Pairing Wine With Arctic Char

Arctic Char is a delicious freshwater fish, coming from the very northern part of the world from the coldest lakes! Very closely related to the salmon and lake trout family and tastes like a combination of both with its flesh being light pink to deep red with fine flaked and medium firm flesh! Yum!

Best way to cook this unique fish is in the oven, until it has cooked through enough and when to test it; the flesh flakes with a fork. Some may want to cook in a pan, and make the skin of fish super crispy or even have it raw; or some may want to glaze and steam fish and some may want to make a chowder or stew out of it; super versatile!

Wine Characteristics To Pair With Arctic Char

Characteristic	Detail
Sweetness	Dry
Acidity	High
Tannins	Low
Body	Low-Bold
Notes Citrus and Spice	Citrus and Spice

Best Red Wine To Pair With Arctic Char

Pinot Noir and Beaujolais
Pinot Noir is a lighter red and pairs well with Arctic Char, as well as salmon or tuna. The fruitiness, spice and fresh taste of the wine can tone down the fishy taste without getting too carried away as well as playing with the aromas of the fish too. Best way to serve the fish with these wines, is when you pan fry the Arctic Char for a crispy skin!

Best White Wine TO Pair With Arctic Char

Sauvignon Blanc
A peppery Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand is a winner, as its bright and crispr with super high acidity which pairs really well with Arctic Char, the acidity is high enough to cut through the oiliness of the fish and the fruitful notes of Sauvignon Blanc are complementary too.

Californian Chardonnay
A great full-bodied white wine such an oak-aged Chardonnay pairs beautifully with Arctic Char due to its rich oily nature of the fish. The best way to pair this style of wine with Arctic Char is baked with a cream sauce.

Sparkling Rose Wine

A sparkling rose wine paired with the intensity of an oily fish such as Arctic Char served raw; maybe on a sandwich or raw on a slice of toast with avocado; with a sparkling rose wine there will be enough acidity and burst of flavour to complement the salty fish notes really well.

Dry Riesling

A Dry Riesling especially from South Australia can pair wonderfully with Arctic Char; the super high acidity of the Riesling with lime notes ties in wonderfully in the sugar glaze of your choice on the fish; results in a rich steak of Arctic Char with a hint of sweetness on the meat of which the acidity and flavour profile of a new world Riesling complements great!

Orange Wine
For most, they have not heard of Orange Wine (essentially white wine fermented on skins). These wines are super versatile and can be paired with a variety of types of foods; one of them being Arctic Char! These wines often have flavours of quince and high minerality which balances the saltiness of fish; it also has a bit more backbone than many other whites because of the tannin of the ferment; so pairing with a fish like Arctic Char with its oily nature is perfect!

Best Wines to Pair with Arctic Char

Arctic char pairs best with white wines of the world but there is no rule to that; it can come to a surprise that it can be paired with sparkling wines, orange wines and also reds! Now red wines don’t generally pair with fish, as the levels of tannins interact with the fish oils on the palate and in most cases leaves a metallic after taste in the mouth. But with Arctic Char being more oily fish than normal it can definitely work with some lighter style reds and even orange wine! Here are the versatile wine pairings with Arctic Char!