Tis’ the season for entertaining and giving thanks! Thanksgiving is a time to gather around the ones you love and surround yourself with savory treats and crisp spirits. Our team is lucky enough to have our very own wine connoisseur – Loren Murphy. Loren has numerous years of knowledge when it comes to the best holiday wines and their perfect pairings so her insight is the guide for this blog. Since Thanksgiving is typically a potluck style holiday, it is important to remember that the wines provided should cater to a wide variety of pallets. For this reason we have chosen a red, white and sparkling to meet all your guests needs.
Starting with red Loren suggests a Gamay, specifically Jadot Beaujolais-Villages. Gamay is a type of red from the Beaujolais region of France. Jadot Beaujolais-Villages is fruit-forward and food-friendly so it pairs well with a variety of foods. Featuring tasting notes of strawberries, black cherries and spices. Being a lighter wine, it would pair wonderfully with turkey, hors d’oeuvres or mild cheeses.
For your white drinkers, Loren recommends choosing a Pinot Gris or Riesling. Pinot Gris is from the Burgundy region of France and Riesling from Germany. Two of her go-to wineries are King Estate from Oregon and J.Lohr from California. The King Estate Pinot Gris is very delicate and features tasting notes of honeysuckle, violet, pears and mandarin oranges. The J. Lohr Bay Mist Riesling features notes of citrus and lemongrass to florals. Whites can pair with just about any food item that would be served at the Thanksgiving table but these wines will especially compliment turkey.
Sparkling wines are made for celebrations and what better to celebrate then all you are thankful for! Sparkling wines such as a prosecco can be served before or after dinner and like most white wines prosecco pairs well with most foods. Prosecco originated from a village named Prosecco in Italy. Loren’s favorite is La Marca which is considered a more affordable sparkling. La Marca features tasting notes of ripe citrus, lemon, green apple and grapefruit.
If you want to go an alternate route or if you are not a wino then a charcuterie board would be a perfect option this Thanksgiving!. We love charcuterie boards because they are versatile and allow for creativity. There is no ‘recipe’ to create a charcuterie board but there are lots of places to pull inspiration from such as Nashville Cheese Gal. We used Nashville Cheese Gal for a broker’s open we hosted and it was a HIT! Cheese, charcuterie, nuts, berries, honey, herbs is all you need to make an impression this Thanksgiving!
