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The Great Thanksgiving Turkey-Wine Hunt

  • Nov 12, 2020
  • By The Vineyard Vixen

Learn which wines to pair perfectly with turkey, cranberry sauce, pumpkin pie and even aunt Joan's candied yams.


With Thanksgiving is only two weeks away, can you believe it? We’ve heard a lot of people say that selecting wine for the traditional turkey dinner is kind of hard. Well, the CellarPass team is at the ready to provide easy and fun way to take your turkey wine hunt straight to wine country. Sip and sample your way to the perfect wine or two for your celebration. Our concierge’s have whipped up some of their top “Turkey Wine” producers where the only thing hard about making your selection will be deciding which wine not to bring home.

Not sure which wines to pair with your Thanksgiving feast? Our helpful wine & food pairing guide will take out the guesswork so you can spend more time enjoying the hoilday rather than planning for it. And finally, you'll know exactly which wine to pair with candied yams.

CellarPass Pairing Guide for The Best Wines for Thanksgiving Dishes

    Cheese & Charcuterie - Rose, Sparkling Wines, Gamay, Cabernet Franc
    Seafood, Shellfish – Pinot Grigio, Fume Blanc, Albarino, Chardonnay, Sparkling Wines
    Savory Turkey – Chardonnay, Viognier, Rose, Pinot Noir
    Buttery or Cheesy Sides – Chardonnay, Sparkling Wines
    Mushrooms, Truffles – Merlot, Pinot Noir, Tempranillo
    Aunt Joan’s Candied Yams – A classic Viognier for the win!

 

If you're not a fan of traditional California rich buttery Chardonnay try an unoaked Chardonnay or it's big sister, White Burgundy for a brighter wine that lets the natural beauty of the fruit shine like the star it is. 

 

Vineyard Vixen Entertaining Tip

While pairing a different wine with each course is tremendously fun it is not always practical.

You can simplify by selecting just one or two wines that will pair beautifully with from hors d'oeuvres to dessert.  If I have not said it enough in the past, I'll say it again now. Sparkling wine is truly the little black dress of wines and it truly shows it's versatility with the traditional Thanksgiving menu. With it's bright acidity and subtle depth, a semi-dry to dry sparkling rosé will compliment cheeses, savory turkey, rich buttery sides and even highlight the warm spices of pumpkin pie. If your bubbles are not exactly your thing a still rosé will work equally as well. 

Pinot Noir is also a fabulous choice that can easily enhance appetizers especially anything with mushrooms, wonderfully balances maple glazed turkey and just like rosé seems to love warm fall flavors like... pumpkin spice.


Our Recommendations for
Thanksgiving Dinner

Make selecting your holiday wines more fun by picking them up in wine country!

 

Holiday Survival Tip

Will you be Zooming with family and friends this holiday like the rest of us? Dress up your background with a festive complimentary background image from Williams Sonoma.  You can select from a variety of gorgeous tablescapes that make it look like you're a Martha Stewart protégée. Now you can relax, pour a glass of wine and not “zoom” clean your apartment frantically before your video call. Download Zoom Background


Featured Restaurants

Maybe let someone else do the cooking & clean up this year! Make reservations for Thanksgiving dinner at one of these fabulous locations.

 

Brix Restaurant
Brix Restaurant

Yountville

Vintners Inn
Vintners Inn

Santa Rosa

Spoonbar - h2hotel
Spoonbar - h2hotel

Healdsburg

Barking Frog
Barking Frog

Woodinville


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