The Absolute Best Wine To Pair With Blackened Salmon

People love salmon. It's one of the most popular types of non-crustacean seafood in America, and it's easy to see why: Salmon is a light, mild, versatile, and relatively affordable fish. Generally speaking, the flavor of this fish is considered distinct without being overpowering, which means that salmon can be used in all manner of dishes and prepared in countless ways. But that versatility also brings other factors into play, particularly when it comes to wine pairings.

Contrary to popular belief, certain salmon dishes don't actually benefit from coupling them with light, crisp white wines like pinot grigio. In particular, blackened salmon – a dish typically prepared by coating filets in a heavy seasoning mix and cooking them at high temperatures for a crispy char — defies the tenets of what's otherwise considered conventional wisdom. Blackened salmon needs a more full-bodied wine to augment its taste, and the perfect choice nearly every time for this is Zinfandel. Where a white wine might be subsumed by the strong flavors of a spice-heavy salmon, Zinfandel can hold its own and complement the dish.

As mentioned above, the accepted rule of thumb for pairing fish (including salmon) with wine is to default to a white varietal. The idea is that the white wines' light crispness will complement the fish's more delicate flavors, as opposed to something like steak, where you want to pair a more full-bodied red wine.

But the game changes when you cook salmon in certain ways, and a good filet of blackened salmon requires something even more potent. The intensity of the spice mix used to coat a salmon filet for the dish — which can include bold flavors like paprika, cayenne, onion powder, and more – needs a wine that can stand up to them, which is why Zinfandel is such a good choice. It balances that spice without overpowering it. (To be clear, we're talking about Zinfandel here, not white Zinfandel, another kind of wine; while white Zinfandel is a light, sweet rosé, Zinfandel is a dark red that tends to be drier than its lighter, pastel-colored cousin.)

While we highly recommend it, Zinfandel isn't the only red wine you can pair with blackened salmon — so if you want to want more than one option for a good wine pairing, it's important to keep in mind how heavily spiced your blackened salmon actually is. In general, the rule is that the more spice-forward the salmon, the heavier red you want to go with. Either Zinfandel or pinot noir are great for mild-to-medium spice, while a merlot is a solid choice if your salmon runs heavy on the heat. (There is, however, one wine you generally want to avoid even if the dish runs super spice-heavy: cabernet sauvignon. Cabernets tend to be so strong and so earthy that not many proteins can stand up to them, which is why steak and cabernet is such a classic pairing.)

Ultimately, you should feel free to drink whatever wine you want with whatever meal you want — there are no rules here, and the wine police aren't going to arrest you for enjoying a Moscato with your blackened salmon. Even so, you're likely to get more out of the experience with certain choices. Give them a try for yourself and see what you prefer.