What's The Best Wine To Pair With Tuna?

Drinking wine with dinner isn't just a nice way to enjoy your meal, it's actually a ritual backed by history and science, and for serious sommeliers, pairing is an art form. There are the basic rules that even casual wine drinkers know — red wine pairs best with steak, chocolate, and other rich, fatty foods, while dry white wine is the drink of choice for lighter fare like chicken, pasta, and seafood. But rules are also meant to be broken, and with such a broad culinary category as seafood, it can be tricky to choose from the wide world of wine varietals.

Tuna is a prime example of this conundrum, since it has a heavier texture than other types of fish and can take many different forms, from canned tuna to seared steaks to raw tartare. While we might be used to grabbing a bottle of white any time seafood is on the menu, when it comes to tasty tuna steaks, red may actually be more appropriate. According to Ricardo Cubias, the assistant general manager and Level Three Sommelier at Zachari Dunes on Mandalay Beach, "Tuna's meaty texture loves medium-bodied reds like Gamay or Pinot Noir." With their supple texture, bright tasting notes of red fruit, and less tannic mouthfeel, these wines beautifully compliment the tender salinity of tuna meat. Ultimately, though, your best possible pairing will depend on cooking style. "If raw or seared, go lighter. If grilled, go bolder," Cubias advises.

Tuna is an incredibly versatile protein that can be completely transformed by its preparation, meaning that your wine pairing picks should be reconfigured in kind. The wine you'd want to drink with a tuna salad sandwich (no matter how elevated) is probably not going to be the same one you'd pair with high-end sashimi. 

If raw tuna is on the menu, don't panic. Finding the best wine pairing for raw fish can be confusing, but with something like a tuna tartare, Ricardo Cubias says, "Go with rosé or Sauvignon Blanc." Wines with a light body, medium-to-high acidity, and refreshing fruit notes highlight the taste of the fresh fish while complementing the citrusy and spicy flavors of the dish.

For a lightly seared, rare tuna steak, he says, "Choose a light Pinot Noir or Grenache." These light-bodied reds have fewer tannins than their heavier counterparts but still match the red meat of tuna with tasting notes of ripe red fruit. 

When your dish includes cooked or canned tuna, however, adjust your approach. For example, Cubias advises, "For a niçoise salad, try a dry Provence-style rosé or even a Chenin Blanc." These wines bring a balance of high acidity and complex flavor that nicely counterbalances the oily texture of canned tuna and the layered composition of the salad.