Best Wines To Pair With Fish & Chips

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Best Wines With Fish & Chips

Forget vinegar, Embrace salt

Love dousing your fish and chips with salt and vinegar? Well… we’ve got both good and bad news.

Salt is a wine-friendly food component. It enhances flavours, brings out a wine’s fruity notes, and creates a balance with your dish – so the good news is you can have your fish and chips as salty as you like.

The bad news? Vinegar is the enemy of most wines - so it could be worth skipping it altogether to prevent your pairing becoming overly acidic and losing its delicate balance.

Why red wines are tricky

When it comes to pairing wine with your food, it’s of course all down to your personal preference.

However, when enjoying fish and chips, it’s often better to avoid red wine, especially robust reds like Cabernet Sauvignon or Shiraz. The full body and tannins of red wines often completely overpowers the delicate flavours of the fish and can clash with the batter.

It's also worth staying clear of lighter reds like Pinot Noir and Beaujolais, as these wines can struggle to complement fish and chips.

For guaranteed pairing success, pair your fish and chips with delicate and acidic white, sparkling, or rosé wines.

Sparkling wines

Champagne

We know what you’re thinking. Champagne with fish and chips? It’s definitely not the most obvious match. But with it’s dry, high acidity and delightful effervescence, Champagne cuts through the fat and richness of the batter with ease, refreshing the palate with each sip.

Plus, those delicious and subtle brioche notes complement fish and chips perfectly.

English Sparkling wine

Like Champagne, English Sparkling wine has vibrant acidity and fine bubbles that cleanse the palate. It’s made using the same traditional method as Champagne – the same method used to make Cava and Crémant. English Sparkling wine brims with crisp green apple and citrus flavours that enhance the fresh flavours of the fish.

Why not try: Wyfold English Sparkling Brut, award-winning fizz from Barbara Laithwaite's Oxfordshire estate that can now be found in Michelin-starred restaurants!

Harvest at Wyfold Vineyard

Dry white wines

Sauvignon Blanc

Crisp, dry Sauvignon Blanc brightens the flavours of fish and chips because of its zesty acidity, green apple and citrus notes. This can be a great wine style to match if you’re enjoying your fish and chips with punchy tartare sauce. I’d recommend Kiwi Sauvignon or Sancerre.

Why not try: Black Stump Sauvignon Blanc - You’ve enjoyed our best-selling Black Stump Aussie red. Now meet its sibling - a zippy-fresh Sauvignon Blanc. Ideal as a glass on its own or with dishes from seafood to spicy noodle stir fry.

Chardonnay

Chardonnay is an incredibly versatile style, with apple and citrus flavours that compliment fish and chips without overpowering it. This can be a great wine to if you’re enjoying mushy peas alongside your fish and chips.

If you’re looking for unoaked Chardonnay, we’d recommend Chablis. If you’re looking for something that’s lightly oaked, go for a California Chardonnay.

Rosé

Rosé wines work wonderfully with an array of dishes – one of them being fish and chips.

Because of rosé’s acidity, it cleanses your palate between each bite. Not only that, but the subtle fruity flavours found in rosé contrast to the savouriness of the fish and chips. It's great versatility also makes rose a great partner to pair with various sides alongside your main dish.

Try a Provençal rosé for a crisp, elegant match, or Spanish Rosado if you’re adding "stronger" sides like curry sauce or mushy peas.

Why not try: L'Épiphanie Côtes de Provence Rosé - a fine Provence rosé from an estate founded in the 12th century, ranked among the very finest by Decanter.