Match of the week

Sausage rolls and champagne

Posted by Fiona Beckett (Google+) on August 25 2014 at 09:05

The idea of drinking champagne with fast food might seem outrageous but you have to believe me it works!

In the past I’ve paired champagne successfully with popcorn, hot dogs, fried chicken and fish fingers - the discovery that it also matches with spicy pork and chorizo sausage rolls was a logical follow-on.

The eureka moment occurred at the Bon Vivant wine bar in Edinburgh last week when we ordered a (very well priced*) half bottle of Billecart Salmon NV to celebrate my birthday and some bar food to nibble with it. (We were eating out later on**.)

As well as the sausage rolls which also, I suspect, contained wine-loving fennel seeds, we had some anchovy beignets (fried food, like pastry, is always good with bubbly) and some venison salami on oatcakes which were less of a hit. I don’t think charcuterie has a particular affinity with champagne. You need something with more acidity.

It’s worth bearing in mind as a general rule that if a food pairs with a light beer or lager it’ll match with champagne. Salty, fatty, crispy foods are a good foil for fizz!

*£21 which is not much more than the retail price and far better value than buying 2 £9 glasses.

** At one of my favourite restaurants, Timberyard. You can read my review here.

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