Riesling is at the top of my list of favorite varietals and I will defend it til kingdom come, but for goodness sake it cannot be the chosen wine for all “Asian food”. I’ll also add that generalizing an entire continent’s vastly diverse cuisines is both lazy and problematic. With the thousands of varietals that exist in wine regions across the world, there are plenty of them that will pair very well, if not better, with various cuisines throughout Asia. Riesling not only needs a break, it deserves more thoughtful pairings.

I recently hosted a wine + dinner event with my friend Pao Thampitak, who started the Gaaeng Supper Clubs in Boston. I’ve now been to two of Pao’s suppers and can tell you that you will not find menus like these anywhere in the US. Each of Pao’s “Episode” dinner focuses on a specific region at a time. He studies the history, techniques and ingredients unique to each region. Often times reviving recipes from the past. For a menu from the region where his family is from, he often calls on his grandmother for recipes she grew up cooking. Pao’s love of food and cooking comes from his grandmother who taught him how to cook.

What you experience is Thai cuisines at their most authentic and traditional representation. Layered flavors, aromatics, and textures, all served in family style or Gaaeng (dishes meant for sharing).

The menu for Episode 9, titled “Dear Andaman”, was a nod to the Andaman Sea in Southern Thailand.

“Southern [Thai] food has a distinctive and unique flavor. This is because the Southern region used to be a center for maritime trade by merchants from India, China, and Java… The origins of the use of various spices in cooking can still be seen today.” —Pao Thampitak

According to Pao, the cuisine of Southern Thailand is characterized by spicy and bold flavors, and their use of curry paste which are packed with various herbs.

I asked him to give me some brief flavor profiles to consider in my wine selections for this menu. He said, “fishy, funky, salty, spicy, and some sweetness”. Not really much of a focal point to work with. That is not even including the garnishes which can add more layers of aromatics. Having been to one of his dinners earlier this year though, I knew that these dishes would be way more complex.

I knew that I would not be able to find much on wine pairing for a menu like this. In all my years in this industry what I was taught was that Riesling and other sweet whites paired with “Asian food” and aromatic whites with “exotic” notes went with cuisines with “exotic spices”.

Google was not helpful in my preparation for this dinner but Google is not to be blamed here. Google only knows the information we give it. I got plenty of results on how to pair wine with Pad Thai when I searched for “authentic Thai cuisine”. Pao would tell you that those Pad Thai recipes are not even the authentic ones. Where was wine pairing suggestions for “clams with fermented shrimp sauce, lemon grass, and kaffir lime”?!

The menu: Episode 9, “Dear Andaman”

How did I chose the wines?

I am fortunate to have close friends from different cultures. Through them I’ve been able to experience their food and expand my understanding of ingredients unique to each cuisine. For our gatherings I am usually the one bringing the wine. I’m glad for this role because it has given me many opportunities to test out wine pairings.

While there are little to no references in the wine industry to guide me with pairing wine and authentic cuisines of the global South, I have been able to draw references from my personal studies.

My thought process for this menu:

I started out by looking at the ‘big picture’ of the menu: very spicy (chili paste), funky (fermented fish + shrimp sauce), salty/briny and lots of aromatics (fresh coconut, Thai Basil, lemon grass, and kefir limes).
I then ruled out grape varietals or styles that I knew would not work: avoided big reds (tannins + high alcohol) and overly ripe/big body whites or overly aromatic whites from warm climates (overwhelming aromatics + weighty).
I focused on varietals that were aromatic (from relatively cooler climates) on the nose and could stand on their own (Pinot Grigio would have no chance).
For red wine I wanted light body and low tannins, medium acidity with some fruit, and no oak or very light touch on the oak.
Given that this dinner was not served in courses, I wanted every bottle of wine to work well with the various dishes on the table. I chose wines that did not “disrupt” the table.
And absolutely NO RIESLING; not as a single varietal anyway. I wanted to make a point that there are plenty of options of wines to pair with cuisines throughout Asia that do not have to be Riesling.

Here is the line-up

From left to right:

Leipold’s Silvaner from Germany, Txomin Txakolina Rose from Spain, Big Salt (blend of Riesling/Gewurzt/Muscat) from Oregon, Botani Moscatel from Malaga, Fratelli Pelaverga from Piedmont, Botani Garnacha from Malaga and Kloster Neustift Kerner from Alto-Adige (not pictured).