Are you a pasta lover too? Welcome to the pasta party! This delicacy made from durum wheat – pasta – comes in all shapes between heaven and earth. You'll find everything from homey macaroni to long spaghetti, spiral-shaped fusilli, shell-like gnocchi, vermicelli, tube-shaped penne pasta, and large tunnel-like cannelloni. Not to mention tagliatelle, ravioli, fun shaped pastas, or good old lasagna sheets!
Fillings and seasonings vary at least as much as the shape of the pasta, so when it comes to pasta, we're not talking about rigid culinary formulas. Classic dishes include pasta carbonara, tuna pasta, macaroni casserole, or pasta bolognese, but you can slip just about anything else into the sauce, like mushrooms, shellfish, or even trendy nduja, a spicy and fatty sausage from Calabria in Southern Italy.
The amount of cheese isn't always constant, and the sauces vary from soft and creamy to rich tomato-based. So pasta has many faces, but we can all agree on one thing – it's wonderfully filling!
Seafood, meaty, and vegetable-laden pastas are like different personalities, and for a fine Italian companion, you naturally want to offer thoughtfully selected wine. What kinds of wines would each type of pasta enjoy?
Best for Bacon Pasta
Pasta carbonara, or ”charcoal burner's spaghetti,” is a succulent bacon pasta that pairs particularly well with many red wines, such as Trevisana Bio Merlot or Casa Charlize Cuvee Forte Toscana Rosso IGT.
Trevisana Bio Merlot is a wonderfully juicy and flavorful wine for pastas and pizzas, produced organically. No sulfites have been added to the wine, and it's also suitable for a vegan diet. The medium-bodied wine features cherries, cranberry, and even a subtle olive note.
Casa Charlize Cuvee Forte Toscana Rosso IGT is a full-bodied glass of Italian longing. With this one, you don't need to skimp on the cheese – the richer the food, the better! Pizzas, pastas, cheeses, and meats are this wine's specialty. The wine is also suitable for vegans.
For the Connoisseurs
If these are already familiar to you, we warmly recommend trying the delightful Maraia Barbera del Monferrato, which is made for carbonara. It's a very high-quality and berry-forward red wine made from the Barbera grape, suitable for many meat dishes, richly flavored cheeses, pizza, and pasta. Compared to Nebbiolo, another red grape variety from the Piedmont region, Barbera produces wines that are more approachable and softer, but also rich and flavorful.
You can conveniently and quickly order it from Alko's online store at no extra charge, and it will be delivered to your chosen store.
You can find price and product information here.
Hold On Tight – Here Comes Nduja
And what about that nduja? Hard to pronounce, easy to enjoy – just like the wine pairing chosen for it, Mezzacorona Gewürztraminer! Tongue-twister first, then water on the tongue. With pasta made from fatty and spicy nduja sausage, you're deliciously riding the wave of fashion, and Gewürztraminer takes it on like a surfer. The grape might surprise you on first taste, but it's truly charming. This dry, clean-lined, and beautifully aromatic sipping wine represents the best of its variety.
You can find price and product information here.
Treasures from the Sea for Crudo
Seafood creates both everyday and more festive classics, such as easy tuna pasta or luxurious salmon pasta. Fish-based pastas enjoy the company of white wines, and what could be more suitable for the task than the ”octopus wine,” Crudo!
Crudo Catarratto-Zibibbo is a juicy organic wine from Sicily, and this off-dry wine is easy to approach. The Zibibbo grape gives the wine rich aromatics, and Catarratto brings good acidity and structure.
You can find Crudo Catarratto-Zibibbo in three sizes: as a half bottle 0.375 l, regular 0.75 l bottle, and 3-liter bag-in-box.
You can find price and product information here.
By the way, did you know that you can also make incredibly good and crispy ”chips” out of pasta? These crunchy snacks are easily made in the oven or an Air Fryer! If you fry the chips in an Air Fryer, boil them until fully cooked (not al dente), contrary to the recipe below.
Pasta Chips
- pasta (for example rigatoni or penne)
- cooking oil
- parmesan
- salt and pepper
- garlic
Cook an appropriate amount of pasta al dente, meaning cooked with a slight bite. Drain the cooking water and let the pasta dry, after which you can transfer the pasta to a bowl and mix in a little cooking oil.
Heat the oven to 220 degrees, pour the pasta onto parchment paper on a baking sheet and bake for about 20 minutes. Be careful not to let the pasta burn!
When the pasta has baked crispy, mix cooking oil, garlic, salt, and pepper in a bowl and combine the mixture with the crispy baked pasta chips. Top generously with parmesan, and dig in! Also try with dipping sauces!
A Pasta Thing, Right
With pasta chips, we recommend Soligo Prosecco DOC Treviso Brut, which is a fantastic prosecco with savory snacks! The stylish sparkling wine is easy to approach and also suitable for vegans.
The slow fermentation of Glera grapes grown in the Treviso region vineyards with selected yeasts in steel tanks has preserved the fresh fruitiness, and the wine has the pear-like character typical of Glera.
Here's a refreshing glass with small snacks and best friends!
You can find price and product information here.
Order Your Pasta Wines!
Ordering is easy. By clicking ”Go to order,” you will be taken to the Alko online store, where these wines have already been searched for you. You can move the wines you want to your shopping cart and choose delivery to your preferred store. Alko is responsible for the order, and there is no extra charge for ordering.
