Spanakopita

Filo pastry pie filled with spinach, feta, dill, parsley, spring onion, and egg, baked until the layers crisp into shattering shards on top and the filling stays moist underneath. The signature is the green-herb depth of spinach-and-dill set against feta's salt-tang, with the buttered filo adding pastry richness.

Pairs Perfectly

Assyrtiko from Santorini, Greece. The volcanic mineral salinity meets the feta brine, the bone-dry electric acid cuts through the layered pastry fat cleanly, and the citrus-mineral profile sits alongside dill and parsley without competing.

Pairs Well

Riesling sec from Alsace, France. Dry Alsace Riesling brings high-acid mineral structure that cuts pastry fat cleanly, and the gentle aromatic profile meets dill and parsley without competing.

Crémant d'Alsace from a serious producer, France. The Pinot Blanc-led traditional method brings carbonation that lifts pastry fat from the palate between bites, and the lees autolytic complexity meets the feta and the warm filo beautifully.

Worth Seeking Out

Malagouzia from a serious Greek producer (Gerovassiliou, Domaine Karanika). The aromatic native Greek white with peach-and-herb character meets spanakopita's herbal-savoury profile with regional fidelity.

Avoid

Oaked whites — vanilla fights the dill and feta; tannic reds — wrong against pastry and cheese; sweet wines — clash with savoury salt; aromatic whites with rose or lychee — fight the herb-and-brine profile.

Failing That

A Picpoul de Pinet, Languedoc.

If All Else Fails

Pinot Grigio, northern Italy.

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