Happy Cinco de Mayo! We’re celebrating tonight by preparing some tasty homemade tacos and pairing them with some delicious Iowa wines. Who says you have to drink a margarita on Cinco de Mayo anyway (although we do appreciate a solid margarita from time to time!)?!? And seriously, who DOESN’T love tacos?? For real though, I would trade my right arm for a lifetime supply of tacos. OMG, I’m kidding (sort of..).

Check out our top picks for pairing Iowa wines to stand up to the flavor and spices in tacos.

Chicken tacos can be prepared a number of ways, whether chicken is served shredded with spices or simmered in a spicy red sauce, in which case you’d want to pop open a bottle of Frontenac.

Frontenac

Frontenac wines tend to be big and bold, whose aroma and flavor are primarily cherry, with hints of black currant and other berries. Frontenac wines are typically deeply colored and Frontenac is fantastic paired with the cumin and chili pepper combo of spices.

Frontenac Gris

For shredded chicken tacos without a sauce, consider a rosé or blush wine, such as a Frontenac Gris, which would compliment a cabbage slaw or tart squeeze of lime with crème fraîche (or plain ol’ sour cream for us basic folk!) on top.

Check out some of Iowa’s Frontenac wines you can order online here or read up on some of our fave Iowa rosés here.

Mmmm…fish tacos! Now, while Iowa can get a bad rap sometimes about being smack dab in the middle of the US, and therefore not having as much access to fresh fish as the coastlines, there are still plenty of opportunities to enjoy frozen or fish flown in just as tasty as fresh from the dock, one of which is, you guessed it, fish tacos! You’d want to pair fish tacos with a white wine, preferably one that is crisp and clean with fruity notes. Some of our fave wines to pair with fish, no matter how it’s prepared, would be Seyval Blanc, La Crosse or St. Pepin.

Seyval Blanc

Seyval Blanc wines tend to have distinct citrus elements in the aroma and taste, as well as a minerality and high acid content that is like a match made in heaven with buttery cod or another flaky white fish. Check out Seyval Blanc wines available to purchase online.

La Crosse

La Crosse wines are typically off-dry to semi-sweet in style, with pear and citrus on the nose and a crisp, clean finish, oftentimes with a hint of oak, which is nice with a variety of fish dishes, tacos included. Fun Fact: Seyval Blanc is a parent grape of the hybrid La Crosse, so no wonder they are similar! Check out La Crosse wines available to purchase online.

St. Pepin

St. Pepin is another “sister grape” of La Crosse, and can you even imagine the type of family reunions these crazy “new” grapes would have?!? I digress. St. Pepin is light, crisp and slightly acidic with bright citrus and sometimes even minerally flavors and evident lemony citrus notes on the nose. Check out St. Pepin wines available to purchase online.

As Iowans, we know a thing or two about beef, and 9 times out of 10 it’s what’s our tacos are made with in my house. Lucky for you, we have some fabulous Iowa wines to pair with your beef tacos, whether they’re plain jane ground beef ones with a packet of taco seasoning or bold and sauce barbacoa tacos with all the fixins on top. Let’s get started, shall we?

Marquette

Marquette wines are typically medium bodied, with aromas of cherries, blackcurrants and blackberries and are usually dry to off-dry in style. The boldness of the Marquette grapes stand up well to the fattiness of beef and spices, making it a really nice combo of flavors. Check out Marquette wines available to purchase online.

Marechal Foch

Marechal Foch wines tend to be light to medium bodied, with earthy, herbaceous and jammy dark berry fruit. Foch’s slight smokiness flavor and substantial acid also make it perfect to stand up to spicy Mexican food. Check out Marechal Foch wines available to purchase online.

Those are our top picks, but what’s your favorite wine to pair with tacos? Drop a comment below and whatever it is, cheers and happy Cinco de Mayo!