With football season upon us and game-day celebrations in full swing, food choices for you and your laundry-sharing brethren become immensely important. Although there are a myriad of dishes for game-time grazing, the simple but versatile chicken wing always seems to work its way onto the menu.

I agree that beer and football go together like cumin and ketchup but, as I am an equal opportunity imbiber, there will always be room in my glass for some juice of the vine. Before you allow your suds-sipping fellow fan base to convince you that consuming wine during the game will somehow change your political opinion or force you to relinquish your Boy scout tote-and-chip card, recall the message that I continue to preach. Wine is only as pretentious as you allow it to be or allow others to make it.

Now that we’ve navigated around the debacle of misconception, let’s focus on the task at hand; namely wine and wings. Chicken wings are a succulent protein, covered with a crispy skin and flavored with whatever rub, sauce or culinary seasoning that tempts your tastebuds. With those seductive little treats, we have some fun wine categories to experiment with. Depending on your preferences, genetics and psychological indiscretions, these wine choices will offer a fun transformation and potential accentuation for your wing flavor favorites.

Lambrusco

The breadth of sparkling wine choices would, in itself, be a fun experiment with different flavors of wings. As I enjoy leading consumers on a journey of discovery, I chose a sparkling that is both under consumed and grossly misunderstood, Lambrusco.

This refreshing sparkling wine hails from Emilia-Romagna and although traditionally a red wine, some white and rosé versions are produced. With the range of both sweet and savory in the world of wing sauces, a little residual sugar will help with pairing across flavors. If a sparkling red wine that has some residual sugar and is very fruity makes your wine ponce alarm go off, then I am definitely doing my job correctly.

Riesling

Staying in the motif of wines with some residual sugar, off-dry Riesling becomes a great choice for select flavors of wings. First, the sweetness counteracts the heat we feel from spicy elements and the pronounced acidity in the wine helps to cut through the richness of the sauce. The fruit flavors of Riesling play particularly well with Teriyaki and surprisingly well with barbecue sauces. Since there are a variety of sweetness levels in these wines, my palate goes with the rule of dry Riesling with mild sauces and increasing the sugar level as you increase the heat of the sauce.

Grüner Veltliner

For those still turn their nose up at the mere mention of a wine with any perceptible sugar, there are some choices for you as well. The dry white wine that seems to go with just about any food, including wings, is Grüner Veltliner. This interesting grape displays a wide flavor profile including a range of exotic spices, including white pepper. The profile plays well with Asian inspired flavors like teriyaki and Asian five spice but also lemon pepper rubs. I’ve even used this with select peppery barbecue sauces and was surprised at how well it stood up. Like Riesling, the high acidity cleanses the palate between each bite, giving you optimal flavor potential.

Pinot Noir

For my winos that prefer the red flavor, we begin with the always welcome Pinot Noir. There are different styles of Pinot and for these situations I shy away from the overtly earthy and sometimes Brettanomyces inspired Burgundies. The baking spice influenced and fruit forward versions seem to conflict less with my wing sauce choices. Although these wines do not seem to tolerate very spicy hot sauces, they shine with those containing garlic, teriyaki, or even harissa.

Some consumers swear by their larger red wines, regardless of what foods they are shoving in their gobs. These heavy reds can work but keep in mind that tannins will accentuate the feeling of spicy heat in food, and these foods often increase the perception of bitterness in the wine. If you choose a tannic wine, remember salt is your friend, decreasing bitterness and making tough tannins more tolerable.

Lagrein

Although Lagrein wines are known to be tannic, especially in their youth, I chose one that has soft, integrated tannins, making it more food-friendly. Smoky, savory sauces work well alongside the dark fruit elements of Lagrein along with herbal dry rubs and fruit inspired sauces, like blueberry. When using a larger, potentially tannic, red wine for these types of foods, I choose sauces that are savory versus sweet along with herbal over spicy.

So, as you begin wing sauce preparations for your field goal flats and defensive drums, remember to grab a few bottles of juice to accompany your football fare. The suggested pairings are geared to my palatal preferences but I invite you to experiment with varying flavors of both wine and sauces to find what you like best. No matter what other wine “experts” tell you, there really are not any unbreakable rules when it comes to wine and food. Pick the wines you like, your preferred sauces and cheer for your favorite team. Everything else is just…pretense.

Suggested wines:

Cleto Chiarli Lambrusco “Vecchia Modena” 2024 ($22)

This ruby-colored sparkler hails from the area of Sorbara in Emilia-Romagna, Italy. With only 8 g/L sugar level, you get a hint of sweetness balanced by a nice crunchy acidity. The concentrated red fruit (raspberry, strawberry, cherry) and slight orange pith elements make this a fun and glug-able choice.  My choices were barbecue and Asian-inspired sauces.

Long Shadows Poet’s Leap Riesling ($22)

Selecting grapes from both the White Bluffs and Yakima Valley AVAs of Washington State give this Riesling amazing depth. We see the classic (candied or syrupy) orchard fruit (apple, pear, white peach), melon (honeydew), slight lime pith, floral blossom note, and slight sweet petrol element. Although medium dry with at 9.5 g/L, the perception is much less due to the linear zippy acidity. The wine worked well with both teriyaki and Kinder’s mild BBQ sauce.

Illahe Gruner Veltliner ($25)

This grape is the next superstar white from Willamette Valley, OR. The orchard fruit (apricot, peach), ginger spice, and fresh-cut leafy green herbs mingle with brined tropical citrus. A silky mouthfeel (thanks to three months of bâtonnage), and slight saline-laden acidity make it a true pleasure to drink. The wine surprises with the spectrum of good pairings but I enjoyed Garlic parm and lemon pepper the best.

Hahn SLH Pinot Noir 2021 ($25)

This Santa Lucia Highlands in Monterey, California claims this Pinot Noir.  Although a slight earthy element of wet leaf pile and campfire, the red crunchy fruit (cherry, strawberry), and spice (clove), are the real stars. The wine is reminiscent of cherry / strawberry pie cooked over the campfire with added crunchy acid and slight perceptible fine-grained tannins. The Stubb’s smoky brown sugar BBQ and a Teriyaki sauce were my favorites.

Remy Wines Lagrein 2021 ($58)

Drinking a $60 Oregon Wine made from an Italian variety with chicken wings is the ultimate in non-pretentious and delicious experiences. The aromas of coco covered cherry, cedar box, allspice, anise, leafy dried herbal note all leap from the glass. The fruit takes second fiddle but is sexy nonetheless, with elements of blackberry and elderberry. The tart acidity and well-integrated fine -grained tannins make this easy to sip on. I stayed away from the sweeter sauces and had good luck with both savory dry rubs (salt, pepper, garlic) and blueberry / tarragon glaze.