The Ultimate Guide for Caviar and Wine Pairings

Written by our outstanding wine-educator-turned-sales-representative, Jeff Mitchell. Jeff studied wine making at UC Davis and has his WSET level 3 certification.

Caviar has long been synonymous with luxury and indulgence. Whether you’re a seasoned connoisseur or new to the world of caviar, pairing it with the right wine can elevate the experience to new heights. 

In this guide, we’ll take a look at several of our best co-branded caviars and suggest three levels of wines per caviar.

1.           Sturia Francais Cavair

1.1.       Sturia Osetra Premier

Ultra-Premium and Premium. Sturia’s facilities are only an hour away from the village of Sauternes. Sauternes' sweetness pairs excellently with the salty and nutty character of this French caviar.  The 19 Chateau d’Yquem is a particularly good vintage due to its higher percentage of sauvignon blanc, making it a lighter version of this legendary sauternes.

Mid-Level. Again, we stay in France for the French caviar.  A crisp clean Savennieres that has texture and tension is sure to compliment. Chenin Blanc has a bit more texture versus sauvignon blanc and stands up to caviar flavors without overpowering it, especially the single vineyard selections from Thibaud Boudignon or the more affordable anju blanc, as well.

Entry-Level. For a simple everyday wine pairing we can look right in the backyard of Sturia to the simple and widely available sauvignon blanc and semillon blends of Entre du Mers. Known more for their bulk wine, there are a few standouts, namely Château Marjosse and Chateau de Sours.

1.2.       Sturia Osetra Classic

Ultra-Premium and Premium. The Traditional pairing of champagne and caviar has fallen off in recent years with the emergence of brut nature and zero dosage champagnes, but the acidity of these champagnes can overwhelm a delicate caviar by drawing focus to the salty aspects of this caviar. To maintain this classic paring look for higher dosage champagne like Jaques Selosse’s Exquise or a producer using softer heritage grapes like Etienne Calsac’s Les Revenants.

Mid-Level. This caviar has hints of cultured butter, so we want to enhance this flavor with a pairing that has more oak driven notes without adding too much complexity.  Pessac Leognan is again close to Sturia and makes wonderful oaked wines from sauvignon blanc and semillon without the sweetness of sauternes.  Chateau Haut Brion’s entries are naturally a first choice but if you don’t want to take out a second mortgage, I’d look at Chateau Couhins.

Entry-Level. For something you can find everyday I’d recommend jumping across France to the Alsace region for a nice crisp Riesling.  Gerard Metz makes excellent options that are quite affordable and for a little more, Albert Boxler makes great Alsace Rieslings, as well.

1.3.       Sturia Siberian Classic

Ultra-Premium and Premium. The brinier Siberian caviars open the door for some sweeter wines to show well, but these caviars tend to be more delicately flavored. This brings dry riesling from Germany as a front runner. Haart Goldtropfchen Auslese is the first that comes to mind, but Stein Weihwasser is a great option, too. 

Mid-Level. Bandol is another excellent option for a crisp wine with some texture and simple, primary flavors that pair well with a less powerful caviar.  Domaine de la Tour du Bon makes some of the best whites out there along with Domaine Tempier.

Entry-Level. Another great option for Siberian caviar is the classic French seafood wine, Muscadet-Sevre et Maine.  These clean and light wines never overpower seafood and drink brightly with a slight salinity.  Domaine de la Grenaudière and Domaine de l’Ecu are the standouts for this group.

2.           Royal Belgian Caviar

2.1.       Royal Belgian Osetra

Ultra-Premium and Premium. This creamy and richer caviar is the best caviar we have for white burgundy.  I would stay away from the Macon wines due to the heavier influence of primarily fruit along with malolactic fermentation and oak.  However, there are seldom poor choices from the Cote du Beaune. Personally I’d go for Benjamin Leroux or Armand Heitz.

Mid-Level. Another excellent region for seafood pairing wines is Rias Brixas on northern Spain’s Atlantic coast.  These wines are made from the albariño grape.  Clean and crisp, in the best versions you can taste the sea air. I am a big fan of Nanclares y Prieto and Do Ferreiro.

Entry-Level. Another great value wine that is excellent for pairing with richer textured caviar is the white of Southern Rhone.  These wines have the right texture and flavor to pair wonderfully with caviar.  I personally love Laura Aullaud but Eric Texier and, of course, the legends of Jaboulet and Chave.

2.2.       Royal Belgian Platinum

Ultra-Premium and Premium. This caviar is a bit saltier and less rich than the osetra but can still stand up to fuller wines. Here I recommend Chablis, especially the premier or grand crus selections, specifically from Moreau-Naudet and De Moor.

Mid-Level. Austrian whites tend to be a bit too aromatic for caviar but there are some producers in the Wachau, Von der Vogelwaide being one of the standouts.  Another great Austrian option is the Südsteiermark sauvignon blancs, particularly Weingut Muster.

