Italian sausage is both flavorful and spicy, making it the perfect complement for medium-bodied red wines like Chianti or Sangiovese, while for lighter fare there's always Pinot Grigio or Sauvignon Blanc as alternatives.

Chilean Carmenere wine may also make for an excellent accompaniment. Boasting flavors of ripe dark fruit and spicy aromas, its distinctive character will perfectly complement Italian sausage's heat.

Chianti

Chianti is an elegant medium-bodied red wine that pairs beautifully with Italian sausage. The wine's high acidity and tannins help balance out its fattiness for an appealing contrast in taste, as well as rich tomato sauces. However, light foods such as baked vegetables or fish could undermine its full potential to complement its bold flavors of Italian sausage.

Spicy Italian sausage is an irresistibly flavorful meal, calling for an equally robust wine to match its spicy kick and acidic tomato sauce. A medium-bodied red like Chianti or Sangiovese are excellent accompaniments, or Beaujolais (low in alcohol and tannins) is another worthy contender.

Chianti wines boasting herbaceous and fruity characteristics pair perfectly with many Italian sausage dishes, particularly when they're grilled or fried, as well as other forms of meat such as veal and roast lamb dishes.

Zinfandel

Italian sausage is both salty and savory, making it the ideal pairing with medium to full-bodied red wines with high acidity, moderate tannins, and fruit flavors such as Chianti Classico (Sangiovese) and Barbera wines. Zinfandel pairs particularly well when pizza topping includes Italian sausage. Zinfandel acidity pairs perfectly with tomato sauce while its spicy kick balances perfectly with its counterparty sausage flavors.

Zinfandel wines pair well with spicy foods and grilled or sauteed Southwestern dishes, provided they do not boast too full-bodied of an intensity level. Light or medium style Zinfandels may also pair nicely with grilled chicken dishes.

Cheese pairs well with Zinfandel wines, particularly blue, feta, aged cheddar and Havarti varieties. But be wary: serving dishes featuring strong cheeses might require fuller-bodied Zinfandels that may overshadow them; to find your ideal pairing it's important to experiment!

Primitivo

Italian sausage and roasted red peppers make an irresistibly flavorful combination, which pairs beautifully with wines with fruity notes such as Chianti, Sangiovese or Barbera for an enjoyable dinner experience.

Primitivo is an Italian red grape often mistaken for Zinfandel from California. DNA testing has demonstrated their relatedness; primitivo simply ripens earlier and has lower alcohol content than its Californian cousin. Furthermore, its flavor profile tends to favor an Italian minerality over jammy fruitiness.

This wine pairs nicely with sausage-topped pizza or pasta dishes. Its acidity stands up well to tomato-based sauce, while not being overly heavy; with lush notes of cherries, blackberries, raspberries as well as spice tobacco leather notes. Low in tannin and alcohol content makes this an excellent accompaniment for spicy sausages; simply ensure the wine has enough sweetness so as to highlight both meaty sweetness as well as pepper roasted flavors in both dishes.

Cabernet Sauvignon

Italian sausage is a multipurpose food, offering tasty treats when eaten alone or spread across pizza or pasta dishes. With its savory flavors and subtle spice accents like fennel seeds, Italian sausage makes an excellent complement for an array of wines.

Those enjoying smoked sausage should pair their dish with a New World Cabernet Sauvignon wine, which boasts full-bodied character and bold fruit notes to balance its smokiness.

If you're eating bangers and mash, pair it with a South French red wine made of grape varieties such as Grenache, Syrah or Mourvedre for bold fruit flavors that complement the dish. Or try Zinfandel; its spicy character pairs well with black plum, cherry and raspberry fruits in its palate - which also help balance acidity in tomato sauce while complementing spicy sausage flavors!