Smoked haddock

Smoked haddock

Assuming smoked haddock poached in milk or cream, served with a poached egg and mash or leeks.

Smoked haddock is salty, smoky and delicate, usually served with cream, egg or mash, so the wine needs high acidity, no oak and enough texture for the cream. Smoked fish and oak together taste metallic, and a smoky, struck match wine clashes with the egg. A clean, stony white rides over the smoke instead of adding to it.

Pairs Perfectly. Dry Riesling, Alsace, France. Stony, lime scented and high in acid, with a little more body than German dry Riesling, it cuts the cream, handles the egg and sits cleanly beside the smoke.

Pairs Well. Dry Furmint from Tokaj, Hungary. Firm, faintly smoky and quince scented, with the acidity for a rich, milky sauce.

Pairs Well. Manzanilla, Sanlúcar de Barrameda, Spain. Bone dry and salty, lighter than Fino, and at home beside smoked fish.

Worth Seeking Out

Dry Semillon from the Hunter Valley, Australia. Very light and lemony when young, and with a few years in bottle it turns toasty and honeyed, which suits smoked fish closely.

Avoid

Oaked whites and red wine. Smoked fish turns metallic against oak and tannin, and heavy wines swamp the delicate flesh.

Failing That

A Pinot Blanc from Alsace, France.

If All Else Fails

Trebbiano d'Abruzzo.

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