Entry-Level. Wines from the south of France are often great value and have a light and bright flavor profile with an influence from the Mediterranean Sea.  The Grenache blancs from this area are wonderfully smooth and pair excellently with slightly saltier caviar.  Danjou-Banessy on the Catalan coast does some of the best work.

2.3.       Royal Belgian Siberian

Ultra-Premium and Premium. Siberian caviars have a saltier presentation that make them great pairings for sweeter wines.  This Belgian caviar also has larger pearls for a Siberian variety, so a textured wine works particularly well here.  I’d go for Vouvray and particularly Domaine Huet Clos du Bourg demi-sec.

Mid-Level. Another great option to allow saltier caviars to shine is Greek wine.  The sandy soils and seaside cliffs of Crete have many ancient varietals that pair excellently with most seafoods, but the Vidiano from Iliana Malihin are absolute standouts.

Entry-Level. Sticking with the theme of textured wines with Siberian caviar but in the more affordable bracket and still quite nice I recommend the Altesse, Jacquere and chardonnay blends from the Savoie.  Producers like Domaine des Ardoisieres and Anne & Sylvian Liotard and, of course if you can find any Domaine Belluard.

3.           Caviar Giaveri

3.1.       Giaveri Beluga Siberian Hybrid

Ultra-Premium and Premium. For the top billed caviar, we must go with one of the top Italian wines, Gaja and their impeccable sauvignon blanc Alteni di Brassica.  The Italian sauvignon blancs grown at altitude in the village of Barbaresco are some of the best caviar paring wines in general.  Also, check out the entries from Burlotto

Mid-Level. Another option for a premium wine that is undervalued is Nicola Gatta or Alessandra Diavella’s Franciacorta.  While prosecco is the most famous Italian sparkling wine, Franciacorta is closer to champagne-style wines and has more character to work well with the complexities of caviar.  Diavella does pair well with more 0 dosage wine, so the Clo Clo Rose is ideal.

Entry-Level. La Spinetta Timorasso is a great wine from a top producer that will stand out well with this caviar and allow for the delicate nature of the caviar to shine- as will most traditional timorasso from Piemonte by producers like Vietti.

3.2.       Giaveri Osetra

Ultra-Premium and Premium. This richer caviar has the power to pair with some stronger wines, so we will take a short trip north from Giaveri to the Dolamites.  The ancient varietal of Nosiola grows on the Fontanasanta vineyard under the seasoned eye of Elizabeta Foradori and pairs outstandingly.

Mid-Level. Another wine Elizabeta makes is one of my personally favorite wines and is the only white DOC in Chianti, Vernaccia di San Gimignano. Sono Montenidoli is the benchmark producer for the region and these wines are pound for pound some of the best seafood wines in the world.

Entry-Level. For a great wine and great value right in the back yard of Giaveri is Venica and Venica. They are one of the best producers of Pinot Grigio in an area often awash with bulk wine. The Veneto has a reputation for overly simple wines, but there are great producers in the Collio region.

3.3.       Giaveri Siberian

Ultra-Premium and Premium. The Giaveri Siberian has a slight hint of sweetness and a clean mouth feel.  This is one of the caviars that can play well with the traditional skin contact wines from the Venzia Giulia region.  One of the most legendary producers in this region is Radikon. Their Sivi Pinot Grigio almost looks like a rose in glass, is my first choice.

Mid-Level. This caviar makes me think about Soave, particularly the Soave classico from Pra. While they are a relatively newer producer in Italy, Pra is widely considered one of the best white wine producers in Italy.

Entry-Level. Vermentino is also a great caviar wine but as Tuscan producers like Grattamacco start to see their prices climb I would recommend Punta Crena. Their seaside vineyards in Liguria maintain the aromatics typical of Tuscany and bring in a note of salinity that makes it a great caviar wine.

4.           Imperial Caviar

4.1.       Imperial Golden Osetra

Ultra-Premium and Premium. The standout color of this caviar is what makes it unique, but the flavor is also a standout. The rich flavor makes this one of the top caviars to pair with light bodied reds like pinot noirs, but for me the absolute best pairing here is a full-bodied rose.  The two standouts for me are Sylvain Pataille’s Marsannay rose or Lopez de Heredia Vina Tondonia Rose.

Mid-Level. The richer texture also allows this wine to pair well with sharp, high acid wines. This brings dry Riesling into the play and with a premium caviar, the best German wines come from the VDP’s GG producers. These are the German grand cru wines. The best GG Rieslings come from Egon Muller, Donnhoff and Kuntsler, but there are also wonderful more affordable options from producers like Louis Guntrum.

