Which Wine Goes With The Turkey? Local Wine Store Recommendations

by Ned Benton

(November 18, 2004) As Thanksgiving approaches, the Gazette asks our local wine merchants to recommend some wines to go along with the turkey. This year, we asked each merchant to suggest one red and one white wine that might be appropriate.

They unanimously responded that suggesting just one of each wine was painful! Why limit the choice to just one?

Saturday's Wine Testings: Decide for Yourself

This year, the majority of our local merchants recommended Pinot Noirs. As explained by Craig Maxwell of CJ's Fine Wine and Spirits, "A pinot noir is lighter ... it just goes with turkey." Craig offered a Californian pinot noir called "Rex-Goliath," a wine named after a 47-pound rooster hailing from Texas about 100 years ago. Do roosters go with turkeys?

Y. J. Ham, at Jay's Wine and Liquors, offered the Sanford Pinot Noir Santa Rita Hills 2001, noting the "wonderful intensity and vibrancy of flavor, with a core of dusty blackberry and blueberry fruit that's supported by firm acidity and a chewy, minerally quality. Firmly tannic, too, so it's best to decant."

Alexandre Bureiller at Le Wine recommended the Cote De Nuits Villages, a 1998 wine from the Domaine Rene Bouvier .

Nancy Heinbockel of Post Wine and Spirits described her selection, the Sipino Oregon Pinot Noir 2002: "It is no secret that Pinot Noir, the prime red grape of Burgundy, is a perfect wine to pair with Thanksgiving Dinner. It is lighter in body than a rich Cabernet, and usually has the wonderful characteristic of a bright, berry quality with some spiceness on the finish. The Sipino Oregon Pinot Noir 2002 is a perfect balance of jammy, berry-like fruit with a a beautiful finish of clove, nutmeg and cinammon. We make a lot of friends with this wine because it is a terrific value and a real crowd pleaser."

Y. J. Ham, at Jay's Wine and Liquors, described the St. Supery Sauvignon Blanc 2003: "The 2003 vintage of Sauvignon Blanc is yet another in a long line of winners from St Supery. Intense varietal characters explode out of the glass: lemon, green lime and kiwi, along with slight gooseberry aromas. These are followed by signature flavors of ruby grapefruit, juicy lime and tangerine on the palate. As always, this wine has balance and elegance, with a long, crisp finish."

Nancy Heinbockel of Post Wine and Spirits described her selection, the Jigsaw, Oregon Pinot Gris 2002, as "For those wine drinkers who look for the chardonnay alternative and prefer a lighter and crisper style of white wine. The pinot gris grape is a "cousin" of the pinot grigio grape and is grown in the Alsace region of France, the country of Hungary and in the states of Oregon and Washington in the US."