Is it your turn to host the extended family for Thanksgiving this year? Are you adding a few extra seats to the table for some new members of the clan? Or are you planning a quiet dinner for just you and your spouse? Whatever your table looks like, we put together this guide to take some of the stress out of the decision and help you find the right pairing for what you’re serving. The good news: the right wine can tie the whole plate together, from the turkey to the green bean casserole.
Short on time? Here’s the cheat sheet: If you only grab three bottles, make it our Estate Chardonnay, our Gamay Noir, and our Sparkling Brut. Those three will carry you through nearly everything on the table. As a bonus, we’re offering these three wines at a discount through November 23. Want the details? Keep reading.
Thanksgiving is a tricky meal to pair, because it’s the one dinner where you’re not really pairing with a single main entrée. It’s about finding enough room on the plate for everything you love. Side dishes take on an outsized role, and family traditions come into play, too (the great debate over whether marshmallows belong on sweet potatoes, for starters).
We’ve split this guide into two parts. Part one walks through the wines we produce at Balsall Creek, highlights the foods that pair well with each, and offers some specific examples. Part two flips it around: we go course by course, from appetizers to dessert, and suggest what to pour with each dish.
The grape varieties we grow at Balsall Creek happen to be some of the best, most traditional choices for a Thanksgiving table. All six of our estate-grown varieties originated in France, one of the great culinary nations of the world, so it makes sense that these wines are natural partners for food. Between our French varieties and a largely French winemaking team, making food-friendly wines is part of our DNA.
That matters at this meal. Thanksgiving plates are rich, salty, sweet, and savory all at once, so the best wines have bright acidity to refresh your palate and moderate alcohol so they don’t overwhelm the food.
Here’s a bonus: when everyone’s busy talking about the wine and the food, there’s much less room for debating the news. Consider a good pairing your secret weapon for keeping the peace.
However you set your table this year, we hope this guide takes a little pressure off and leaves more room for the good stuff: great food, good company, and a glass worth talking about.
Shop online and order by November 15 to receive your wine before Thanksgiving! We would also love to have you taste with us and pick your Thanksgiving bottles out in person — just mention this guide when you stop by the Estate House, we are open Thursday through Monday, 10:30am to 5pm.
From all of us at Balsall Creek, Happy Thanksgiving, and cheers!