Teresa's Paella a la Teresita + the Wines That Honor Every Layer

A Shades of Vino Club Recipe | Submitted by Teresa W.

Some dishes are a meal. Paella is an event.

Teresa W., a proud member of our Shades of Vino Club — and part of our 2026 Summer Shades of Vino Collection — submitted a recipe that is nothing short of a love letter to the table. Pork chops. Chicken thighs. Shrimp. Mussels. Saffron-infused stock. A sofrito built from scratch. Rice that absorbs every flavor until it becomes something entirely its own.

This is Paella a la Teresita — and it deserves wines that can keep up with its ambition.

We found two. One built for complexity, one built for brightness. Together, they cover every note in this extraordinary dish.

The Recipe: Teresa's Paella a la Teresita

Paella is one of those dishes that rewards patience and punishes shortcuts. The magic is in the layering — each ingredient added at the right moment, each flavor allowed to develop before the next one joins. Teresa's version honors that tradition while making it her own, with a homemade stock that carries the soul of the dish from the very first step.

Ingredients

• Pork chops
• Chicken thighs
• Shrimp
• Mussels
• Rice (short-grain, like Bomba or Calasparra)
• Onion
• Garlic
• Tomatoes
• Fresh parsley
• Saffron
• Sweet Spanish paprika
• Roasted peppers
• Olive oil
• Homemade chicken and seafood stock
• Lemon

Instructions

1. Prepare your saffron-infused stock: warm the homemade chicken and seafood stock and steep saffron threads until the liquid turns a deep golden color.
2. In a large paella pan or wide skillet, heat olive oil over medium-high heat. Brown pork chops and chicken thighs until golden on both sides. Remove and set aside.
3. In the same pan, build your sofrito: sauté diced onion and garlic until softened, then add tomatoes and cook until the mixture is thick and fragrant — about 10 minutes.
4. Add sweet Spanish paprika and stir to coat the sofrito.
5. Add rice to the pan and stir to coat in the sofrito. Pour in the saffron-infused stock.
6. Return the browned pork and chicken to the pan. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Do not stir.
7. As the rice begins to absorb the liquid, add shrimp and mussels, nestling them into the rice.
8. Cook until the rice is tender, the liquid is absorbed, and the seafood is cooked through.
9. Finish with roasted peppers, fresh parsley, and a generous squeeze of lemon. Serve directly from the pan.

Serves: 4–6 | Total Time: ~1.5 hours | Difficulty: Intermediate–Advanced

The Wine Question: What Do You Pair with Paella?

Paella is one of the most complex wine pairing challenges in the world — and one of the most rewarding when you get it right. You're dealing with multiple proteins (pork, chicken, shrimp, mussels), a saffron-and-paprika spice profile, the brightness of lemon, and the deep savory richness of a homemade stock. That's a lot of flavors asking for a lot from the wine.

The wrong wine gets swallowed by the complexity or clashes with the saffron's delicate floral notes. The right wine either embraces the full spectrum of flavors — or highlights one specific element so beautifully that the whole dish comes into focus.

We chose one wine for each approach.

🥂 Primary Pairing: 2025 Brooks Amycas White Field Blend

When a dish has this much going on, you need a wine that can handle complexity without flinching. The 2025 Brooks Amycas White Field Blend from Eola-Amity Hills AVA, Willamette Valley, Oregon is exactly that wine.

A field blend is a wine made from multiple grape varieties grown and harvested together — which means it's built for complexity from the ground up. This one brings together a range of white varieties that create a wine with layers, texture, and a versatility that makes it a natural partner for multi-protein, multi-spice dishes like paella.

• Aromatic complexity mirrors the layered flavors of the dish — from the floral notes of saffron to the savory depth of the sofrito.
• Balanced acidity and texture work across all the proteins simultaneously, refreshing the palate between bites of pork, chicken, and seafood alike.
• Stone fruit and citrus notes echo the lemon finish of the paella, tying the glass and the plate together beautifully.

At $27, this is a wine that delivers far beyond its price point — and it comes with a story worth telling. Brooks is woman-owned and woman winemaker-led, a Oregon winery that has been making exceptional wines for decades. Every bottle is a celebration of what women bring to the wine world.

This wine is part of our 2026 Summer Shades of Vino Collection →

➡️ Shop the 2025 Brooks Amycas White Field Blend →

🍾 Secondary Pairing: 2023 Aesthetic Sauvignon Blanc

If the Amycas embraces the full complexity of the paella, the Aesthetic Sauvignon Blanc zeroes in on its brightest, most vibrant elements — and makes them sing.

The 2023 Aesthetic Sauvignon Blanc from Napa Valley, California is a wine built on precision and brightness — and it's a perfect foil for the seafood and citrus elements of Teresa's dish.

• Bright, zesty acidity cuts through the richness of the pork and chicken while highlighting the natural sweetness of the shrimp and mussels.
• Citrus and herbaceous notes amplify the fresh lemon finish of the paella, creating a seamless bridge between the glass and the plate.
• Clean, focused finish keeps the palate refreshed through every complex, layered bite.

At $24, this is one of the most accessible Napa Valley Sauvignon Blancs you'll find — and it comes with a mission behind it. Aesthetic is Black-owned, a producer whose presence in Napa Valley represents exactly the kind of representation The Wine Concierge was built to amplify. Every bottle is a statement about who belongs at the table — and in the vineyard.

This wine is part of our 2026 Summer Shades of Vino Collection →

➡️ Shop the 2023 Aesthetic Sauvignon Blanc →

The Bigger Picture: One Table, Many Stories

Paella is a dish that carries history. Born in the Valencia region of Spain, it has traveled the world and been adopted, adapted, and made deeply personal by families across generations and continents. Teresa's Paella a la Teresita is part of that living tradition — a recipe that carries her family's story while becoming part of the American table.

That's the beauty of food. It crosses borders, carries memory, and brings people together around something shared. At The Wine Concierge, we believe wine does the same thing — and the best pairings honor both the dish and the story behind it.

Teresa brought the paella. We brought the wine. The table did the rest.

Wine Pairing Tips for Complex, Multi-Protein Dishes

Dishes like paella — with multiple proteins, layered spices, and a rich base — require a different pairing approach than simpler dishes. Here's how to think about it:

• Choose wines with complexity: A simple, one-note wine will get lost in a dish with this many flavors. Look for wines with multiple aromatic layers — like a field blend or a well-made Sauvignon Blanc.
• Acidity is essential: Rich, multi-protein dishes need wines with good acidity to keep the palate refreshed and prevent flavor fatigue.
• Match the dominant flavor: If you're pairing to one element, pair to the most prominent flavor — in paella, that's often the saffron and the seafood.
• White wines are your friend: Despite the presence of pork and chicken, the seafood and saffron in paella make white wines the most natural pairing choice.
• Serve slightly chilled: Both of these wines show their best at around 50–55°F — cold enough to be refreshing, warm enough to show their full aromatic complexity.

For more pairing inspiration, explore our Essential Food & Wine Pairing Guide and our Spring Food & Wine Pairing Recipes.

Join the Club That Inspired This Recipe

Teresa's paella came straight from our Shades of Vino Club — a community of passionate home cooks and wine lovers who bring their whole stories to the table. Members receive curated bottles, exclusive recipes like this one, and a community that makes wine feel like it was always meant for them.

Ready to explore what's in the glass this season? Browse the 2026 Summer Shades of Vino Collection — every bottle curated for the season and ready to ship.

➡️ Explore The Wine Concierge Club →

And remember: Free shipping on 6 bottles or more. Grab both pairings and you're already most of the way there. 🍷