Preztels with wine? We enjoy occasional visits to Auntie Anne’s or Wetzel’s Pretzels when visiting a mall or killing time in an airport, but never had we thought about eating this warm, chewy treat with a glass of wine.
Never, that is, until we visited Switzerland and encountered the Brezelkonig kiosk at the main train station in Lucerne. We saw lots of people lined up to get their midday snack, and then we spotted a number of other people sitting nearby with pretzels and small bottles of wine — the latter, we learned, purchased at a nearby convenience store.
We didn’t really know what to think of this seemingly unusual pairing. So, we decided to give it a try.
We ordered a plain pretzel and a sesam (that’s how sesame was spelled on the menu), and then headed over to the convenience store. To our surprise, there were several types of wine available, all in those small, single-serving bottles.
Only one problem: They were Swiss wines… something we knew next to nothing about.
Fortunately, the cashier spoke English. We asked her for some help, and told we’d like to try two different wines. She recommended two whites, and we were on our way.
The wines were light-bodied and lacking much fruit flavor. But they were well chilled, and went just fine with the salty pretzels.
But what about pretzels with other, more assertive flavors — the kind you might find at your local mall, airport, or other pretzel purveyor? As always, it’s best to match the wine with the dominant flavor of the food. Here are a few suggestions:
- With a pepperoni pretzel — Zinfandel or Petite Sirah.
- With a roasted garlic and Parmesan pretzel — Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot or Syrah.
- With a sour cream and onion pretzel — Chardonnay.
Who knew that pretzels could be such versatile wine pairing partners?
The Swiss — that’s who!
