When it comes to a crowd-pleasing dish, there is no brighter star in the sky than the humble homemade lasagna.
Made from layers of thin pasta, as well as a rich combination of tomato sauce and melting cheese – lasagna is one of those dishes that can be served anytime and enjoyed by anyone.
If the muse takes you, you can enjoy a lasagna on a fresh summer evening with your whole family.
Or you can treat yourself to the dish during the cold and lonely nights of the winter months. But what can make even the most decadent of lasagnas even better? Why a bottle of wine of course!
Trying to pair wine with food can be a complicated process and sometimes you may find yourself even dismissing the wine in favour of enjoying the food.
But we promise you that a glass of wine can make a huge difference between a mediocre meal and a truly fabulous one.
Down below we have created an extensive guide that covers all the delicious wines you can enjoy with this iconic Italian dish.
These wines are smooth, fruity and aromatic – and they can make even the most amateurish of lasagnas taste like it just came from the chef’s restaurant window.
Best Wine For Beef Lasagna
Of course, the traditional lasagna recipe sandwiches beef bolognese between the layers of pasta – to create a dish that is simply brimming with succulent flavour. However, these days lasagna can take on many guises and can be made using fish and vegetables as a substitute for beef.
This means that different lasagnas will need different wines to reach their full potential, but first let’s look at the best wines for the traditional bolognese recipe.
Romagna Sangiovese
When it comes to pairing wine with traditional bolognese lasagna, you can only consider a red wine for the job.
Sangiovese is an Italian red wine that is perfectly matched with the iconic dish, with its full-bodied nature pairing beautifully with the rich flavors of beef and tomato.
This particular red wine is fermented using steel before it is passed through aged wood and finally bottled.
This process gives the wine a warm and spicy taste and pairing the natural nutmeg aroma with a well-crafted lasagna is like a match that has been made in heaven.
Lambrusco di Sorbara
Lambrusco is an Italian wine that is renowned for its aromatic flavor and rich ruby-red hue.
This delicious wine comes with a bouncy liveliness that pairs well with the cheese and bechamel sauce used to make a traditional lasagna – with the wine’s acidity cutting through the soft creaminess.
This red wine is also heavily floral on the tongue and is bursting with a varied myriad of different textures and notes.
The distinctive hints of wild strawberries and woodland flowers also pair well with the meat, making this a solid and smooth choice for any lasagna lover.
Nero d’Avola
Nero d’Avola is a classic Italian wine that is produced among the hilly landscapes of remote Sicily. Considered to be made from ‘the most important red wine grape in the world’ – this wine takes on a vibrant cherry-red hue and is known for its absorbing and heady flavor.
This soft wine is cool on the palate and is known to produce rounded notes of spice and blackberries.
The wine’s crisp and acidic nature makes it the ideal companion for any homemade lasagna, where it pairs well with the dark and savory meat sauce.
Best Wine For Seafood Lasagna
These days there are countless recipes for seafood lasagna, rich and creamy dishes that remove the fatty meat and allow fish to become the star of the show.
We understand that pairing wine with a seafood lasagna may sound like a complex task – but it is no different than pairing wine with a fish pie or clam chowder.
When it comes to pairing your seafood lasagna with the perfect wine, we would recommend purchasing either a white or sparkling wine for the job.
Franciacorta DOCG
Seafood lasagnas are known to be more diverse and expansive in their flavors – especially if the recipe calls for a wide variety of different fish and shellfish.
If you have made a lasagna that uses salmon and bechamel sauce as the primary ingredients, then Franciacorta is the wine you need.
Franciacorta is a sparkling Italian wine that is produced by using a traditional method known as metodo classico.
This process involves adding yeast and sugar to a still wine before it is corked – the yeast then begins to ferment and gives the wine its signature bubbles.
This wine is known to contain notes of vanilla and fruit and pairs beautifully with smoked fish and creamy cheese.
Soave Classico
Soave is an Italian white wine that is produced using Garganega grapes, which are commonly grown in the medieval village of Soave. The wine is known for its smooth and oily consistency, which pairs particularly well with seafood and pasta dishes. Soave is considered to be one of the finest wines produced in Italy, and we can understand the appeal.
This particular white wine is bursting with an array of fruity notes, with hints of peach, honeydew melon and orange often being associated with the classic brand. The wine is also known to deliver a salty aftertaste, which will pair well with any seafood lasagna.
Negroamaro Kreos
Many seafood lasagnas will often use cream or bechamel for their sauce base, however, if your recipe calls for tomato sauce you will need to pair it with a bottle of more dark and sultry wine.
Negroamaro is a red wine that is native to southern Italy, which is known for its earthy and rustic character.
With a name that translates to ‘black and bitter,’ this wine is known for its dark flavor and sharp bite.
Because of its intense and bold nature, this wine will often pair well with tomato sauce-based seafood lasagnas, matching the acidity of the tomato and the saltiness of the fish.
Best Wine For Vegetable Lasagna
Of course, it would be criminal not to consider those lasagna recipes that use vegetables as the primary source of inspiration. Not only are vegetable lasagnas tasty, but they are also hardy, rustic and can be richer than even the most indulgent bolognese.
Because vegetable lasagnas can be so diverse in their flavors, picking a perfect pairing wine can be tricky – that is why we have chosen some of the best ones.
Chianti Classico
The first wine on our list comes from the Chianti region of central Tuscany and is a red wine that promises to deliver a unique and authentic taste. This particular wine pairs wonderfully with a creamy vegetable lasagna brimming with mushrooms and truffles.
The young wine is notorious for its punchy notes of blackberry, raspberry and cherry – with the fruity aromas often complimenting the earthiness of rustic vegetable dishes.
The final hints of balsamic vinegar, herbs and spices, make this wine a delectable pairing with any vegetable-based Italian cuisine.
Riviera di Ponente Pigato
This white wine is made using Pigato grapes which grow in the Riviera di Ponente, an area of Italy known for its production of aromatic and sturdy wines.
Some vegetable lasagnas will use pesto as the main sauce base, and this wine is perfect for pairing with those rich and herby flavors.
This particular wine is full of sharp and citrusy flavors, which blend well when paired with the intensity of pesto and the creaminess of bechamel sauce. Pigato is also known for its rich and perfume-like aroma, which is both heady and floral.
Groppello Bianco
Groppello Bianco (otherwise known as Nosiola) is a white wine produced in the Trentino region of northern Italy. This particular wine will pair beautifully with a vegetable lasagne that is bubbling with artichoke hearts and various root vegetables.
The wine itself is known for its light texture and the warm notes it leaves on your palate.
The name ‘Nosiola’ could be derived from the Italian word for hazelnut, which is apt when considering how the wine is known for its nutty and earthy flavor.
The hint of toasted hazelnut that this wine delivers can also pair well with pesto-based lasagnas, elevating the already natural and hearty taste.
Sherry
Sherry and lasagna may not seem like the most likely pairing, but if you know what you’re doing, it can be an incredibly tasty combination. The key is to choose the right varietal of sherry for your dish. While some might think that any old sherry will do, this isn’t necessarily true. With its distinct flavor profile featuring notes of dried fruit and a hint of sweetness, a properly chosen sherry can bring out the best in your lasagna.
When selecting a sherry for pairing with lasagna, look for dry varieties such as Amontillado or fino sherries. These styles are more savory with nutty and herbal flavors that pair well with the cheese and herbs used in traditional lasagnas.
