What type of wine should I choose to pair with oysters?

Choosing wines to pair with oysters has never been a problem, regardless of our level of wine knowledge. A dry white wine with good acidity, such as a Muscadet or a Sauvignon Blanc, and the matter is settled. While one can't go wrong with such a decision, the search can always be refined. It then becomes clear that the question is more complex than initially thought.

Because there are oysters and oysters: on the one hand, there are raw oysters and cooked oysters, the latter having fallen somewhat out of favor but still encountered. On the other hand, what about the "merroirs," the marine terroirs that produce oysters? Fresh oysters are never quite identical depending on their farming location, the sea that nourished them, and especially their harvest season.

Let's start by remembering that Champagne (Fleury or Collinet) is the eternal friend of oysters.

With that established, wine and oyster pairings can be classified into three scenarios.

 

What wine to drink with plump raw oysters?

These are the oysters enjoyed from spring to the end of September. Natural oysters are then plumper, crunchier, and fattier. They have more substance. Some triploid oysters can remain fatty and plump throughout the year, making them very popular at Christmas, but less environmentally friendly and natural. The spring or summer period also includes the oyster reproduction period, which can make them milky, and some people don't appreciate that too much. It all depends on your personal preferences.

Plump and crunchy oysters pair well with all dry white wines, especially plump and aromatic whites with a bit of roundness. This is the ideal dish to pair with Chenin Blancs from the Loire, and on our site the choice is wide: whites from Renaud Guettier-La Grapperie (La Bueilloise, La Diablesse, La Belle Égarée...), from Damien Bureau or from Jean-Pierre Robinot (Lumière de Silex or the sparkling Fêtembulles) A white Burgundy from Frédéric Cossard (Bigotes or Saint-Romain) will also be a good match.

Because our Muscadet-style white wines are particularly mineral and aromatic (the mineral note is also part of the oyster's taste), they can be paired with plump raw oysters. For example, the wines of Christophe Bosque-De Vini based on Melon de Bourgogne or Folle Blanche: Alba, Alburostre, Divin Poison, 0,72 + or the YARD Melon de Bourgogne cuvée.

These oysters will also be appreciated with sunny, dry and mineral white wines from the South with a touch of roundness and richness: Bonnes Quilles from Domaine Bois-Moisset, Le Litre Arbitre from Château Lafitte.

It's often overlooked, but perry has always been a perfect companion for oysters, such as those from Éric Bordelet (Cloche et Fausset) or Belly Wine Experiment.

Of course, festive, joyful, and not overly dry natural sparkling wines will go well with these oysters; they are even preferred pairings. Among the white sparkling wines from Clos Lentiscus, we recommend the Núria and Gentlemant cuvées for these pairings. Similarly, we highly recommend Bains de bulles from Frédéric Cossard: Artemus Ka and Guy Wurtz. As well as, of course, the magnificent Manseng sparkling wine Funambule from Château Lafite.

An old tradition says that plump oysters call for sweet wines: don't hesitate to try a good Sauternes, a Jurançon Argile from Château Lafitte, or even le Moelleux de Muscat from Petit Domaine de Gimios.

 

What wine to drink with lean raw oysters?

These are Christmas oysters and some people prefer them. In winter, oysters (except triploids) have lost much of their substance. Besides being less fatty, they also have a more elastic chew, less melt-in-your-mouth texture, and a more pronounced iodine flavor. These are the oysters that call for dry, mineral, and acidic white wines. We therefore return to the Muscadets of Christophe Bosque-De Vini (see previous paragraph), suitable for all types of raw oysters. The aromatic clarity, mineral dryness, and crispness of the small-berry Samos Muscats from the Sous le Végétal series are also indicated.

Two of the most spectacular pairings with winter oysters are La Chassornade from Frédéric Cossard, where the tart and lemony notes of the Aligoté grape are enhanced by the bubbles, and the very original white Beaujolais Je t’ai dans la peau from Nicolas Chemarin.

 

What wine to drink with cooked oysters?

Pairings become more complex with cooked oysters (baked, hot, poached), as they depend on the culinary recipe and the ingredients used. For cooking oysters, it's best to choose plump oysters for substance. We will give some examples by type of preparation:

• Lightly poached oysters and served on the half-shell, sometimes in jelly, with various condiments: a Champagne (Collinet, Fleury) pairs well with this type of starter.

• Oysters cooked in cream or a creamy sauce: you need dry white wines with a certain richness. Loire Chenins (La Grapperie, Jean-Pierre Robinot), natural white sparkling wines (see our selection). We recommend a Melon de Bourgogne from De Vini with gratinated oysters (béchamel sauce or breadcrumbs, butter, garlic, and herbs).

• Oysters cooked in red wine, with tomato, in a cocktail or spicy sauce: you can try light red wine (Domaine Pic-Épeiche, Adonis from La Grapperie, Pineau d'Aunis from Jean-Pierre Robinot, Le Zudefruit from Jérôme Lambert) or rosé (L’Arroseur from De Vini, Le Rosé from Clos des B or rosés from Belly Wine Experiment), or a natural rosé sparkling wine: Festejar rosé from Patrick Bouju, Susucaru Rosato from Frank Cornelissen, Coince ta bulle from Château Frédignac.

• Fried oysters, oyster fritters or tempura: the crispiness of these oysters calls for fresh and light pairings, such as sake, beer, or a low-acid white wine like a Chasselas from Switzerland or a dry Italian white wine from the estates Azienda Le Coste (Le Coste Bianco, Le Vigne Più Vecchie) or Antonio Gismondi (Pietre). One can also try a beer: Xarel·10, The One or Grisette from Cyclic Beer Farm.

 

When you need to be quick

You have a basket of oysters, no matter which ones, and you plan to serve them quickly; or you intend to serve them fried or poached, but don't have time to think about the pairing. Don't overthink it and go straight for the essentials: a champagne, a natural sparkling Catalan wine, a Melon de Bourgogne, a great white Burgundy wine, a dry white wine from the South, a good dry cider or a perry (you have all these references in the preceding paragraphs). Our entire range of dry white wines from Sous le Végétal made from small-berried Samos muscat will pair with oysters in all their forms without further ado.

 

The last word

With a few fresh oysters on the fly, a dash of spirits is not out of place. Vodka, pure malt whiskey (Ergaster), armagnac (Hootch) or gin (Rivo or Culinaries gin from Distillerie du Viaduc), Copalli white rum infused with cocoa (L'Explorateur du goût), bison grass vodka (Awen Nature), you'll tell us all about it.