Courtesy of: Natalie MacLean
Sommelier and Author of Red, White, and Drunk All Over: a Wine Soaked Journey from Grape to Glass

No other holiday celebrates the gift of wine like Thanksgiving. Wine is a taste of the harvest along with all the delicious dishes on the table. But actually choosing a bottle can feel like a thankless task, especially with so many flavors to match.

To help you choose a terrific Thanksgiving wine, Natalie offers these five quick tips:

1. Start with Bubbly

Sparkling wine is a great aperitif to sip while you wait for the turkey to finish cooking. It adds a celebratory note to the meal and goes well with starters like soup and salad.

2. Consider the Turkey

Unlike most poultry and game birds, turkey meat is very dry in texture so you need a mouth-watering wine to complement it. Good options are crisp whites like riesling and pinot grigio. And yes, you can drink red wine with white meat: pinot noir, beaujolais and zinfandel all have juicy, berry-ripe flavours that go well with turkey.

3. Look Beyond the Bird

The range of side dishes means that you don’t have to match your wine just to the turkey. Since Thanksgiving dinner is often a banquet-style meal, with everyone choosing the trimmings, why not do the same with your wines? Offer both red and white, and possibly more than one depending on the size of your group.

4. Complement or Contrast

A big, buttery chardonnay from California or Chile can complement the roasted, smoky flavours of squash, chestnuts and pecan stuffing. But if you’d rather have a contrast to the richness of cream sauces and dressings, try a crisp New Zealand sauvignon blanc.

5. End On a Sweet Note

If anyone still has room left when it’s time for pumpkin or pecan pie, offer a late harvest wine or icewine. If you’re a chocolate fan, try serving a liqueur with complementary flavors such as raspberry or black currant.

Here are two of Natalie’s favs to get you started:

Vineland Estates Semi-Dry Riesling

Patriarche Bourgogne Pinot Noir 2003: A simple, silky, refreshing wine with pleasant aromas of cherries. The grapes have been sourced from all over Burgundy, many from the Patriarche vineyards in Beaune and Pommard. The wine is aged 50% in French oak barrels and the other half in stainless steel vats. Pair with: creamy cheeses, cold cuts, roast pork, poultry.

For more great suggestions, check out Natalie’s online wine matching tool (click on the “Turkey Holiday Dinner” option under the “Choose Your Food” header). It allows you to pair wine with other seasonal fall produce, game meats, pizza, egg dishes, TV dinners, breads and desserts. Simply search by wine for meal inspirations or by food to find great wine choices. The site has more than 364,000 food and wine combinations, as well as thousands of recipes for those planning holiday parties.

Thirsty for more? Click here for some of Natalie’s personal wine picks.

Got a dish or a wine to stump Natalie? E-mail her and she’ll suggest a match for you.

If you like to sit down with a good book instead, pick up Natalie’s book, Red, White, and Drunk All Over: a Wine Soaked Journey from Grape to Glass, which has just been published in paperback. In it she discusses wine and food pairing for Thanksgiving dinner as well and there’s also a new chapter which addresses the five toughest matches for wine: vegetables, spicy dishes, chocolate, cheese, and fast food.