Fish and red wine

[Ron Johnson]

Many folks are of the opinion that fish, shellfish, etc. simply do not pair well with red wine. In your experience as a chef known for excellent preparation of both, what is your opinion on this issue? I know that I rarely order a fish dish for my main course because I want to have a red wine. Am I missing out? Northern Rhones are my favorites reds, do you have any recommendations for particular preparations of or types of fish that would pair well with a Cote Rotie, for example?

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[Eric Ripert]

I love red Bordeaux and nothing stops me from drinking it. If I have a very refined dinner, one that does not have meat or red wine based sauce in the recipe, I usually drink white.

Sea urchin, caviar, oysters, scallops, snapper and other white lean fishes go well with white wine. More meaty fishes like grouper, monk or even lobster can go very well with red wine....especially if the preparation uses mushrooms, a lot of garlic, truffles, meat jus, foie gras or red wine sauce, or even a balsamic or sherry vinegar reduction.