How to Pair Vegan Dishes & AJA Red Wines
Who says vegan dishes and fine wine don’t go together? At AJA Vineyards, several of our full-bodied red wines pair beautifully with plant-based dishes. The trick is knowing how to match the dark fruit flavors of our wines with the bitter, sweet, salty, and fatty notes of vegan cuisine.
Salt, Fat, Acid & Spice
Wine Folly’s article on pairing bold red wines with vegetarian and vegan food lays out a few useful guidelines. When planning a vegan meal, it helps to think of wine as an ingredient, one that needs to work with all the plant-based flavors on the plate. Red wine tends to run bold and low in pH, and its dry, tannic structure acts like a protein scraper on the tongue. That means vegan dishes rich in protein, tofu, tempeh, beans, or soy, help balance the wine’s acidity.
The wine’s fruit-forward character also pairs well with nutty ingredients like mushrooms, nuts, and rich oils. Seasonings such as shallot, cumin, fennel, and paprika add intensity to a dish, matching the boldness of wines like our Cabernet or Syrah.
If a dish leans naturally bitter, think kale, broccoli rabe, or radicchio, it helps to soften that with something sweet. Maple syrup or candied pecans work well, letting their sweetness counter the tartness of the wine.
It’s best to avoid pairing red wine with acidic ingredients like lemon or lime unless the dish also carries a good amount of fat, lemon works fine alongside red wine when it’s balanced by something rich, like pasta.
AJA Red Wines and Vegan Pairings
One well-balanced example: lion’s mane mushroom steak over polenta, paired with our Syrah from our Malibu Coast estate vineyards. The tempeh in this dish works well as the protein element, while olive oil and mushroom add an earthy intensity that matches the boldness of the Syrah. Rosemary, sage, garlic, balsamic reduction, and red pepper flakes all help balance the wine’s acidity, and together the dish comes together into one harmonious plate.
With a little effort, and a bottle from our selection of red wines, anyone can put together a delicious, well-balanced vegan pairing.
Cheers,
Jordan Perrotti