Grilled Octopus with Lemon-Caper Vinaigrette & White Beans

New Zealand Wine Meets the Mediterranean: Why This Sauvignon Blanc Is the Perfect Pairing for Octopus

New Zealand wine and grilled octopus—at first glance, this sounds like an unusual combination, but on the palate it turns out to be one of the most harmonious pairings of the summer. Octopus is one of the most flavorful types of seafood there is: crispy on the outside and slightly smoky from the grill, tender on the inside with a delicate sweetness reminiscent of lobster. Serve it with a lively lemon-caper vinaigrette and creamy white beans as a bed—a dish that showcases Mediterranean cuisine in its most beautiful, uncomplicated form. What it needs is a white wine with freshness, precision, and enough aromatic depth to hold its own against the smokiness of the grill and the saltiness of the capers. The Seifried Estate Nelson Sauvignon Blanc from Nelson, New Zealand, delivers exactly that—and then some.

Ideal wine pairing: Seifried Nelson Sauvignon Blanc (Nelson, New Zealand)

On the nose, this exceptional New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc opens with intense passion fruit, ripe guava, and a hint of white peach—followed by a delicate green note reminiscent of fresh pea pods, which lends the wine an invigorating liveliness. What sets it apart from many other Marlborough Sauvignon Blancs is its mineral foundation: The grapes are grown in Nelson on stony, barren soils at the Brightwater and Queen Victoria vineyards, which give the wine a precise, almost salty base that keeps it taut and focused on the palate. With 6.9 g/l total acidity and a residual sugar of just 3.3 g/l, it is crisp, fresh, and lively without ever seeming overpowering. This structure is the key to pairing it with octopus: the acidity cuts through the richness of the white beans, the minerality plays off the capers and lemon juice in the vinaigrette, and the exotic fruit balances the roasted aromas from the grill. Decanter judges noted in 2023: fresh peach, guava, and sweet red apple on a mineral base, dense and lively with a long finish—92 points, Silver. Sam Kim of Wine Orbit even awarded it 94 points. A wine that makes a modest impression yet overwhelms the palate.

The recipe:

Grilled Octopus with Lemon-Caper Vinaigrette & White Beans

Grilled octopus with crispy skin, creamy white beans, and a fresh lemon-caper vinaigrette—a summery Mediterranean dish for two that, paired with the Seifried Estate Sauvignon Blanc from Nelson, New Zealand, makes for one of the most harmonious wine-and-food pairings of the summer. This New Zealand wine demonstrates why it’s considered the ideal companion for seafood: fresh, mineral-driven, and with a fruitiness that beautifully complements the smoky flavors of the grill.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 1 hour hr

Total Time 1 hour hr 20 minutes mins

Course Fish dish, Grilled dish

Cuisine Greek

Servings 2 people

Calories 520 kcal

Equipment

• 1 Großer Kochtopf (mind. 5 Liter) zum Vorkochen des Oktopus
• 1 Grillpfanne oder Außengrill
• 1 Kleines Schraubglas oder Schüssel für die Vinaigrette
• 1 Schneidebrett und scharfes Messer
• 1 Küchenzange zum Wenden

Ingredients

  

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FOR THE OCTOPUS:

• 1 Octopus approx. 800–1,000 g, ready to cook
• 1 Bay leaf
• 5 black peppercorns
• 1 garlic clove pressed
• 2 Tablespoon of olive oil for barbecuing
• Fleur de Sel

FOR THE WHITE BEANS:

• 400 g white beans from the can, drained and rinsed
• 2 garlic cloves finely chopped
• 3 Tablespoon of olive oil extra virgin
• 100 ml vegetable broth
• Salt black pepper

FOR THE LEMON-CAPER VINAIGRETTE:

• 4 Tablespoon of olive oil extra virgin
• 2 Tablespoon of freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1 Teaspoon grated lemon zest Bio
• 2 tablespoon of capers drained, coarsely chopped
• 1 small shallot finely diced
• 1 tablespoon of fresh flat-leaf parsley finely chopped
• Salt black pepper

FOR THE GARNISH:

• 1 Handful of arugula
• lemon wedges
• A little paprika powder smoked

Instructions

 

PREPARATION:

• Place the octopus in a large pot with cold water, a bay leaf, peppercorns, and garlic.
• Bring to a boil and simmer gently over medium heat for 45–50 minutes, until it can be easily pierced with a fork.
• Remove the octopus from the water and let it cool on a cutting board for 10 minutes.
• Separate the tentacles from the body and rub them with olive oil.

COOKING STEPS:

• For the white beans, sauté the garlic in olive oil over medium heat for 1–2 minutes, without letting it brown.
• Add the drained beans and vegetable broth, and heat over low heat for 5–8 minutes.
• Season with salt and pepper to taste and keep warm.
• To make the vinaigrette, shake all the ingredients together in a screw-top jar or whisk them well in a bowl.
• Heat a grill pan or outdoor grill to the highest temperature.
• Grill the octopus tentacles for 2–3 minutes per side until they have distinct grill marks and a slightly crispy, caramelized surface.
• Season with Fleur de Sel.

SERVE:

• Divide the warm white beans among two plates or shallow bowls.
• Arrange the grilled octopus tentacles on top.
• Drizzle the lemon-caper vinaigrette generously over the top.
• Scatter a few arugula leaves loosely on top.
• Sprinkle with a pinch of smoked paprika.
• Serve with lemon wedges.

SIDE DISHES:

• Toasted Ciabatta with Garlic Oil
• Grilled Zucchini Slices with Sea Salt
• Greek Farmhouse Salad with Feta and Olives

Nutrition

Calories: 520kcalCarbohydrates: 28gProtein: 46gFat: 24g

Keyword Grilled Octopus, Nelson, New Zealand, Octopus and White Beans, Octopus Recipe, Octopus Wine Pairings, Sauvignon Blanc and Seafood, Seifried Estate, Wine from New Zealand

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