Hot date: Is there a wine that pairs well with curry?

February 3, 2023 — 4:07pm

I like wine and I like Thai green curries, but I can’t enjoy them together. Is there any wine that works?
J.G., Mount Martha, VIC

A: Green curry paste involves green chillies, cumin, coriander, galangal, turmeric, garlic, lime zest and eschalots, all of which add piquancy. The chillies are the main impediment to a happy wine marriage, but you can control the sting with your choice of chilli. Green curry with chicken is one of the most popular Thai dishes, but the Thais aren’t known for their love of wine. Beer is the staple, and it’s a safe bet with a green curry, even a strong one. Singha is fine and so are most lagers and pilsners.

My favourite wine to pair with curries, after many years of experimentation, is off-dry German riesling: halbtrocken, kabinett or spätlese. Most recently, a Thai green curry with fish was a great success with a spätlese from one of my favourite wineries, Fritz Haag – namely, the Brauneberger Juffer-Sonnenuhr Spätlese Riesling – which is also one of the most famous vineyards in the Mosel Valley. This was a 2010, in its prime, but a younger vintage would be just as satisfying.

Asking for this in your local BWS or Liquorland will lead to disappointment, though: it’s rare. However, there are many other producers whose wines come and go from the retail shelves. Select a reputable shop and seek advice. German producers with a presence in Australia include JJ Prüm, Dr Loosen, Clemens Busch, Schloss Lieser, Dr H. Thanisch, Dönnhoff, Keller, Markus Molitor, Dr Burklin-Wolf, Immich-Batterieberg, Robert Weil, Prinz, Wagner-Stempel, Georg Breuer, Egon Müller and Von Hövel.

Expanding on the curry theme, I had, for years, considered hot Indian curries to be out of bounds for anything but beer. Lately, though, I’ve discovered that hearty, full-bodied South Australian reds, especially Barossa or McLaren Vale shiraz, can go quite joyfully with milder Indian curries, the plush ripe fruit working well with the spicy heat of the curry. For really hot curry, such as vindaloo, there’s no wine I’d recommend.

A final word on fire-fighting. Beer is much more effective than water, which can often seem to fan the flames rather than quell them.

Got a drinks question for Huon Hooke? thefullbottle@goodweekend.com.au

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