Don’t have time to put together an elaborate charcuterie? There’s more to wine night snacks than you might think!
When you’re eager to pop open a bottle of wine and relax, putting together a complex dish might be the last thing on your mind. Fortunately, wine night snacks can be a straightforward affair with a few ingredients or a mini-dinner to please your guests. In fact, you may have plenty of ingredients to choose from in your kitchen already!
Below is our wine night snack recipes separated by wine type and complexity, right alongside a basic ingredient list with popular pantry staples. We’ll include some vegetarian options in each section, too!
Simple Wine Night Snacks
The first wine night snacks we’ll start with are simple enough to be slapped together with just a few ingredients. You also won’t need to do much extra besides toasting or layering.
Toasted Pita Bread and Hummus Dip
When you’re low on time and ingredients, there’s nothing quite like a nice dip to go with your glass of wine. Stick your pita bread in the toaster for a minute or two to get a little charr with your hummus.
Hummus is a flexible foundation that can be eaten as is or mixed with the following ingredients:
- Toasted pita bread
- Garlic
- Red pepper
- Almonds
- Cranberries
- Herbs
Pair This Treat With Sangiovese or Oaked Chardonnay
The slightly nutty flavor of hummus alongside the subtle charr of your toasted pita will stand out nicely with an oaked chardonnay. This white wine offers a buttery contrast to savory dishes.
If you prefer red wine, sangiovese’s blend of red fruit and vegetal notes will make your hummus taste savory.
Sourdough With a Tomato Smear, Olive Oil, and Balsamic Vinaigrette
Our next wine snack is a little taste of Italy that’s easy to put together with these common pantry ingredients:
- A few slices of toasted sourdough
- Tomato sauce (or basil pasta sauce)
- Olive oil
- Balsamic vinaigrette
- Spices such as onion powder, black pepper, or garlic powder
Don’t stick oiled bread in your toaster or toaster oven! Pan-fry your sourdough in the oil instead, then spread tomato sauce and vinaigrette on top once you’re done. A sprinkle of parsley, onion powder, and black pepper on top will round things out nicely.
Pair This Treat With Cabernet Sauvignon or Unoaked Pinot Noir
This pizza-like snack needs a robust red wine to make its flavors pop. Cabernet sauvignon’s dark fruit and bell pepper notes are a classic contrast with your tomato and spice toast.
If you want to go a little lighter on the wine, the medium-bodied and tart pinot noir is another tasty choice. Go for an unoaked bottle to get more of the strawberry and raspberry sweetness.
Goat Cheese and Cranberry Crackers
If you crave a sweet-yet-salty contrast, you can’t go wrong with this simple wine snack. You need just three ingredients here:
- Salted or unsalted crackers
- Goat cheese
- Cranberries
While feta is plenty tasty, it’s too dry and crumbly for crackers. Try soft or semi-soft goat cheese like chabichou or cabécou you can more easily spread. You can then top things off with a smudge of cranberry sauce or by sprinkling dried cranberries on top.
Pair This Treat With Syrah or Unoaked Chardonnay
Unoaked chardonnay will give you yellow fruit or tropical fruit notes to make your goat cheese taste extra tangy.
If you want your goat cheese to taste saltier, try an oaked or unoaked syrah instead. The contrast is more intense here thanks to the wine’s propensity for dark fruit, smoked meat, and pepper notes.
Dark Chocolate and White Chocolate Dipped Strawberries
Got a sweet tooth that needs satisfying? This recipe needs just a handful of ingredients:
- Fresh strawberries
- Dark chocolate
- White chocolate
Alternating between dark chocolate and white chocolate will add an element of fun to an otherwise elegantly simple wine snack. You can add a little whipping cream to your fondue to make it thicker or leave it out to reduce calories.
Pair This Treat With Pinot Noir, Cabernet Sauvignon, or Zinfandel
Chocolate fondue wine pairings are best with hefty red wines: cabernet sauvignon and zinfandel are both heavy on the tannins and, thus, heavy on the contrast. Your food will taste sweeter and your wine will taste more savory!
Pinot noir is a solid alternative if you prefer slightly sweeter (and similar) flavor notes that still won’t overshadow your treat.
Intermediate Wine Night Snacks
These recipes will require a little planning and cooking, but they’re still simple enough to count as a spontaneous snack!
Feta Cheese and Mozzarella Spinach Pretzel Bites With Dipping Sauce
Soft and savory, these pretzel bites will practically melt in your mouth once you’re done. You can buy pretzel dough at the store and use it as a base if you don’t want to make this recipe from scratch.
- Pretzel dough
- Feta cheese
- Mozzarella
- Spinach
- Mustard, honey, and/or cheese fondue (for the dipping sauce)
Mix your feta cheese, mozzarella, and spinach beforehand to get an even amount. If you’re buying pre-made pretzel dough, bake the pretzels first, then stuff in your cheese and spinach mix afterward. Stick your pretzels back in the oven or air fryer for another minute or two to melt it to perfection.
