Merlot and Food Pairing
Ingredients and Styles
Merlot lies somewhere between Pinot Noir and Cabernet Sauvignon in its wine and food affinity. Ample, Cabernet-style Merlot wines should be considered as Cabernet Sauvignons and matched accordingly. Those which are supremely soft and easy on the palate can be treated the same way as Pinot Noir, especially with respect to compatibility with fish. I love the flexibility of Merlot with salmon, for example.
The intrigue of Merlot lies in its signature array of flavors: green, herbal, earthy, and mushroom. I enjoy Merlot with dishes containing olives (a ragout of lamb with black olives and fresh thyme), mushrooms (just about anything!) and herbal treatments of meat (marinades or sauces). Vegetables that can be hard on Cabernet, including fennel, eggplant, radicchio, chard, and broccoli, can pair well with Merlot's green character. Ensure that the Merlot is not fat and sweet or too heavily oaked to make those vegetable-based matches sing. Opting for a leaner, European style example (French or Italian) will stack the deck in your favor.
Merlot's early ripening gives it lighter weight and inherently higher acidity than Cabernet Sauvignon, which in turn give it greater flexibility at the table. In addition to the standard red-meat pairings, for which Merlot and Cabernet are both excellent, Merlot is a wonderful partner for tuna, salmon, and even certain treatments of prawns or scallops (for example, wrapped in roasted or grilled bacon or prosciutto). As with Cabernet, for aged and developed bottles of Merlot, simpler recipes, which allow the juiciness of the dish to fill in any cracks left by the maturing of the wine, work best.
The chart below is a recommended guide to general pairing ideas for Merlot. There are no mandated rules. Feel free to be adventurous and creative while being thoughtful and aware of the grape’s inherent personality.
| Wine Style | Ingredients | Cuisines + Cooking Methods |
|---|---|---|
| General | Base your ingredient choice on whether the Merlot is closer to a Pinot Noir or a Cabernet Sauvignon Avoid strongly-flavored + blue-veined cheeses Avoid delicate and subtle dishes Avoid spicy dishes |
Match weight of dish with wine |
| Young, light-framed, minimal oak if any | Pinot Noir-like wine so fish, such as tuna, salmon, and even prawns or scallops Sour or sharp ingredients: mild citrus, green vegetables, onion and garlic, tomatoes. |
Prawns or scallops wrapped in roasted or grilled bacon or prosciutto Dishes with raw or lightly cooked onion and garlic |
| Above with more herbal notes | Fennel, eggplant, radicchio, chard, and broccoli | Add butter or another protein (such as nuts) to vegetables Roast vegetables |
| Above with more earthy, mushroom notes | Olives Mushrooms Fresh tart herbs (tarragon and thyme) |
Dishes containing olives, e.g. ragout of lamb with black olives and fresh thyme Mushroom any which way! Meat in herbal marinades or sauces |
| Oak-aged (younger), Old World style – moderate tannin and alcohol | Meat with herbs | Smoking and plank roasting Grilling Incorporate fresh herbs into the heat source e.g. add a branch of rosemary to a fire! |
| Oak-aged (younger), New World style – fruit-forward, moderate tannins | Meat with berries (fresh or reconstituted dried cherries, cranberries, prunes, or dark raisins) Meat with yoghurt or pomegranate marinade |
Marinades with tart flavors, such as yoghurt, and not-too-sweet fruit extracts like pomegranate Savory dish recipes using berries Richer dishes such as stews, daubes |
| Oak-aged, older | Keep food simple – allow wine to show Red meat: Cuts to be cooked rare |
Straightforward dished of suitable weight and style Red meat cooked “blue” (i.e. exceedingly rare) Beef stew, uncomplicated roast, plainly grilled veal, or lamb chop |
Merlot goes beautifully with grilled and charred foods, so feel free to light up the grill! As with Cabernet, smoking and plank-roasting will highlight the oakier components of an oak-aged wine. Marinades with sharper flavors that will be echoed in a dish (yogurt, tart herbs such as tarragon and thyme, or not-too-sweet fruit extracts like pomegranate) are a great platform for Merlot because of their higher acidity levels.
Food Pairing Guidelines
Wine Profile
Light-bodied and with lower tannins, these wines are closer in style to a Pinot Noir.
Cooking Methods and Ingredients
Salmon, prawns, tuna, and scallops can all be magic with Merlot, especially if prepared with meat, such as pancetta, prosciutto, or Spanish jamón. Highlight the flavor of the wine in the dish: If the wine features more herbal notes, hard-to-pair vegetables such as fennel, eggplant, radicchio, chard, and broccoli can work well with Merlot's green character. Make sure to prepare your vegetable dish using some fat and/or protein. To match a wine that has an earthier profile, pair it with dishes featuring mushrooms or olives.
Wine Profile
Moderate oak and tannin, with earthy notes
Cooking Methods and Ingredients
Certain Merlots from slightly cooler climates and terroirs feature earthier flavors. This genre of reds allows increased play with fresh herbs, wild or dried mushrooms, and sharp vegetables, such as eggplant, zucchini, swiss chard and escarole. With grilled or smoked items, incorporate fresh herbs into the heat source to pick up on the same elements in the wine. It's amazing what a branch of rosemary can add to a fire!
Wine Profile
Rich, lots of fruit, moderate tannin
Cooking Methods and Ingredients
The texture of fuller-bodied Merlot demands thicker dishes, so rich stews, daubes, and other long-braised viscous dishes are naturals. Any recipe prepared with fresh or reconstituted dried cherries, cranberries, prunes, or dark raisins can be sublime, as these ingredients resonate with core flavors in the wine.
Wine Profile
These wines have virtually always been matured in oak.
Cooking Methods and Ingredients
With a mature Merlot, it's best to keep the food simple and really allow the wine to shine. Feature straightforward dishes of a suitable weight and style: a simple beef stew, an uncomplicated roast, or a plainly grilled veal or lamb chop to frame a developed Merlot.
Pairing Pointers
Merlot works well:
- With an array of sour or sharp ingredients: mild citrus, green vegetables, raw or slightly cooked onion and garlic, and tomatoes. With mushrooms and fresh herbs, Merlot is even more at home with these earthy ingredients than Cabernet Sauvignon.
- With some fish and shellfish. Salmon, prawns, tuna, and scallops can all be magic with Merlot, especially if prepared with cured meats, such as pancetta, prosciutto, or Spanish jamón.
- With a wide array of dishes. Because of its multitude of styles, Merlot offers great flexibility at the table.
- With berry fruits. Any recipe prepared with fresh or reconstituted dried cherries, cranberries, prunes, or dark raisins can be sublime, as these ingredients resonate with core flavors in the wine. With grilled or smoked items. Incorporate fresh herbs into the heat source to pick up on the same elements in the wine. It's amazing what a branch of rosemary can add to a fire!
Merlot does not work well:
- When the wine style doesn't fit the food: The downside of Merlot's diversity is that occasionally the wrong style can be selected for a dish. Match food weights with wine intensities. While Merlot’s higher acidity and less ample body make it a more flexible option than Cabernet when it comes to pairing with strong cheeses, Merlot still shouldn't be matched with strongly flavored or blue-veined cheeses.
- With delicate and subtle dishes: Like Cabernet, most Merlot-based wines are just too bold for lighter dishes.
- With very spicy or fiery foods: Capsaicins heighten the perception of alcohol in the wine while accentuating the bitter and astringent nature of the tannins.
- With dishes that have no fat, protein, or texture, such as delicately flavored risottos, pastas, or steamed vegetables. These absences can again make the wine seem harsher.