Red Wine With Fish?

This particular question came from a reader who wanted to serve red wine with a fresh tuna dish that looked delicious, using the aromatic flavors of cumin and saffron, with an eggplant side dish.

As a robust, rather oily, dark-fleshed fish, even the palest albacore tuna goes very well with red wine, provided you don't choose one that's too harshly tannic. An aromatic, full-flavored entree like this would make a red-wine match even more of a delight, pointing up the important factor that sauces, spices and accompaniments can really alter the traditional rules governing the marriage of food and wine!

I suggested that this reader consider either a Beaujolais-style wine -- perhaps one of the "grand cru" Beaujolais such as a Moulin-a-Vent, Morgon or Fleurie -- or else one of the many deliciously fruity Pinot Noirs that are coming from California's Central Coast and Santa Barbara areas nowadays. The Wild Horse 1994 Pinot Noir is a particularly good one, not terribly expensive, that I've enjoyed a couple of times lately. I think it would be an exceptional match with fresh tuna.

Other rich, dark and oily fish that particularly suggest red-wine accompaniments include mackerel, bluefish, and -- particularly with Pinot Noir -- grilled salmon.