Wine Pairings for Good Food’s Thanksgiving Menu

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Good Food’s resident wine pro Stacie Hunt (from both Du Vin Wine and Spirits and Splash Productions) couldn’t be with us this year for the Thanksgiving show, but she has delivered an extraordinary wine pairing for us nonetheless. If you listen to this week’s Thanksgiving episode of Good Food you will find an entire Thanksgiving menu from a BBQ turkey to sides of Vietnamese inspired Green Beans, Celeriac Remoulade, Chestnut and Apple stuffing and for dessert a Pear Charlotte. Stacie has graciously paired a selection of wines for each dish. Here she is with her wine pairings as well as some musings on Thanksgiving….

This year Thanksgiving feels as though it’s coming to us very early.  Hardly enough time to revel in the release of the Beaujolais Noveau party before we turn our attention to America’s biggest meal.

Our country is made up of many cultures and traditions that have so creatively adopted the Thanksgiving tradition, weaving into the meal roots from many “old countries”.  But every culture has a tradition of feasting for “thanksgiving” if not Thanksgiving, a time to gather and give thanks for the harvest and each other.

My family takes emotional pleasure in thinking about the individual dishes and how the meal will unfold; how we’ll decorate the table; and each year find room to add a few more chairs as our family and friends expand.

There’s an excitement that builds as planning begins for the must-have dishes, the experimental recipes, the inclusion of dishes made from ingredients that are familiar and unfamiliar.  There’s pure sensuality of anticipation, then eating and drinking for hours and finally, the tinge of sadness as the plates are emptied.

Thanksgiving meal is a narrative that develops throughout the meal.  The prologue should sparkle and glitter; the vegetables and greens become lively when paired with citrusy wines; the main course and trimmings challenge with caramelized and spicy blends; and the concluding chapter is often a spicy, gingery dessert that calls for a nutty, decadent sweetness making for a lip-smacking finale.

As you select the wines for your Thanksgiving meal, keep in mind that spiciness and fruitiness are great combinations to pair with the variety of sweet and savory flavors.  Look for value-priced level of wines, as this is a meal in which the wine will take a “character” part in the scene, allowing the food to be the lead.

Another exciting and festive idea is to look for large format bottles of wine.  A magnum (1.5 litres) is equal to 2 regular bottles of wine and looks bountiful on the table.

Keep reading for Stacie’s perfect Thanksgiving pairings…