The Best Type Of Wine To Drink With White Pizza

White pizza is a bit of an anomaly. While not nearly as polarizing as pineapple on a pie, pizza lovers can be a bit divided on this style. With no red sauce, can it truly be considered pizza? Much like thin versus thick crust, New York versus Chicago, the debate over white pizza can be pretty heated. Unlike pineapple pizza, however, white pizza is authentic — a Northern Italian delicacy, which any pizza lover can find in abundance on the streets of Rome.

It can go by a couple of different names, like Quattro Formaggio and Pizza Bianca, but according to The Washington Post, the formula for authentic white pizza is pretty simple: Thin pizza crust topped with olive oil, garlic, herbs, and some sea salt baked until it's lightly browned. Then, most of the time, but not always, finished with a blend of Italian cheeses.

When it comes to wine pairing, red sauce pizzas are a snap. Tomato sauce adds acidity and spices, so you can pair them up with a glass of classic Chianti or other medium-bodied Italian red like Nero D'Avola or Montepulciano (according to Wine Folly). White pizza, on the other hand, has a lighter, simpler flavor profile, and while it will surely still be tasty with some of the same wines served with red sauce pies, it's even better when you take its particular flavor profile in mind before selecting a wine.

If you're stumped on what wine to serve with white pizza, there are a couple of ways to tackle the job. First, consider wine writer Karen MacNeil's ten rules of food and wine pairing from her book, "The Wine Bible" (per Decanter). According to rule two, delicate wines go with delicate foods, and white pizza is definitely more delicate than its red-sauce brethren, so choose a wine that is lighter-bodied than what you'd pour with a meatball supreme. White pizza has more in common with a plate of good pasta with butter and cheese, or a cheese board with simple crackers, so start your wine pairing search with lighter-bodied varietals and styles that you'd drink with bread and cheese.

Rule four on MacNeil's list then says to choose a flexible wine that has either good acidity or lots of fruitiness without a lot of tannins. Wines like New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc and German Riesling are popular food wines because they pair with a wide variety of dishes, can handle spiciness, and will taste great with a white slice or two. The same goes for red Burgundy and American Pinot Noirs from Oregon and California. If your white pizza has fresh herbs or is topped with fresh arugula, Chardonnay can pair nicely with the creaminess of the cheese and the fresh green flavors of the green herbs and garlic (per Wine Folly), like those in this recipe for White Pizza with Mushrooms and Garlicky Greens.

Don't limit your pizza-pairing search strictly to still wines, however. After all, bubbly wines are great for drinking anytime, not just for holidays and special events. In fact, Food & Wine recommends pouring sparkling rosé with your white pizzas as the tingly bubbles and higher acidity work well with Italian cheeses, plus they will cut through the saltiness and fat. Rosé has a little more fruity character than a white sparkling wine, which will also make up for the lack of tomato flavor in the pizza.

You may have heard the saying from chefs and sommeliers, "What grows together goes together," (per Wine Folly). This is probably one of the easiest ways to pair food and wine because regional food flavors tend to naturally evolve from the types of wines that are available to local chefs. So using this adage with MacNeil's principles, a fresh and fruity rosé Prosecco from Northwest Italy would be a great match for white pizza.

If you want to be a little more on trend with your pick, you can also consider pairing white pizza with a sparkling red or rosé Lambrusco. These wines were long considered to be outdated 80s outcasts, but they are making a big come back with serious wine drinkers. Today's Lambruscos are drier and higher in alcohol than their sweet ancestors, and thanks to their bright, fresh acidity (per Chilled) they check off all the boxes as a perfect pick for pairing with white pizza.