Donburi

Donburi

Assuming a Japanese rice bowl topped with beef and onion, chicken and egg, or breaded pork, simmered in a sweet soy and dashi broth.

Donburi is savoury, gently sweet and full of umami from soy and dashi, with soft rice and often egg. Umami makes tannin taste harsher and more bitter, so the wine needs soft tannin or none, fresh acidity and a little ripe fruit to match the sweet soy. Big, oaky reds turn bitter and metallic against it.

Pairs Perfectly. Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, Oregon, USA. Red cherry, a little earth and silky, low tannin with fresh acidity, ripe enough for sweet soy and gentle with beef or pork.

Pairs Well. Riesling, Clare Valley, Australia, dry. Lime and green apple on bright acidity, clean against egg and chicken versions, and easy to find for little money.

Pairs Well. Cru Beaujolais, Fleurie, France. Red berry and violet with almost no tannin, light and fresh beside rice and soy.

Worth Seeking Out

Schiava from Alto Adige, Italy. Pale and light with cherry, almond and very soft tannin, a red that umami cannot make harsh.

Avoid

Big, tannic, oaky reds. Umami makes tannin harsh and oak turns bitter against soy.

Failing That

A Pinot Noir, Central Otago, New Zealand.

If All Else Fails

Sauvignon Blanc, Marlborough.

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