For Italians, wine is a fundamental companion to food. Spring never fails to proffer up a vibrant, mostly verdant, bounty, so pairing wine with spring vegetables is inevitable once the season has arrived. Whether they're cooked into pasta or risotto or the star of the plate, each veggie features its own distinct qualities to take into account when it comes to wine selection. Here are some tips for pairing Italian wine with spring vegetables.

While mostly associated with summer, tomatoes do start appearing in the market come springtime. As they're highly acidic, finding the right wine pairing can be tricky. If cooking the tomatoes or use them for pizza or with spaghetti, you’ll want to go with a medium-bodied white wine like South Tyrolean Chardonnay, which comes from northeast Italy, or a young red, such as like Nebbiolo, a grape harvested in Piedmont and Lombardy;  Marzemino, which is harvested in Isera, south of Trentino in northeastern Italy; or Nero D’Avola, an indigenous Sicilian variety.