good afternon friends, and happy thanksgiving.
i am no great wine oenophile. i enjoy red wine, and i don’t much care for white, but i have heard that some consider red wine to be too full bodied for chicken or turkey entrees.
what would you suggest as a good wine to serve with a traditional thanksgiving dinner?
The classic is a Beaujolais nouveau. It’s released the first or second week in November, and in March it was grapes. Georges Duboeuf is the biggest maker. You might have difficulty finding any this late, since it goes quickly, but a Beaujolais-Villages should do nicely.
This is, of course, assuming that you don’t have a cellar of decades-old big burgundies to crack into.
This is what I drink with turkey.
I like pinot noir with turkey. Beaujolais is good too.
I don’t drink, but the rule of thumb I’ve always heard is white wine with white meat, and red wine with red meat. Poultry (and fish) are generally considered white meats (yes, even the dark meat), so I presume one should go with something white.
This is fairly meaningless these days, as most people just go with what they like. While a strong red can overpower delicate flavors of some mild fish, a red goes perfectly well with salmon or any chicken dish.
For turkey, I’d highly recommend a zinfandel. It won’t compete with the other complex and rich flavors of the meal. I love Pinot, but it has a very earthy flavor.
I went to a friends house for a Thanksgiving meal last Sunday and they served Lambrusco (sp?). Now I know that it is your average Exxon Wine Purchase, but it was pretty good.
I drank that and um, Coors Light.
I totally agree though I’d recommend a lighter pinot, like the Saintsbury Garnet Pinot Noir with turkey. Obviously, everybody has different opinions about what wine goes with what dish, but as long as you stay way from a heavy cabernet or merlot it’s not going to be a disaster.
[thread=345867]Here[/thread]'s a recent thread on wine with turkey with plenty of good advice. Someone mentioned a beaujolais nouveau, which is indeed a standard. Unfortuantely, I went looking for some last night and found them already all sold out. Damnit. :mad: And it’s all my own stupid fault.
Anyway, get a couple of bottles; maybe a zinfindel (red) and a pinot gris (semi-dry to semi-sweet white), or a reisling (sweet German-style) and a pinot noir (red), or whatever else suits your budget and interest. One point of note: you want to serve white wines chilled (55F), espeically sweet ones, while red wines are generally served from 60F to room temp depending on the “weight” of the wine (a light pinot or a beaujolais nouveaux can be slightly chilled, a zin or cab should be room temp.)
Stranger
thank you all!
friend chef guy,
i am particularly fond of zinfandel, and i have a few bottles on hand.
problem solved!
This one will fly better over in Cafe Society.
Moved from GQ. samclem