Shellfish, iodine and brine, flavouring profile

Shellfish, iodine and brine, flavouring profile

Shellfish tastes of the sea, and the wine that suits a raw oyster is not the one that suits lobster in butter or prawns with garlic and chilli.

The compounds that matter. Bromophenols and dimethyl sulphide give shellfish its iodine and fresh sea smell, and a saline, mineral wine echoes them. The flesh is sweet and rich in glutamate, the source of savoury depth, which makes tannin taste harder, and the oils in shellfish turn tannin and oak metallic. Salt on the shell calls for acid, which keeps both the wine and the shellfish tasting fresh.

What it demands of a wine. High acid, a saline or flinty edge, and no oak or tannin, since both turn metallic against shellfish. As the cooking gets richer, with butter, cream or a grill, the wine needs more body and texture while keeping its acid. Loud, fruity aromatics fight the clean taste of the sea and are best left aside.

Seek

With raw and simply cooked shellfish, such as oysters, clams, mussels and cold crab, a lean, saline white such as Muscadet from the Loire or unoaked Chablis is the match, and so is a Manzanilla from Sanlúcar de Barrameda, whose light, salty tang meets the brine of oysters and clams. With lobster, scallops or shellfish in butter and cream, keep the acid but add body and texture with a Champagne, whose bubbles lift the butter, or a Verdicchio from the Marche, Italy, with its almond note and gentle weight. With grilled prawns, or shellfish cooked in tomato, garlic or a little chilli, a pale Provence rosé or an Albariño from Rías Baixas has the fruit and freshness to stand up to the stronger flavours.

Avoid

Oaked whites and any red with tannin, which turn metallic against shellfish. Strongly aromatic, fruity whites such as Gewürztraminer or Viognier with raw shellfish, where the perfume swamps the taste of the sea. Sweet or off dry wines with oysters, which lose the sharp, salty snap that makes the match.

Three to reach for. For oysters and raw or simply cooked shellfish, Muscadet, Loire, France. For lobster, scallops and shellfish in butter or cream, Champagne, France. For grilled prawns and shellfish in tomato, garlic or chilli, Albariño, Rías Baixas, Spain.