The Best Drink To Serve With Lobster Tails
For seafood lovers, lobster is often viewed as a delicacy. Despite its frequently hefty price tag, its chewy consistency provides a nuanced, fishy flavor that makes every bite worth savoring. While dipping lobster meat in melted butter and adding a squeeze of lemon juice is a popular combination, finding the right beverage to complement these flavors can take a bit more thought.
Typically, white wine is the ideal choice for most seafood dishes, because lighter meat has a delicate flavor profile that can easily be overpowered by stronger beverages like red wine or dark beer. The reason for deliberation, however, is that there are many different types of white wine. Knowing the best variety to pair with lobster tails will only serve to elevate your meal.
Chardonnay, in particular, is an excellent option for those who enjoy their lobster with butter or a decadent sauce. This is because the often dry, full-bodied nature of this still white wine can match lobster's richness while cutting through its fatty elements and providing a perfect palate cleanser.
Which chardonnay to choose
Chardonnay is historically made from green grapes that are grown in the Burgundy region of Eastern France. This wine is known for its subtle citrus aroma that complements lobster in a similar manner to lemon juice. These days, chardonnay grapes are grown more globally and can be transformed into various types of wine.
While the growing location and aging process can cause slight variations in flavor, Burgundy chardonnay is produced in a relatively cold climate. This increases its acidity and helps enhance the lobster's taste. Acid and citrus pair wonderfully with lobster tail, because the wine's natural sugars allow the lobster meat's elusive sweetness to shine through.
Alternatively, California chardonnay, which is grown in a warmer climate, has a much richer, almost buttery taste. It features a smoky element, too, as it's aged in oak barrels. This fermentation can also enhance the wine's sweetness, bring out notes of vanilla, and create more tropical fruit flavors. These qualities perfectly balance the decadence of heavier lobster dishes like pasta, lobster bisque, and lobster mac and cheese.
The options are nearly endless
Chardonnay is an exceptional white wine for your lobster dinner party because it can feature so many tasting notes. The way you cook your lobster tail can impact your dish's overall flavor, so it's helpful to understand the different types of white wine that will best accompany your cooking technique. If your lobster has smoky notes and a slight char from the barbecue, Grüner Veltliner is an excellent choice, as it contains notes of stone fruit and white pepper that add depth. It's also aged in oak barrels and bottled for years, creating deep, woody notes and complex flavors of spice and acidity to match.
Boiling or steaming lobster tails and serving them with lemon and butter helps retain their vibrant, fresh ocean flavor. For this technique, a traditional full-bodied chardonnay shines through — its richness parallels the butter, while the refreshing, acidic citrus notes blend well with the lemon. Similar types of sparkling white wine made from the same chardonnay grape variety are great go-tos for your lobster dinner.
If you're a fan of bubbly beverages, a Champagne, Pinot blanc, or Pinot gris can provide that light, zesty, fruity zing that's perfectly refreshing with your lobster. These sparkling white wines still have enough body and carbonation to hold their own when paired with various lobster recipes.