Why would a wine writer go to a seafood show? Probably because wine and fish go together really well, and not just because I had a craving for seafood that day…I think. Anyhow, while there, I decided to ask all the private chefs I ran into for their personal wine-pairings.
Pinot grigio seems to be the go-to wine for chefs working at the International Seafood Expo this year. Maybe it’s because pinot grigio is a wine that is pretty popular in the US, in general. I like to think that discerning palates notice that there’s the right amount of body, flavor and liveliness in a top pinot girgio to pair with delicate seafood and firm fish.
I had a lot of fun tasting the foods and talking with the overworked-but-kindly chefs on the Expo floor who were turning out hundreds of samples per hour for the (clearly starving) seafood professionals who roamed the show. There were pinot grigio-loving chefs at many of the booths including Ducktrap River, Alaskan Jack’s and Authentic Maryland Crab Cake Secret. But then I ran into Chef Owen Tilley at High Liner Foods who recommended a white Rioja with recipes like his seafood empanadas and award-winning pulled bbq salmon: excellent choice, Chef.
