Plenty of Wine Choices Available to Serve With Thanksgiving Dinner

Check your calendar. Believe it or not, next week is Thanksgiving and it’s already time to start planning the holiday dinner.

The great thing about selecting a wine with your Thanksgiving Day feast is that you can get away with serving just about anything. Granted, there are a couple of things that might trip you up, but it’s pretty minor stuff that can be avoided quite easily.

One of the biggest concerns when pairing wine with food is making sure that dominant seasonings and spices don’t overwhelm your wine. Fortunately, about the only thing even remotely “spicy” at a Thanksgiving dinner table is Aunt Ethel’s sage dressing, so this really shouldn’t be a problem.

On the other hand, you don’t want to do the reverse by serving a big, bold red wine because it could drown out all of the wonderful flavors of your food. That said, there are a number of other wines to choose from that should work just fine.

Gewurztraminer is always a traditional choice with turkey as a slightly sweet, slightly spicy white wine. And if you’re going to go that route, I’d also consider throwing in a Riesling, many of which are also made with a bit of residual sugar that less frequent wine drinkers seem to enjoy.

For those who prefer dry white wines, you can’t beat either a fragrant Viognier or a nice Chardonnay, both of which should pair well with turkey, stuffing or mashed potatoes.

If you can’t live without a red wine, something lighter such as a Pinot Noir makes an excellent choice. You should even be able to get away with serving a Sangiovese, which tends to be made with medium body and high acidity – a great feature that will cut through heavy sauces and allow you to taste both the food and the wine.

Assuming your dessert is on the sweet side, I recommend serving a wine that’s even sweeter. Try something that’s labeled as either a late harvest or an ice wine, which will both complement the food and add a nice finishing touch to the meal.