Perfect Wine Pairings for your Family Gatherings
With so many great wines to choose from, what bottles should you buy that will pair well with your meal?
It’s hard to dislike a time of year that’s known for its feasting! Sign me up for spending time with my loved ones gathered around a home-cooked meal. That’s the simple part. It’s easy to make a list of all of your favorite foods to prep and cook for the holidays, but with so many great wines to choose from, what bottles should you buy that will pair well with your meal?
Prime Rib
Treat yourself this holiday season with this tender, juicy cut of meat. Great sides for a prime rib meal include potatoes, roasted vegetables, and some light gravy.
What Wines to Pair with Prime Rib: Our award-winning Super Tuscan is Bellissimo! Take a ride along the Tyrrhenian coast and find nothing but finesse in this extraordinary blend of Sangiovese, Merlot, and Cabernet Sauvignon. This amazingly big and full-bodied wine has a solid structure, bold fruit notes and a round finish with complex notes of cassis, plum and cherry all perfectly balanced with the bold tannins.
What to Pair with Potatoes: Whether it’s mashed potatoes or a loaded baked potato, this side dish is a classic partner for prime rib. So is our Merlot. Its characteristic spicy aroma, accentuated with light warm oak, foreshadows a rich, round, smooth and mouth-filling flavor experience, finishing with lengthy elegance.
Turkey
It is a great time of year for this classic bird, stuffed and seasoned to perfection. We know you probably just ate some turkey for Thanksgiving but that doesn’t mean this option is off the table for December!
What to Pair with Turkey: Gamay, from France’s Beaujolais region, is a light red wine with fresh red fruit and candied aromas. It is an easy-to-drink red wine that is perfect for a turkey dinner. Enjoy the essence of red cherries and strawberries with a light oak finish. Gamay has a good acid structure with very low tannins, making it better suited to drink young. Not sure if your guests like red or white wine? Grab a bottle of each! After all, white wine pairs best with the stuffing.
What to Pair with Stuffing: What’s a turkey without stuffing? Prepare your mature pallet and appreciation for the finer things in life to both be complemented with an exquisite Pinot Grigio. Our Italian style Pinot Grigio is light and zippy with nice acidity, slightly fruity with flavors of peach, exotic fruits, and apricot.
Dessert
What feast is complete without the closing ceremony?! There are plenty of holiday desserts to choose from (and we aren’t opposed to the eat dessert first argument here, or to the option of drinking dessert!). Here are our recommendations for a couple of classic Christmas dessert choices (and the best wine to sip with them).
What to Pair with Pecan Pie: This choice is a delicate yet complex wine made from Riesling grapes hailing from the Columbia Valley. This not so sweet Riesling explodes with pronounced ripeness and hints of apricots, peaches and other stone fruits along with citrus blossom, all while retaining a good balance of acid and sugars. Showing fantastic floral aromas while maintaining a crisp freshness, this isn’t your grandmother’s Riesling.
What to Pair with Fruitcake: Warm your senses with this Sangiovese as you’re swept to the hills of Tuscany. Much like the artistic legacy that has been bestowed upon the tradition of Tuscan grape growing; crafting this superb wine takes careful cultivation of the Sangiovese grapes and artful winemaking to produce the highest quality Italian delight. Experience subtle black pepper spice notes, with good acid levels, smooth texture and a medium body that has fruity undertones and a robust finish that tends to be bitter.
Wow, we got hungry just putting this list together! Time to home-cookedplan our own Christmas feast.
We’d love to help you purchase the right finishing touch for your holiday gathering. See you in the winery soon.