The general consensus amongst wine experts (self-proclaimed and otherwise) is that for wine and food to go together, wine must be low in alcohol, high in acidity, moderate in oak, and not too overhwelming in flavor.  There is something to be said for this approach: acidity is almost always welcome, there is a tendancy to use too much oak in many wines which makes them hard to drink alone, much less with food, and alcohol can easily overwhelm more delicate foods.   But I disagree that these principles have a special, or even a tenuous, hold on holiday food: Christmas and Thanksgiving are the times to bring out the bruisers.

American holiday meals, particularly Thanksgiving and Christmas, are rarely made up of delicate foods.  Holiday meals tend to be rich, and many of the dishes are even sweet, and often heavily influenced by spices.    At Thanksgiving, I think about not only Turkey (okay, this is arguably a bit bland sometimes), but cranberries, sweet potatoes, and stuffing (often laced with onions, herbs and even chestnuts).  At Christmas, I think of ham or prime rib, maybe even a goose, and, again, rich often sweet side dishes.   With food like this, the worry isn’t that the food will be overwhelmed, but that it will overwhelm the wines. 

For rich, intensely-flavored foods, it is crucial that the wine is equally rich and flavorful: this can mean big fruit, big oak, and even big alcohol.   This is also a great approach to sweet foods.  Though it is traditional  to serve a wine that is slightly sweeter than the food it accompanies, sweet wines aren’t always appropriate for dinner (this is mostly a matter of modern taste, see the attached menu gilded-butterflies-menu-version-3), and both alcohol and oak can give wine a perception of sweetness that goes wonderfully with moderately sweet food.   In order for wines that are high in alcohol, oak, fruit or all of the above to taste good, they need acidity to balance them, so I do think that the acid is a necessary component here.

The following are some of my favorite general holiday pairings.  For a list of specific wines, see my list of recommendations from my appearance on King 5 TV with Tim Robinson on Monday, November 24th by clicking this link.  Viognier is a great white for holiday meals: it has loads of flavor, often high-alcohol, and the best have the acidity to balance.  Chardonnays also have a great place in these meals, both Burgundy and the big new world Chards: I’ll be drinking 95 Verget Meursault le Rougeots for T-day.   Grenache is also a great choice, particularly for Thanksgiving, as it often has a lighter red fruit flavor, lots of spice and smoke, and a serious dollop of richness from alcohol.  Syrah is a hit across the board, for the big black fruit, smokiness and spice, as well as the richness and oak that are such and important part of the best California, Washington, Australian and South African (don’t miss these) version.  Other whites that work include Torrontes, Pinot Gris and Smaragd Gruner Veltliners.  Other reds include: Malbec, Morvedre (also as Monastrell in Spain) and most Spanish Reds (not in the least because of the use of American Oak).

Some people argue that the holidays should be about drinking what you like and eating what you like, rather than food and wine pairing.  I’m not adverse to this notion, and I really do believe that good food and good wine will find a way to work together — I just think that sometimes picking which of the wines you like, and which of the foods you like can make both better.   

Oh yeah! one more thing: I didn’t mention Champagne.  It should go without saying that Champagne has a place at all meals, especially those around the holidays.

Happy Holidays for now. 

-Jake