Dolmades

Vine leaves wrapped tightly around a stuffing of rice, herbs (parsley, dill, mint), pine nut, currant, lemon, and olive oil. Most commonly served cold as meze.

Pairs Perfectly

Moschofilero from Mantinia, Greece. The floral aromatic Greek white meets dill and mint ingredient by ingredient, the dry mineral spine handles the lemon-cooked rice cleanly, and the regional logic is unbeatable.

Pairs Well

Grüner Veltliner Federspiel from the Wachau, Austria. White-pepper aromatics nod to vine leaf's faint bitterness, and the herbaceous green spine meets dill and mint precisely.

Riesling sec from Alsace, France. Dry Alsace Riesling brings high-acid mineral structure and gentle aromatics that meet the herb-rice interior without competing.

Avoid

Oaked whites — overwhelm the dill and mint; tannic reds — wrong against vine leaf and lemon; sweet wines — clash with savoury-citric profile; assertive aromatic whites — fight mint.

Failing That

A Picpoul de Pinet, Languedoc.

If All Else Fails

Sauvignon Blanc, Touraine.

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