Duck Wine Pairing: 11 Most Popular Duck Dishes

Duck wine pairing is a little tricky because although duck is technically a poultry product, its firm texture and gamey flavor qualify it as dark meat. There are myriad ways to prepare duck, each highlighting its unique characteristics. These duck recipes pair well with a wide range of wines, from aromatic white wines to light-bodied reds to rich dessert wines. I’ve provided an easy to follow guide to wine pairing with duck, highlighting some of my most successful and favorite duck wine pairings.

Characteristic of Duck to Consider when Pairing Wine

Duck is poultry but dominantly dark meat. Duck is heavier than chicken but more delicate and tender than red meat. It can be cooked in various ways and each of those preparations warrant a different duck wine pairing.

Duck is richer and fattier than chicken, so the wine pairings can be a bit more bold than your average white wine. To balance the naturally fatty, rich meat of the duck, a wine that is high in acid is the best choice. When choosing white wine to go with duck, aim for a fuller bodied expression of that particular varietal. Red wines shouldn’t overpower the duck so here we want lighter styles that aren’t immensely tannic. Fruitier red wines tend to get best with duck.

Red or White Wine with Duck?

Duck is the best of both worlds- technically a poultry but the flavor profile more closely matches red meat. Duck is richer than most poultry but lighter than beef so the balance can be made right in the middle with lighter reds and bolder whites.

Regardless of which wines you choose, the sauce and sides will play a significant role in the flavor profile of the duck dish you will be cooking and that can be the determining factor of whether to choose red or white wine with duck.

Best Wines To Pair With Duck

The best wine to pair with duck depends on the preparation however, for simplicity sake, the following wines are a great starting point for your duck wine pairing.

Sparkling Wine with Duck

I’m a sucker for bubbles. I’d pair every dish with Champagne and be perfectly content for the rest of my life. Champagne is a great pairing with duck because Champagne has a high amount of acid to cut through the duck fat. I especially like Champagne with any appetizers that are prepared with duck or, as you may have guessed, Champagne and duck fat fries. Sparkling rosé also pairs great with duck. If you’re more of a Prosecco fan, aim for duck dishes with sweeter sauces.

• Champagne
• Sparkling Rosé
• Prosecco

White Wine with Duck

White wines are best to go with duck that’s prepared with fruit glazes and sauces. Most of the Asian-styles of duck whether sweet or spicy will beg for a white wine with a touch of sweetness, too. For white wine drinkers who are looking to pair heavier duck dishes with wine, look for white wines with more guts so either oak-aged or from great producers.

• Chenin Blanc– off dry Chenin Blanc is divine with sweeter Asian-style preparations of duck. Oaked Chenin is a good option for a white wine with roasted duck.
• Chardonnay– white Burgundy goes especially well with duck confit
• Zibibbo– especially orange wine of Zibibbo is amazing with duck a’la orange…or maybe the colors are just tricking me
• Riesling– with its high acidity and slightly sweet options, Riesling goes with nearly all duck preparations
• Gewurztraminer– again, a touch of sweetness really helps the duck wine pairing here, especially with Thai orange duck or Bahn Mi
• Viognier– crispy Chinese duck with a peach glaze is great with Viognier as it brings out the peach aromas

Red Wine Pairing with Duck

Red wines are generally better suited to pair with roasted duck and seared duck breast. When duck is accompanied by root vegetables like beets, potatoes, or turnips, turn to a red wine pairing.

• Pinot Noir– the safest and most tried and true wine to go with duck
• Gamay– deliciously fruity and great with duck in a red fruit glaze
• Malbec– grilled duck or duck breast goes best with Malbec
• Syrah– any duck with a pepper sauce or a nicely crisped skin will pair with Syrah
• Tempranillo– a younger Rioja goes gloriously with duck breast filet
• Merlot– duck with plum sauce needs Merlot
• Cabernet Franc– especially from Villany, Hungary, Cabernet Franc is awesome with marinated duck with jalapeño poppers
• Barolo– roasted duck served with root vegetables like beets, mushrooms, or turnips are great with Barolo

10 Popular Duck Recipes with Wine Pairing

Duck confit

Duck confit is cured duck legs, usually done overnight and cooked in duck fat. This dish needs a wine with a lot of acidity. Traditionally Pinot Noir works pairs well with duck confit, but a white Burgundy is also an excellent choice. Sparkling wine also works splendidly with duck confit.

Peking duck

Peking duck is slightly spicy, slightly sweet, and very crispy. It’s one of the most popular preparations of duck. Pair Peking duck with Syrah/Shiraz, Zinfandel, Malbec, or any other fruit forward red wine. For white wine pairing with Peking duck, try a Chenin from South Africa or a even a white port.

Duck a l’Orange

A off dry Riesling or a Malagousia from Greece are great choices to pair with duck a l’Orange. As the name suggests it’s duck prepared with fresh oranges and orange liqueur. White wine is the optimal choice here but if you must have a red, Gamay or Zin are good options.

Smoked duck

Smoked duck pairs best with some of the richer red wines listed. Syrah always complements a smokey flavor in foods. Malbec would also be a nice smoked duck wine pairing.

Duck Fesenjan

This ancient Persian duck dish is served with a pomegranate sauce. These bright red fruit flavors are great with a Grenache based Rhone wine. A California red Zinfandel would also bring out a lot of the sweetness in from the fruit sauce as well.

Duck pancakes

Duck pancakes are filled with crispy duck, julienned vegetables, and served with Hoisin sauce. The best wine pairing with duck pancakes will be a wine that can handle the sweet and salty of the Hoisin sauce. Personally, I like a Syrah with duck pancakes, but could see Cabernet Franc being an interest pairing as well.

Christmas duck wine pairing

Wine pairing with Christmas duck is pretty flexible. You could opt for a red wine like Pinot Noir or Gamay, or go with an Alsatian Pinot Gris.

Duck bahn mi

The fresh flavors of duck bahn mi pair great with a crisper white wine like Chenin Blanc. I could even picture Torrontes being an excellent wine pairing with this dish. Another great choice would be Viognier.

Duck red curry with lychee and pineapple

The best wine pairing with duck red curry is Gewurztraminer. I mean, the minute you see lychee in a recipe, jump on Gewurz. The wine also has a touch of sweetness which is nice if you like your curry a bit spicier. A dry Furmint from Hungary will also work if you want a bit more acidity in your wine.

Crispy Chinese duck with peaches

Similarly to Gewurztraminer and lychee, anytime you see a peach glaze, think Viognier. A richer style of Viognier from the Northern Rhone is perfect with crispy Chinese duck.

Foie Gras and Sauternes

We cannot forget the greatest duck wine pairing of all time, foie gras and Sauternes. Foie gras is the controversial duck liver dish that’s prepared essentially by force feeding the duck, sad…but delicious. Sauternes is a wine region in Bordeaux that makes dessert style wines of Semillon and Sauvignon Blanc by using grapes effected by botrytis, or noble rot.

This is one of those classic wine pairings that should be experienced at least once in your life. It’s really that good. The reason it works is because there’s balance- rich and fatty dish with a syrupy wine with racing acidity. It is super indulgent and spectacular.

Foie Gras can also be paired with a lovely Port wine.

Duck Wine Pairing Conclusion

Duck is a lot more versatile of a meat than one might expect. It’s surprisingly easy to prepare and shouldn’t just be reserved for special occasions. I hope you found this duck wine pairing guide inspiring. In the end, my best advice is to drink the wine you like and adjust the duck recipe to accommodate it.

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