Haggis

Haggis

Assuming haggis served with neeps and tatties, sometimes with a whisky cream sauce.

Haggis is rich, earthy and peppery, lamb offal and oats seasoned hard with black pepper and warm spice. The wine needs body and savoury depth for the offal, a peppery or spicy note to meet the seasoning, and fresh acidity for the fat. Delicate whites vanish, and very sweet, jammy reds sit oddly on something this savoury.

Pairs Perfectly. Rioja Reserva, Spain. Years in barrel and bottle give it leather, dried fruit and a spicy, savoury character that matches the earthy offal, with tannin already softened. It is widely found and modestly priced for its age.

Pairs Well. Blaufränkisch, Burgenland, Austria. Sour cherry and black pepper over fresh acidity, which picks up the pepper in the haggis.

Pairs Well. Shiraz, Barossa, Australia. Dense black fruit, spice and warmth, for haggis with a whisky cream sauce.

Worth Seeking Out

Mavrud from the Thracian Valley, Bulgaria. Dark, spiced and herbal with real grip, a natural partner to peppery offal.

Avoid

Delicate whites and sweet, jammy reds. The richness and pepper swamp a light white, and sweet fruit clashes with the savoury offal.

Failing That

A Côtes du Rhône Villages, France.

If All Else Fails

Malbec, Mendoza.

Want to be able to craft answers like this? The Vinealto Wine Coach takes you from the basics to advanced.