The Best Type Of Wine To Pair With Steak Tartare

Although it is certainly possible to make a delicious steak tartare at home, the divisive dish of chopped raw beef — often served with a raw egg yolk, raw onions, chopped gherkin, capers, and mustard — is often more commonly enjoyed at a restaurant. Wherever you decide to enjoy your steak tartare, you'll probably want a glass of wine to go along with it; serving the right wine can help elevate the dish and your overall enjoyment of what was once the snack of warriors, while the wrong one can take away from the entire culinary experience. We spoke with Amy Racine, beverage director and partner at JF Restaurants, to get her recommendation for the best wine pairing. Her pick is not one that you would automatically think of pairing with steak since it's a white wine: Chablis.

However, as Racine explained, "Chablis's high acidity and crispness make it an ideal pairing for steak tartare. The wine's refreshing character cuts through the richness of the raw beef and brings out the pickled and mustard seasonings in the tartare." She also noted a few other reasons why this is such a good choice. "Chablis's pronounced minerality acts as seasoning over the beef in its raw form and the button mushroom notes complement the earthy flavors of the steak," Racine continued.

Made from the chardonnay grape in the Chablis area of France's northern Burgundy region, and available in four different appellations (Petite Chablis, Chablis, Premier Cru, and Chablis Grand Cru), Chablis wine is known for its pronounced acidity, freshness, and, as Amy Racine mentioned, its minerality. As a result, Chablis makes for an ideal complementary wine pairing to a rich dish such as steak tartare, and it provides both a counterbalance and contrast to the food. In this case, the acidity in the Chablis can help cut through the richness and fattiness of the steak tartare, serving as a palate cleanser of sorts.

Chablis is also known to pair beautifully with other decadent ingredients and rich dishes such as raw oysters on the half shell, foie gras, escargot in a butter and garlic sauce, and seared scallops. This means you can pair that bottle of Chablis across an entire meal when out dining at your favorite French bistro, though for a truly special and memorable meal, you may want to order a few bottles to enjoy, and to last you through the entire meal.