Finding the “Perfect” Thanksgiving Wine
First, let’s face it— there’s no such thing as an “ideal” wine given how people’s palates differ, both in tasting wine by itself or when paired with food. How many times have you been in the room when every single person liked the wine? There’s always someone who would prefer something else (whether she or he tells you or not).
But let’s try to pick something ideal anyway, since it’s a fun challenge to pair appropriately, especially for Thanksgiving, for which the food is as varied as the company: Turkey, a dark, “gamey” tasting meat; mashed potatoes or sweet potatoes; cranberries, either sour and sweet (here’s the real challenge for pairing!) and gravy, store bought or homemade from the turkey’s parts; the vegetables are up for grabs, as I have had brussel sprouts, green beens, and broccoli at different T-day meals. It seems the only thing that is truly consistent is the Turkey, the cranberries, and the pumpkin pie.
Yet after much discussion with a variety of people (but all of them opinionated) who have a variety of tastes, it seems that Beaujolais might be considered the “ideal” Thanksgiving wine— or at least as close as you’re going to get to ideal.
Now, it just so happens that the great rush on Beaujolais— or “cult rush” I should say— that is Beaujolais Nouveau, has occurred on the third Thursday of November for decades. (Le Pichet has a great event every year.) The grape we are talking about, in case you have never known, is Gamay. It’s a very—well— grapey flavored grape and makes wine that has hints of the essence of red grapes. The skin of Gamay is very thin so tannins are light; but acidity usually runs high in these wines so they “want food” as the saying goes.
Some people love Beaujolais Nouveau with Thanksgiving, since the wine marks a harvest celebration similar to Thanksgiving itself. But Beau-Nouveau is an acquired taste. So considering the more sturdy and aged Beaujolais wine is a great idea: Moulin-a-Vent is the most prominent area in Beaujolais itself and produces some strikingly beautiful wines. Often Gamay from this region has hints of cranberry, blackberry, plum, and spice qualities, with a healthy acidity backing it up to “cut through” just about any food and yet one can still taste the great fruit qualities of the wine.
I hate to put it this way, but the sign of a good Beaujolais is price— anything under $12 is probably going to be fairly thin in flavor and taste more like a Beau-Nouveau.
Rosé is the other obvious and rather “universal” choice— now, of course, there are a host of regions with great Rosés. The most famous region for Rosé, Tavel, is hard to beat; though it is also hard to find a Tavel Rosé for under $20. Some of the sparkling Rosés, both domestic and foreign, can often fit the bill; but one has to be ready for a typical range of earthy and yeasty flavors to follow the pairing-useful and complimentary flavors of strawberry, cranberry, and lively floral notes that come with many of the pink sparklers. The Rioja and Ribera del Duero in Spain are great regions for Rosé, and so is the lesser-known, hard-to-find, but imminently worthwhile Somontano region (Europe has caught on to this region, but not America yet). France has much more in store, Provence being superb but generally not long-lasting, or just about anything else in the southern region’s Vin de Pays or Languedoc-Roussillon. Again, I suggest you look for something over $12 but under $30.
In the end, I find that if you really want to focus on and enjoy a wine, it should be in a situation where it’s you and a few other people (who feel the same way about wine). Otherwise you may find that your chosen bottle, either at your house, or the one you brought to someone’s party, is empty, and nobody seems to remember what it tasted like. (But everyone will say “oh yeah, I liked it.”) This is why I recommend the under $30, so you can feel comfortable buying a couple of bottles and then making the choice to offer them to others, or just enjoy them yourself on these now consistently cold nights.
Wine cellaring in Spain's Somontano region
Tavel, the king of Rosé
