And by paté I’m thinking of rough country patés and terrines like a paté de campagne rather than fish patés or vegetarian patés which I’ll tackle separately. The sort that you might take on a picnic or eat in a wine bar.
Given that most patés contain a fair amount of fat you need a wine with some acidity. That could be white but personally I’m always drawn to rosé or a light, juicy red with the sort of bright berry fruit that complements paté perfectly, especially when served cool. Here are my top choices:
- Beaujolais
The best wine bar none with charcuterie, paté included. I wouldn’t go for the cheapest examples but they don’t have to be a cru Beaujolais like a Morgon either.
- Inexpensive red burgundy
I say red burgundy rather than Pinot Noir because I’m looking for acidity rather than sweetness. Nothing too grand – something like a Chorey-les-Beaune or even basic Bourgogne from a good producer
- Loire reds like Saumur, Bourgeuil, Chinon and Anjou (as in this pairing)
Lightly chilled Cabernet Franc is great with paté
Rustic south-west French wines like Marcillac and Fronton – heavens, even a simple young Bordeaux
- Valpolicella
No reason why France should have the monopoly on wine pairings. Its bright cherry fruit is lovely with pork
- Mencia from the Bierzo region of north-west Spain – one of my new favourite Spanish grape varieties
- Young syrah/shiraz – preferably from a natural wine producer like Hervé Souhaut
- Southern French rosé – again I pick this as opposed to fruitier rosés because it’s dry. And rosé always seems the perfect picnic wine
- Chablis – good with ham so generally good with paté too
- Dry – or even sweet – oloroso sherry
Surprisingly good with richer game patés and terrines
And finally – not a wine but a surprisingly good pairing – gin!
Because of the botanicals, especially juniper. Again particularly good with a game paté
By: FIONA BECKETT
***Grabbed from: https://www.matchingfoodandwine.com/news/pairings/10_good_wine_pairings_with_pat/