It's "Sparkle Season!"

It’s after Hallowe’en, so people inevitably start asking for Thanksgiving wine suggestions. The typical answer is Pinot Noir or Cote du Rhone, or a reasonably priced French blend, because they’re easy to drink and work with food.

But, as AWS members, you never do what’s typically recommended, do you? Venture down some different wine aisles this Thanksgiving. Your guests will appreciate your inventiveness and it’ll help get the conversation going.

There are few standard things to remember, though.

·         Don’t break out the expensive stuff (unless you’re inviting me for dinner). Odds are that the majority of your guests won’t appreciate your Chateau Margaux, so save it for another day.

·         Pick low-alcohol wines because you need to be able to drink all day with your mother-in-law sitting across the table.

·         You’ll need quite a few bottles on hand so be price-conscious.

·         Finally, regardless of what you pour with dinner, it’s always nice to start with a glass of sparkling wine. Whether it’s Champagne, Prosecco or Cava, it all works, so let your budget decide. It prepares the palate for all the food to come. Plus, it’s festive and generally puts people in a good mood. So at least the day starts off on a good note.

Pick a Red: Try Good (Not ‘New') Beaujolais.

Pinot Noir and Cote du Rhone may always be the Thanksgiving red wines, but try a Cru Beaujolais this year. Beaujolais, which is also a small area in France just south of Burgundy, is made from the Gamay grape. Think of Gamay as Pinot Noir’s little-sister. And the Cru wines, or the higher quality versions, have soft tannins, taste like cherry and have a little spice, and will pair well with turkey and a variety of sides. Plus, these wines are lower in alcohol.

The problem is that Beaujolais has gotten a bad name thanks to the annual release of Beaujolais Nouveau, which basically means "this year’s wine.” The Nouveau wines are harvested every September bottled and shipped worldwide to your favorite State Store by mid-November. 

They’re fine and fun but don’t have the complexity you need for dinner. So instead, pick a bottle that says “Cru” or “Villages” on it. And the best part is they’re all around $20.

 Try a Rosé

Rosés are no longer unfairly associated with the sweet styles of white Zinfandels (think 1980s). The best are dry, delicately flavored wines that are great with turkey.  We had a tasting (Drink Pink) of a few different Rosé wines recently, and they were all very food friendly wines.

Pick a White: But Try a Different Grape.

Often people assume red wine should be served with the Thanksgiving meal but don’t overlook the whites. They’re light, refreshing, easy drinking, but, try some new ones.

Chenin Blanc.

South Africa is the largest producer of the Chenin Blanc grape. The first Chenin Blanc grapes were found in France but South Africa owns it now because it grows so well there.

The wines are light-bodied, like a Sauvignon Blanc, but thanks to the land and wine production methods, they have more zest than the French versions. South African Chenin Blancs are slowly getting the attention they deserve, but for now, they’re still undervalued. As an added bonus: most South African wines are screw top, which makes opening bottles all day very easy.

Pinot Grigio

Travel across the ocean to Italy and meet some new white grapes.  Italian whites are often overlooked because the overpowering Barolos and Super Tuscans get all the press. But the whites are very refreshing.

One white wine I’d urge folk to consider serving this Turkey Day is Pinot Grigio from Italy. As a category, this might just be the ideal Thanksgiving wine. The wines are neither too light nor too heavy. They always have plenty of fruit, and generally, not too much oak. Plus, the price of a decent Pinot Grigio remains, for the most part, reasonable.

Riesling

The vote for perfect white wine pairings, however, has to go to German Rieslings. Well made, a great value, low in alcohol and tasty. Don’t be scared off by the incomprehensible labels. Just look for labels that have Kabinett or Spätlese written on them.

 For Dessert

We can recommend any number of delicious dessert wines, but the one that stands out is Quady’s Essensia Orange Muscat wine. (Orange Muscat is the type of grape) It has bright golden amber color. Lively, fruity aromas and flavors of dried apricot, golden raisin, with a lively, sweet medium-to-full body, fine, fruit tannins and no oak.  A delicious, zesty and flavor packed dessert wine.

So go and be adventurous. Try something new. The holidays often become stressful but picking out wine shouldn’t be. It's a weekday, and we're with people we care about, in the middle of the afternoon, with an abundance of comfort food on the table. Thanksgiving is the pause that refreshes.

We adore the mixed up menu because we adore the holiday. It's adoration by association. Food might be the focus of the day, but if that combination of flavors is so good, why don't we have it more than once a year? On Thanksgiving, cherish the food in the moment. It’s the same with the wine. And with your people.

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