Galician Mencía, Moroccan Syrah and Corsican Muscat – 14 wines for a cracking Easter feast

Spring is here, bringing with it the promise of the Easter feast. Roast lamb, fresh spring greens, cakes, buns and chocolate galore – but what to pair with them?

Here at Decanter we’ve put our heads together and decided on a few favourite Easter pairings – with a few illustrative examples selected from our extensive database.

If you’re looking for ways to properly break your Lenten fast, therefore, let this be your guide. And hopefully you won’t overdo it and need reviving yourself come Easter Monday.

Roast Lamb

The centrepiece of many an Easter lunch. Now, there are of course many ways to prepare roast lamb, but we’ll assume something quite classic to begin with.

There are two intrinsic pairings with roast lamb – claret and Rioja. And a family occasion like Easter is always a good excuse to break out a bottle of something good with a bit of age, the tannins nicely folded into the fruit to match the succulence of the meat.

It goes without saying that any good Bordeaux will do but Pauillac is the absolute classic (St-Julien works just as well though).

For Rioja get hold of a Reserva or Gran Reserva for preference, though the older the better particularly in the case of a Gran Reserva.

Our Spain Editor, Ines Salpico, has another suggestion for those Hispanically inclined; Compañía de Vinos Telmo Rodríguez's Gaba Mencía from Valdeorras in Galicia.

She writes: 'A core of fleshy sour cherry, red plum, beetroot and cranberry is cloaked in tomato leaf, tarragon and violets - all held by a fine but firm acid line.'

Meanwhile, if you’re leaning Italian then Sangiovese-based wines also pair well with lamb – as does Syrah.

And if you’re opting for a more North African-inspired lamb recipe then why not opt for the late Alain Graillot’s extremely delicious Syrah du Maroc?

For more in-depth suggestions about pairing wine and lamb, see this article.

Asparagus and spring greens

As a moveable feast, Easter occasionally crosses paths with the very start of asparagus season – one of the trickiest green vegetables to pair with wine.

Luckily you can always chop them up and mix them in with other seasonal vegetables like cabbage, broad beans and carrots.

Obviously what we want here are lovely, zingy white wines. Our France Editor, Natalie Earl, has suggests Mas Bruguière’s Les Muriers ('practically spring in a glass!').

Crisp Sauvignon Blanc never goes amiss in the circumstances. Take your pick from French, Kiwi, South African – even Austrian.

Speaking of Austria, a little Grüner Veltliner is an ideal Spring sipper. And looking further south, I can’t help but feel that southern Italian whites – Fiano, Greco and Falanghina – with their lemon and bitter almond character are just the ticket as the weather starts to warm up.

Cakes and almonds

From the fruit and marzipan-laden Simnel cake to a beautiful golden sponge topped with icing sugar, Easter is alive with cake options.

Pairing wines with cakes is supremely underrated – but tricky.

Natalie Earl to the rescue again with a fortified Muscat de Cap Corse – ‘a veritable feast for the senses, especially the nose. It exudes honey, orange, candied peel, brandy, orange liqueur, spice, roses and ginger, forming a wonderfully exotic aromatic display.’

One to try with Simnel cake?

Continuing in the sweet vein, a small glass of Vin Santo or Vinsanto (Tuscan or Greek as you prefer) seems an estimable choice with many cake types.

There’s also something to be said for sparkling wines with cake in my opinion. You could opt for Champagne (after all why not?) but the lighter style of a good Prosecco (from Conegliano Valdobbiadene or Asolo) or the fruity sweetness of Moscato d’Asti would do just fine something lighter.

Finally, for Lisbon-born Ines Salpico, Easter means almonds. And there’s only one thing to pair with a fistful of almonds and that’s a cold glass of Fino or Manzanilla Sherry.

Accept no substitutes.

Hot cross buns

The greatest of all Easter treats – the hot cross bun. Filled with spices, peel and currants, served hot and dripping with butter.

The best pairing is – it goes without saying – a Very British Cup of Tea.

But I must say I thoroughly approve of the suggestion of a glass of Marsala with this noble sweet bun.

And one might follow up with other oxidative fortifieds; Madeira and old tawny Port perhaps?

Now there’s a Paschal Triduum if ever I saw one.

And chocolate…

Don’t pair wine with chocolate, it’s a terrible idea.

Though if you really must... see some recommendations here.

Easter wine recommendations

Examples listed below (except those explicitly referred to) are illustrative of those mentioned in the text.

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