Pair This Treat With Sauvignon Blanc or Mencia
Sauvignon blanc has the citrus punch to make feta taste exceptionally salty. The invigorating acidity will also cut through the fat and oil (doubly so when chilled prior).
If red wine is more your style, the lesser-known mencia will give you tart red fruit and floral notes to balance out the salty, herbal flavors.
Candied Nuts With Vanilla Glaze
Candied nuts have a reputation as being prestigious, but they’re pretty easy to make! There are many ways to craft a glaze, but our suggestion is an easy blend:
- Water
- Vanilla extract
- Brown sugar (dark or light)
- Your nuts of choice
- Baking spices such as nutmeg or cinnamon (optional)
The glaze is as simple as heating up some water, vanilla extract, and brown sugar in a pot on the stove. After your glaze starts looking syrupy, you can sprinkle in pecans, almonds, or hazelnuts.
Pair This Treat With Merlot or Unoaked Pinot Noir
The types of nuts you use will change the wine pairing: merlot is best suited to chewier, meatier nuts like pecans and walnuts.
Almonds (especially roasted almonds) are well-suited to the tart-yet-earthy flavors of pinot noir.
Bruschetta With Prosciutto
Who says your snacks for wine night have to step away from the classics? Bruschetta with prosciutto is a tried-and-true finger food that easily complements most wines.
- French or Italian bread
- Olive oil
- Garlic
- Vinegar
- Prosciutto
- Parmesan cheese (optional)
- Oregano, parsley, or basil
Similar to our toast recipe above, this traditional antipasto differs due to its toppings. Your bruschetta can be French or Italian bread pan-fried with olive oil, garlic, and vinegar. Top things off with cheese, herbs, and a few slices of the slightly sweet and quite fatty prosciutto.
Pair This Treat With Sangiovese, Chianti, or Pinot Grigio
The savory spices, tomato, and meat will taste sumptuous with a balanced chianti or savory sangiovese.
Pinot grigio’s apple, pear, and lemon notes will taste even stronger alongside this fatty and spiced wine snack.
Complex Wine Snacks
These wine snacks straddle the fine line between fun finger food and a mini-meal. Save these ideas for when you have a bigger appetite or after inviting a few friends over.
Feta Cheese Pizza Slices with Olives
When you’re in the mood to roll your sleeves up and cook, there’s nothing quite like a slice of pizza to make everyone happy. Whether with homemade dough or a store-bought base, these snacks for wine night will be a hit.
- Pizza dough (homemade or pre-bought)
- Feta cheese
- Olives
- Tomato paste or sauce
- Roasted red peppers or mushrooms (optional)
- Spices like onion powder and garlic powder
- Herbs like oregano, basil, or parsley
This recipe can be a simple layering of tomato paste, feta cheese, and olives. You can also add roasted red peppers or mushroom slices for extra flavor.
Pair This Treat With Pinot Noir
Pinot noir’s balanced nature will easily tie together all the ingredients of your pizza, whether you go for the most basic recipe or layer on some extra vegetables.
Baked Stuffed Mushrooms With or Without Cheese
This heartwarming dish takes less than an hour to make and can be filled with a slew of different ingredients. Cream cheese and parmesan cheese are popular options, though you can also use nutritional yeast as a substitute.
- Portobello or cremini mushrooms
- Cream cheese or parmesan cheese
- Nutritional yeast
- Panko breading (optional)
- Additional stuffing such as spinach, black rice, or pine nuts
Don’t rinse your mushrooms off before baking or you’ll get a soggy result. Try wiping your mushrooms off instead with a paper towel, then placing them on a wire rack above an oven tray. This trick will sap out extra moisture to create a crispy stuffed mushroom.
Pair This Treat With Merlot or Cabernet Sauvignon
If you stuff your mushrooms with cheese, go for a cabernet sauvignon. If you leave out the cheese or sprinkle in a nutritional yeast substitute, try a merlot.
Both of these wines have dark red fruit flavor notes to make your dish taste nutty, savory, and salty.
Chicken and Red Pepper Skewers With Dipping Sauce
Chicken skewers are just as flexible as they are tasty, able to be customized on the fly, and eaten quickly.
- Skinless and boneless chicken thighs or breast
- Red bell peppers
- Spices like onion powder, garlic powder, and black pepper
- Mushrooms, potatoes, or green bell peppers (optional)
- Honey, sriracha sauce, or soy sauce (optional)
Honey mustard sauce is a delicious dip that’ll add a sweet-yet-tart tang to your chicken, though you can always try sriracha or soy sauce instead.
Pair This Treat With Oaked Chardonnay or Pinot Grigio
Buy an oaked chardonnay if you’re skipping the dipping sauce, as the buttery aftertaste will be more than enough to leave you satisfied. If you want to dip your skewers in something savory or slightly spiced, pour yourself a glass of chilled pinot grigio instead.
