From Mezze to Main: Wines That Complement Lebanese Flavors

On January 2, 2021, we lost my Sita (my great grandmother) to COVID-19. Not many people get to meet their great grandmothers, but I am so blessed to have gotten to know mine. I miss Sita a lot, but I know she will always be watching over me like a guardian angel. I see funny traits of hers in my grandma. Sita was always humming to the tune of something while cooking or cleaning, and even when she didn’t know the song, she would still hum to it. My grandma also does the same when we go shopping and it’s little habits like those that will continue to keep her memory alive.

One of my cousins wrote a beautiful tribute to Sita on Facebook where he noted that she always used to pick up crumbs and specks of dirt on the ground without going to to get a vacuum and it just made me laugh because she would also hum while she was picking up said crumbs. She also had a sweet tooth and would be ecstatic when my grandma brought her cookies and See’s candy.

Growing up, Sita always made sure I had something to eat when she would visit. I would walk into the house and not even three minutes later, she was asking me if she could fix me something to eat. Even if I had already eaten, I’d say yes. What crazy person says no to food from their great grandmother?! I remember being five and fighting with my cousin about whose Sita she was and she just said that she was Sita to both of us and of course, fixed us a snack.

I think I was in high school when she was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s and started losing her memory. And even though it was sad to watch her memory fade, she was always in high spirits and brightened every room she walked into. She started forgetting how old I was when I was in college and so she’d always ask what I was up to. When I told her about college she’d tell the story of how the law office she was working at let her take classes and how much she loved taking them. Then she would completely forget we had that conversation and tell the story two to three more times until my grandma would walk in the room and say, “Mom, you’ve already told us this!” Honestly, I was going to let Sita keep retelling the story because she seemed so happy to share it! This would happen every single time I came to visit and I just thought it was the funniest thing. If you’re wondering, I’ve heard the story about 40 times, and it’s a memory I will cherish forever.

I was also lucky to have Sita in my life because she shared her Lebanese culture with me through her cooking. My favorite Lebanese dish that she made was cabbage rolls and they’ve always been a comfort food to me instead of the usual comfort food like mac ‘n’ cheese or mashed potatoes. It wasn’t until I was making cabbage rolls to feature here on my blog when I realized just how much Sita loved me. Gathering the ingredients was fairly easy, but rolling the meat and rice in the cabbage is difficult! And not only is it difficult to make perfectly tight rolls, it’s also time consuming. I remember being around eleven when I helped Sita roll and she said, “They’re good,” and promptly rerolled them. That was the last time I was asked to help with cabbage rolls. The effort to make them is worth it because they always turn out so delicious. I know she would be proud that I finally made them on my own after almost 25 years even though I accidentally used long grain rice instead of medium grain rice. Oops!

In her honor, I wanted to dedicate this blog post to Sita and pair wines with Lebanese recipes she shared with her family throughout the years. Sita meant a lot to me and I know she touched so many other people’s lives with her kindness and warmth.

Here are some recommended wine pairings with Lebanese food:

Cabbage Rolls and Sangiovese

I might be a little biased by pairing my favorite Lebanese food with my favorite wine varietal, but hear me out. Sangiovese is amazing with tomato-based sauce which is exactly what cabbage rolls have. Cabbage rolls are just cabbage stuffed with a mixture of lamb, beef, rice, and spices. The Sangiovese complements the acidity of the tomato sauce while also cutting through the fattiness of the lamb and beef mixture making it a pairing sent from heaven. You could also pair cabbage rolls with Barbera if you wanted a wine that was a little more fruit-forward and less earthy than Sangiovese, but I think that Sangiovese pairs perfectly.

Grape Leaves and Sauvignon Blanc

Grape leaves have the same filling as cabbage rolls; however, the meat and rice mixture is wrapped in grape leaves and instead of tomato sauce, they’re boiled in water and lemon juice. To balance the acidity of the lemon in the recipe, an acidic white wine will do the trick except you’ll want to try one that is aromatic because you don’t want the grape leaves to overpower the wine. I opted for Sauvignon Blanc because it’s a little bit easier to find in your local grocery store or BevMo than Albariño or Falanghina, but those would also be delightful with this dish. Sauvignon Blanc is high in acidity and usually has flavors of citrus and some grassy notes that would taste divine with stuffed grape leaves.

Baked Kibbeh and Cabernet Sauvignon

How do I explain Kibbeh? Kibbeh is essentially the stuffing of a cabbage roll, but instead of rice, there’s cracked wheat. According to the internet, pine nuts can be incorporated into the recipe, but I don’t think Sita made hers with pine nuts. Not that I can recall anyway. If you have a Lebanese red wine (or can easily find one), you should pair it with this dish, but if you don’t, Cabernet Sauvignon will pair wonderfully. Cabernet is pretty versatile (in my opinion) and easy to find plus, I think it would really bring out the flavors of the lamb and beef in the Kibbeh.

Tabbouleh and Grüner Veltliner

Growing up, Tabbouleh was one of those things I ate to be polite because I wasn’t a huge fan of all of the parsley in it, but as I got older, I started to appreciate it a lot more. Tabbouleh is a salad made from parsley, cracked wheat, cucumbers, tomatoes, and if I remember correctly, there was some lemon too. The one thing I definitely do remember is the parsley because there is a lot of it, which makes the salad really refreshing and herbaceous. Grüner Veltliner would be an outstanding match because of its incredible herbaceous flavors and zippy acidity, but if you can’t find Grüner Veltliner at the store, Sauvignon Blanc would also pair well with Tabbouleh.