Wine with asparagus
White asparagus the Limburg way, with ham, egg and hollandaise, is one of the hardest dishes for wine. The vegetable itself is faintly bitter and sulphurous, the sauce is butter and the ham is salt. Red is out, oak is a mistake, and yet there is one region that solves this every spring.
Three styles that work
- 1
Pouilly-Fumé
Sauvignon Blanc from flint. The grape's green, herbal aroma mirrors the asparagus instead of fighting it, the acidity handles the hollandaise, and the smoky mineral tone from the silex soil is why you do not simply pick a Sancerre. No oak, young vintage.
- 2
Chablis, no oak
With asparagus and salmon or in a risotto you want something rounder than Sauvignon. Chablis is Chardonnay on limestone without barrel, taut and saline, with just enough body for the butter. A Premier Cru is fine, a Grand Cru with wood is not.
- 3
Fino with grilled green asparagus
Green asparagus off the grill, with olive oil, parmesan and perhaps a fried egg, is a different dish. Here the savoury, saline side of a fino fits: it takes the smoke, the cheese and the bitterness all at once, and nothing else does that for twelve euros.
Without alcohol
Alcohol-free Riesling or Sauvignon
Aromatic grapes survive having the alcohol removed; Chardonnay does not. So look for an alcohol-free Riesling or Sauvignon Blanc, dry, and serve it cold. The green tone remains, and that is exactly what asparagus needs.
Frequently asked questions
Why does wine often taste metallic with asparagus?
Asparagus contains sulphur compounds and asparagusic acid, and that combination has a reputation for making tannin and oak taste metallic and bitter. Hence: no red, no wood, but acidity and green aromas.
Does Grüner Veltliner work too?
Yes, and in Austria it is the default. Peppery, green and dry. I rank Pouilly-Fumé above it for the smoke, but a Grüner is never wrong.
No scores, but an opinion. The bottles I name I tasted myself; how each reached me is stated at the bottom of every review.