Chicken alfredo is a much-loved Italian dish—and with good reason. The combination of decadent, creamy Alfredo sauce over savory chicken and pasta is the ultimate comfort food. And the good news is there are plenty of wines you can pair with this traditional dish, whether you prefer red or white wine.
If you’re preparing chicken alfredo for your next family dinner and are wondering what to serve with it, look no further. This is my list of the top wine varietals that will complement the rich flavors of any chicken alfredo (and why each of them can work!).
Some are household names in the world of wine, and some are a little more unusual. Whichever you go with, I’m sure you won’t be disappointed.
Pinot Grigio
An easy wine choice to pair with your chicken alfredo is Pinot Grigio. It’s a medium-bodied white wine that hails from Italy, which makes it the perfect accompaniment to this Italian dish.
White wine is always a great choice for any dish with a cream sauce or where the main protein is chicken, and Pinot Grigio is no exception. An Italian Pinot Grigio will have notes of honeysuckle, pear, green apple, and some citrus fruits, which balances the richness of this dish.
Pinot Grigio is great because it offers a great balance of sweetness and mineral notes, so it won’t overtake the flavors in your chicken alfredo. It will be a refreshing wine to sip alongside it to enhance the meal.
Pinot Noir
If you’re making chicken alfredo but you have your heart set on serving red wine, Pinot Noir is a great option. It’s a light-to-medium-bodied red wine with a lot of acidity that provides a nice contrast to any alfredo dish.
Pinot Noir is a very easy-drinking red wine and is very food-friendly. It is a great wine to serve for guests because it is often very well received by both red wine and white wine drinkers alike.
You will taste notes of tart cherry, raspberry, strawberry, vanilla, and spices, which pairs well with a chicken alfredo. Bonus points if your alfredo recipe includes mushrooms as Pinot Noir beautifully complements the earthiness of mushrooms in any meal.
Chardonnay
Chardonnay is a fantastic white wine to serve with any chicken alfredo dish. It’s a medium-bodied white wine like Pinot Grigio, but what sets it apart is the buttery and oaky qualities that are unique to Chardonnay.
Serving Chardonnay with a chicken alfredo dish is a no-brainer, especially a buttery Chardonnay from California. The creamy richness of the wine combined with the flavors of pear, apple, peach, vanilla, and caramel makes it such a flavorful pairing with the alfredo sauce.
When choosing a Chardonnay for your chicken alfredo, you want to make sure that you select one with subtle oaky qualities. If the oaked flavor is too strong, it may overpower and change the taste of your meal. A well-balanced California Chardonnay is an ideal choice.
Barbera
If you’re looking for another red wine to go with chicken alfredo, Barbera is perfect. This red varietal is a classic Italian wine that is often found in red blends but is delicious on its own as well. Barbera has a very light, juicy flavor and high acidity, which offsets rich entrees like alfredo.
Barbera is bursting with bright, fruity notes of blueberry, cherry, blackberry, raspberry, and subtle baking spice. It can taste sour, which complements a creamy, savory chicken dish. It’s a favorite even for those who aren’t wine drinkers because it doesn’t have a very strong alcoholic taste.
Because of its earthy, spicy undertones, Barbera is another wine that accentuates the flavor in mushrooms, which are commonly found in chicken alfredo recipes.
Orvieto
Another little-known white wine varietal from Italy, Orvieto pairs well with chicken alfredo as well. It’s a light white wine that is known for its very pale yellow color. Orvieto is very subtle and has a slight minerality that nicely balances the savory cream sauce in a chicken alfredo.
Orvieto is a great, light-tasting wine that is sure to be a crowd-pleaser. With notes of apple, pear, and peach, it is fruity without being sweet. It is actually a very dry wine that sometimes has a bitter aftertaste like a Sauvignon Blanc.
Chicken alfredo has so much rich flavor, a simple wine like Orvieto is a great option when you don’t want your wine to overpower the dish. Sometimes even the most well-intentioned wine can be too flavorful for its own good when paired with food, but Orvieto is different.
If you are making an alfredo recipe with lots of added vegetables, spices, or even adding additional protein like bacon or shrimp, Orvieto is the wine you want. It tastes great on its own, but it will let the flavors in your meal stand alone without upstaging it.
Beaujolais
Before you assume that only Italian or American wines pair well with chicken alfredo, give Beaujolais a try. This red varietal is France’s answer to Italy’s Pinot Noir. It is similarly medium-bodied, highly acidic, and has smooth tannins.
Beaujolais has a very similar taste profile to a Pinot Noir or Barbera, so it’s a great alternative to serve alongside chicken alfredo if you’re looking to try something new. The crisp fruity notes of cranberry, raspberry, blackberry, and red currant make this wine a great companion to alfredo.
One of the best things about Beaujolais is that it’s very budget-friendly. You can find a very nice bottle of Beaujolais for under $20 in most places. This is a great wine to take to a dinner party where chicken alfredo will be served because it’s easy to find, inexpensive, and delicious.
Viognier
To round out this list with another white wine choice, enter the French Viognier.
This rich, perfumey varietal pairs so well with chicken alfredo in a way that’s slightly different than the Italian white wines. As a full-bodied, spicy wine with high alcohol, Viognier brings out the flavors of the dish in a unique way.
Viognier is very juicy and is full of round, supple flavors of peach, mango, tangerine, honeysuckle, vanilla, and even nutmeg. It is very smooth and the subtle sweetness will accentuate the creamy, buttery flavor in this iconic dish.