg, this grand cru meaning "the hillside of angels". This dynamic young woman is also at the initiative of the Divines d'Alsace, a regional association bringing together women in wine.
Recommended food pairing?
Both of these wines work well with greens like a combination of fava beans, asparagus, morels - all ingredients we find in season during spring. From working with my chefs on food pairings, I would recommend a dish consisting of langoustines and sweetbreads, parsley roots and morels.
Lausanne Palace, Lausanne, Switzerland
What are you drinking?
Specifically to our new restaurant, Matcha Picchu which is Nikkei-style cuisine where two cultures come together, we decided to not pair only local Swiss wine but gained inspiration from the menu created by our chef. I recommend a white wine such as Sauvignon blanc Intipalka from Valle de Ica and for red wines, this season Carmenère from Valle de Aconcagua is a good choice and goes very well with our famous dish, Assado des tiera.
Recommended food pairing?
The Sauvignon Blanc matches perfectly with our chef’s Ceviche el traditional with the wine accentuating all the freshness from the dish, as well as adding an exotic note to the pairing - it goes perfectly with the coriander and yellow pepper used to make our chef;s signature dish.
SAGA and Crown Shy, New York City, USA
What are you drinking for Spring?
For spring I typically drink a fair amount of coastal white wines, light-bodied crunchy reds with herbaceous notes as the weather starts to warm up and spring vegetables like peas and asparagus start to come into play. I had a fantastic wine from the Azores recently that really stood out to me as an excellent companion for spring vegetables - 2019 Insula Vinus Verdelho. This is 100% Verdelho coming from the western coast of Pico in the Azores. This wine is aged for about two years, so there is a fair amount of weight and texture to this wine, but there's also a fair amount of salinity given the proximity to the ocean.
Recommended food pairing?
At Crown Shy we have a dish with white asparagus, snow peas, stracciatella and crispy chicken skin that I particularly love this wine with because of its salinity, ripe fruit character, and slight herbaceousness.
