Alsatian with serious bite: What do you drink with a big spicy curry? An intense fruity wine from Alsace of course

By Olly Smith Event for The Mail on Sunday

Published: 17:00 EST, 28 January 2017 | Updated: 17:00 EST, 28 January 2017

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The vineyards of Alsace are like the hidden album of an iconic band that deserves greater acclaim. The wines of this sunny French region are as pristine, uplifting and inventive as the tracks on Queen’s Flash Gordon. And just as this cracking soundtrack to the camp 1980 movie weaves seamlessly with the action, so the wines of Alsace thrive when paired with curry.

Alsace wines are all about fruity purity and the more intense examples offset spicy dishes beautifully.

With little use of oak, the whites are an exuberant incarnation of the specific grapes of the region such as Riesling, Pinot Gris, Pinot Blanc, Gewürztraminer, Muscat, Sylvaner and Auxerrois.

You can enjoy these beauties right away, but perhaps the best kept secret of these wines is how well they can age. Last night I sipped 1979 Pinot Gris from the Cellier Inter Professionelle des vins d’Alsace and it was full of life.

Grand Cru vineyards are the top of the tree for serious wine fans, but there are plenty of decent high-street options to match with takeaways from Thai to Chinese and of course, Indian.

I recently harnessed the awesomeness of Alsace wines with a takeaway from Brighton’s superb Chilli Pickle. Gewürztraminer hit the bullseye with the big spicy numbers, but Riesling with poppadums and pickles was spectacular.

And for the nation’s favourite, chicken tikka massala, grab yourself a bottle of Pinot Gris: serve it chilled with your takeaway and stick the soundtrack to Flash Gordon on. It’ll take you to another world.