Going Rogue: Uncommon Thanksgiving Wine Pairings

Posted by The Editorial Desk / Tuesday, November 24th, 2009

Chalk it up to the economy, or just a sense of derring-do, this year wine writers and local proprietors are giving the go-ahead to change up the Thanksgiving set list and step out-of-bounds in the wine department. Dave McIntyre of the Washington Post even puts his blessing on an entire Thanksgiving meal of sparklers (he suggests beginning the revelry with a light Prosecco and finishing with a rich, creamy grower Champagne).

Whatever your motivation, there’s no reason to limit yourself to the holiday’s well-worn wines.  “I could give you a list of 50 different wines, and each one would be good with turkey for different reasons,” says Mike Carroll of the Leesburg Vintner. If you’re looking to keep things domestic and “Amurikun,” he champions Virginia’s own headliner grape, Viognier, with the yard bird this year for its floral quality and notes of tropical fruit and peaches.

Rebecca Thomas Snyder of Kybecca Wine Bar in Fredericksburg is really going rogue this Thursday with some wines from small producers in France and Washington State. “We went out on quite a limb this year,” she says of her Thanksgiving selection. One of her picks is a Mondeuse from the region of Bugey in France, and likens the 2006 Peillot Mondeuse Bugey to a richer version of the better-known, Thanksgiving-friendly Pinot Noir.

Another twist on the traditional is a sparkler made from the Gamay grape, a varietal which is usually associated with Beaujolais Nouveau. Thomas Snyder suggests kicking things off with this pink rendition of Gamay, Renardat-Fache Bugey Cerdon NV.

On this side of the Atlantic and in a white, she recommends the 2008 Kung Fu Girl Riesling from the Columbia Valley in Washington State. “For the money it’s incredibly well done with a tiny bit of sweetness,” she says.

All of the recommendations Carroll and Thomas Snyder offered do have one thing in common: high acidity that pairs well with food, especially the fatty gems that are going to dot the holiday table.

So there you have it folks, going rogue at the Thanksgiving table isn’t as tough as you think.

If you still need ideas, the following establishments are offering wine tastings up until Thanksgiving Eve:

Grape and Bean, 118 South Royal Street, Alexandria; open Thanksgiving Eve ‘til 10 p.m.

Planet Wine, 2004 Mount Vernon Avenue, Alexandria; Thanksgiving Eve tasting, 3 p.m. to 6 p.m.

Norm’s Beer and Wine, 136 Branch Road, S.E., Vienna; open Thanksgiving Day, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.

–Amy Loeffler

Tags: Amy Loeffler, Gut Check, Thanksgiving, wine