Last Updated on June 7, 2025
Seasonal Wine Pairings for Early Summer
This time of year brings with it a bountiful selection of seasonal ingredients. When it comes to pairing wines with early summer specialities like asparagus, though, it turns out there’s more to consider than just selecting a dry white. Fresh green asparagus is one of the delights of early summer for me, but it’s a vegetable that has a pronounced flavour profile. So powerful that wine writers sometimes use it to describe wines they are drinking. You may see anything from a New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc to Albariño and from Rías Baixas, Sancerre to Grüner Veltliner, described as having notes of asparagus. From a pairing perspective, that’s both an opportunity and a challenge.
As always, the perfect pairing is a matter of personal choice, and for some people, a wine with intense notes of asparagus won’t complement the vegetable but rather overwhelm it. Other people like the complementary notes. So, recommendations come with the usual caveat that you should drink what you enjoy.
We’ve been tasting a portfolio of whites paired with asparagus. Over the course of two lunches, I made two different asparagus dishes. Firstly, a classic Asparagus Mimosa using David Lebovitch’s recipe, which you can find here and secondly, a dish of airfryer roasted asparagus with labneh, lemon zest and hazelnuts, which I’ve shared over on our sister site The Frugal Flexitarian. It was an interesting experience with our tasters pretty much equally divided in what they liked, paired with the Asparagus.
We started off with a set of three white wines. Two of our wine tasters were WSET level 3 – one had already graduated, the second was about to take her exam. It was an enlightening session with the guests talking enthusiastically about the structure, length and finish of the wines.
Esporao Quinta do Ameal Loureiro 2020 was a Portuguese wine from the Alentejo. A Vinho Verde made from 100% Loureiro grapes, we thought it paired well with the asparagus. Pale straw coloured, with a full-bodied, herbaceous mouthfeel, fresh pineapple notes, and a good finish, it’s aged on the lees for 6 months.
The second white, Journey’s End, The Organist Chardonnay 2021, was a real favourite, though not necessarily the best pairing with asparagus. We thought it was a subtle, buttery Chardonnay with notes of roasted pineapple, butterscotch, brioche, and yeast. It worked rather better with our roast lamb main course, for those who preferred white. This wine retails at £26 from Ocado, and we thought it was worth every penny.
Finally, we enjoyed a Joseph Mellot Torraine Chemonceau 2023, a Sauvignon Blanc that seemed to have a relatively high acidity. With citrus and apple notes, we felt it would pair better with seafood.
Joseph Mellot Touraine Chenonceaux Organic, 2023 is from the Loire in France and is available at £18.99 from Islington Wine, Roberts & Speight and Campbells of Leyburn
In a way, our second round of white wine tastings was a little unfair because I served the asparagus with an altogether softer accompaniment of labneh, hazelnuts and lemon zest, and the weather was nice enough to eat out in the garden!
We enjoyed the Villa Maria Sauvignon Blanc private bin 2023, a light and fruity Sauvignon Blanc with a vibrant and fresh taste. In terms of pairing, we were completely divided. One guest thought it was an excellent match for the asparagus. But we all agreed that it was an easy-drinking white wine for a hot day. It’s widely available – you can find it from stockists including Asda, Majestic, Morrisons, Tesco, Waitrose, Sainsburys for around £13.90 a bottle.
The Errazuriz Chardonnay was a full-bodied Chardonnay with a straw colour. The wine had a creamy taste with oak undertones. We thought this wine had more depth to it than the Sauvignon Blanc and that it would be a great accompaniment for seafood. Errazuriz Aconcagua Costa Chardonnay 2021 is available at an RRP of £19 – Harvey Nichols, Oxford Wine Co
For what it’s worth, I preferred the Sauvignon Blanc wines with the Asparagus. But, it’s clearly a personal thing, and for some of my guests, the Chardonnay grape wines worked better. The answer is obvious – you need to try both and see what you like best yourself!
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