Entry-Level. It is always more complicated to recommend US regions because the US lacks consistent style that you see in the old world, but Jolie Laide is truly a standout producer and their California trousseau gris absolutely pairs here. Pax Mahle also makes a great entry for this category.

4.2.       Imperial Osetra

Ultra-Premium and Premium. This osetra is one of the brinier osetras in our catalog so a slightly more aromatic grape works well here. Sancerre is a great choice and focusing on some of the “cru” Sancerre where slightly more barrel and lees influence is present works quite well.  I’d look for Gerad Boulay’s Monts Damnes or Francois Cotat’s Cul de Beaujeu.

Mid-Level. To pair with a saltier aspect some slight sweetness can come into play, as well. For this I’d go back to the USA and look at one of the originals from the finger lakes like Hermann J. Wiemer. While often Finger Lakes Riesling is considered overly sweet, the expert hands of the Wiemer vineyard make excellently balanced wines, especially the single vineyard, Magdalena.  Another great producer in the region to look at is Ravines and Bloomer Creek.

Entry-Level. This caviar also works well with the wines of southern Spain in Cadiz. This region is better known for its sherry production, but the dry palomino wines make excellent pairings for seafood. Bodegas Barbadillo is one of the better ones I have had.

4.3.       Imperial Caviamur

Ultra-Premium and Premium. Caviamur is one of the most robust caviar in our catalog, so this is one of the only ones we have that works well with red wines. I would still recommend lighter styles of wine, particularly alpine wines. I look for Swiss winemaker Maria Tresa Chapaz. Her pinot noirs are transcendent and ethereal making a truly unique pairing for this caviar.

Mid-Level. Sticking with the high-altitude red wines, we’ll make a short hop across the border to Jura. This is the home of light breathy reds. Ploussard and trousseau wines are the native varietals to this region and make excellent, distinct wine. Domaine Du Pelican and Benedicte et Stephane Tissot are standouts.

Entry-Level. Another way to add lift to a red wine is by adding some effervescence. This caviar would be a fun pairing to Lambrusco. Cleto Chiarli and Lini 910 both make great options.

4.4.       Imperial Kaluga Malossol

Ultra-Premium and Premium. This is a great hors d'oeuvres and aperitive pairing caviar and has a bit more weight to it. This is where the more modern champagnes can pair well. You can go with any grand marques here like Krug or Dom but if you're selecting this special caviar,  we advise a grower champagne from Noel Bazin or Marie Corton.

Mid-Level. This heartier caviar is also able to stand with a more aromatic wine due to its own aromatic character. This caviar works well with Condrieu. I always look out for Rostaing and Domaine Facchin.

Entry-Level. Another underrated wine region is dry Tokaji. The texture and lift you’d experience from these wines would overpower more delicate caviar but the kaluga stands up well to more powerful wines. Kiralydudvar makes the benchmark for this region and Evolucio makes the best value bottle.

5.           Browne Trading Supremes

5.1.       Browne Trading Osetra Supreme

Ultra-Premium and Premium. Our house caviars are the classic expressions and naturally work well with all the classic seafood and caviar wines. For our osetra one of the better pairings is a Pouilly-Fume. The less popular village across the river from Sancerre has some solid wines from the likes of Didier Dagueneau.

Mid-Level. Another solid caviar pairing is Falanghina. This Italian varietal from Campania has some wonderful mineral character that pairs well with caviar. I Pentri’s Flora is excellent, especially with some age on it.

Entry-Level. Another solid Italina option is Arnes, particularly the Roero Arnes. I really like the options from Bruno Giacosa.

5.2.       Browne Trading Siberian Supreme

Ultra-Premium and Premium. For one of our most affordable and approachable caviars the simple answer for a pairing is Cava. There are many solid, affordable cava out there.  I’d recommend avoiding the big producers, but Kripta and Azimut make some excellent options.

Mid-Level. Another great Spanish option is Txakoli - really clean, slightly effervescent wine that has the lift to pair with saltier caviar. Astobiza and Ameztoi are two of the better producers.

Entry-Level. Lastly, we swing back to California to grab a bottle of Stolpman Vineyards Uni. A wine developed specifically for lighter textured seafood and was originally a house label for a Uchi Sushi Group. This Roussanne is as subtle as it is delicious and plays very well with caviar.

Conclusion

Caviar and wine are a timeless pairing, each enhancing the flavors of the other. Whether you prefer Ultra-Premium and Premium wines or are exploring more Mid-Level and Entry-Level options, there’s a great wine pairing for every occasion. Explore our premium caviar selections today to discover the perfect match for your palate.

Generally speaking, you want to either be parallel or opposite with the wine being more dominate i.e. Sweet food with a sweeter wine or salty with a sweet wine. It can become long and complicated, but at then end of the day, you should pair with a drink that you enjoy. - Jeff Mitchell

Have a favorite wine and caviar pairing yet to be mentioned? Let us know in the comments.