I like to post my annual Thanksgiving wine recommendations in the prior week, so people have time to read them and then shop for them.
As a locavore and also as a historian, I promote drinking locally, especially since Thanksgiving is an East Coast American tradition. Here are a couple of guidelines if you plan to observe Thanksgiving with a traditional menu:
- You can find the best wine matches for the traditional menu with East Coast/Midwest wines instead of West Coast/European wines.
- Think “ABC”, or “anything but Chardonnay and Cabernet.” You need vibrant, fruity wines with good acidity to match the rather heavy/fatty Thanksgiving fare, and reds should be low tannin varieties like Chambourcin, Norton, Cabernet Franc, Pinot Noir or Gamay.
- Look for wines made from these varieties:
WHITE WINES
For vinifera (European grape varieties), I recommend:
- Riesling
- Gewürztraminer
- Viognier
- Petit Manseng
- Pinot Gris (not grigio)
- Vermentino
For white hybrids, I recommend:
- Traminette (a hybrid from Cornell University; one parent is Gewürztraminer, the other is a Seyve white French hybrid)
- Vidal blanc (a long-standing French hybrid that does well from the Midwest to the East Coast, making an aromatic Loire Valley-style white wine from dry to dessert-style)
- Diamond (also known as Moore’s Diamond, an old American hybrid that is delicately floral/aromatic and can make elegant wine from dry to sweet styles)
RED WINES
For vinifera (European grape varieties), I recommend:
- Pinot Noir
- Gamay (Noir)
- Blaufränkisch/Lemberger (an Austrian grape with boysenberry-like fruit, low tannins but bright, fresh acidity)
For red hybrid grapes, I recommend
- Chambourcin (long-standing French hybrid making dark-colored reds with bright red cherry aromas and flavors and fresh acidity, like a hybrid version of Gamay)
- Norton/Cynthiana (“Virginia’s grape”, an accidental hybrid that is ¼ vinifera, with unique and assertive dark plum flavors and fresh acidity)
- Chancellor (seen more in Michigan and New York than in the Mid-Atlantic, with nice black cherry and berry flavors, moderate to low tannins and balanced acidity).
Specific Wine Recommendations
SPARKLING WINES
- Veritas Vineyards Sparkling Rose NV, Monticello, VA (Cab Franc, Merlot)
- Dr. Frank Celebré Riesling NV (semi-dry)
WHITE WINES, DRY:
- Atwater Vineyards Dry Rosé Finger Lakes, 2021(69% Cab Franc, 31% Blaufränkisch)
- Barboursville Vineyards
- Dr. Frank Dry Riesling, Finger Lakes, 2021
- Dr. Frank Dry Rosé Finger Lakes, 2021 (Cabernets Sauvignon and Franc, Blaufränkisch/Lemberger)
- Hector Wine Co. Gewürztraminer, Finger Lakes, 2020
- Hector Wine Co. Pinot Gris, Finger Lakes, 2020
- Horton Vineyards Viognier Barrel Select, VA, 2020
- Keswick Vineyards Viognier, Monticello, VA, 2021
- Keuka Spring Humphrey’s Vineyard Finger Lakes, 2021
- Merrie Mill Rosé, Monticello, VA, 2021 (Merlot/Cab Franc)
- Merrie Mill White Blend, Monticello, VA, 2021 (Chardonnay, Viognier, Petit Manseng)
- Ox Eye Vineyards Traminette, Shenandoah Valley, VA, 2020
- Pippin Hill Vineyards Petit Manseng, Monticello, VA, 2021
- Rockbridge Vineyards Traminette, Virginia, 2019
- Valley Road Winery Destana, Monticello, VA, 2021
- Veritas Vineyards Momentarius White, Monticello, VA, 2021 (blend of Chardonnay, Viognier, Petit Manseng)
- Weis Dry Rosé, Finger Lakes, 2021
WHITE WINES, SEMI-DRY/SWEET:
- 12 Ridges Vineyards Riesling, Virginia, 2021
- DuCard Vineyards Gibson Hollow White, Virginia, 2020 (Traminette-based blend)
- Dr. Frank Muscat Ottonel, Finger Lakes, 2021
- Lakewood Vineyards Semi-Dry Riesling, Finger Lakes, 2020
- Weiss Vineyards Semi-Dry Riesling Finger Lakes, 2020
- Weiss Vineyards Winzer Select Riesling “K” Finger Lakes, 2021 (1% R.S.)
RED WINES:
- Ankida Ridge Pinot Noir, Virginia, 2021
- Dr. Frank Blaufänkisch, Finger Lakes, 2019
- DuCard Vineyards Norton, Virginia, 2020
- Lakewood Vineyards Lemberger (Blaufänkisch), Finger Lakes, 2020
- Ox Eye Vineyards Pinot Noir, Shenandoah Valley, VA 2019
- Point of the Bluff Blaufränkisch Reserve, Finger Lakes 2020
- Keuka Spring Blaufänkisch Finger Lakes, 2020
DESSERT WINES:
- Ankida Ridge Patina, VA 2015 (solera-aged white port-style)
- Barboursville Malvaxxia, VA 2018
- Rockbridge V d’Or 2018