Which wines do you want with turkey, stuffing and cranberry sauce for Thanksgiving?

I’m really looking forward to Thanksgiving this weekend. But I have to confess, with all the flavours on the table, I struggle to know what wine to pair with everything. Natalie MacLean, you always give great advice! What would you suggest?

We pile turkey, cranberry, stuffing, mashed potatoes and gravy onto one plate, and then look at the wine as though it’s the one being difficult! We don’t need one wine that does everything. We just need a few good bottles that get along with the whole table, like the aunt who cracks everyone up with a good joke.

The first wine you’re recommending is a Riesling from here in Ontario. Why did you pick this one?

Elevation Riesling
Niagara

This is the Elevation St Urban Vineyard Riesling.

Ontario is actually a Riesling powerhouse. Riesling loves a cool climate and Niagara is happy to oblige.

Many of us think of Riesling as sweet. This Elevation Riesling does have a touch of natural fruit sweetness, but far less than you think it does.

It also has bright acidity. Think of lemonade. The lemons cut the sugar. I’ve spent a surprising amount of my professional life explaining Riesling.

The taste of this Elevation Riesling takes me right back to my grandmother’s kitchen before Thanksgiving dinner. I remember the cranberry sauce slowly simmering on her stove. That zing is exactly what I love in this wine. What do you think of it?

There’s a great story behind this bottle. Back in 1979, a German winegrower hid the vine cuttings from his family’s estate on the Mosel in his suitcase and then planted them in Niagara. They’ve been in the ground almost fifty years now.

Next up you have a Sauvignon Blanc.

Loveblock Sauvignon Blanc
New Zealand

This is Loveblock Sauvignon Blanc from Marlborough, New Zealand.

Loveblock is certified organic, with very low sulphur. Their Tee bottling even swaps sulphur for green tea, as a natural preservative.

Loveblock is owned and run by married couple Erica and Kim Crawford. They built the famous Kim Crawford brand and sold it. Then they started over from scratch, farming organically in Marlborough. This is their labour of love, thus Loveblock.

This one’s close to my heart. My mom raised me on her own. She was a schoolteacher, so every Thanksgiving we’d go home to her parents in Cape Breton. We had our own tradition: lobster sandwiches with lots of mayo at lunch. A crisp Sauvignon Blanc like this would be perfect with them.

It’s bright and zesty, with white peach and a fresh, herbal snap. What’s your take?

What have you brought us from France?

Mouton Cadet Rouge
France

Here we have the Mouton Cadet Rouge from Bordeaux, France.

Turkey can be gobbling good with a juicy red, like this Mouton Cadet. It’s a blend of Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc. It’s supple and ripe, with soft tannins and dark fruit. No need to decant. Just pour and pass. Serve it with the stuffing, the dark meat and the gravy. Give it a try.

On the bottle you’ll see the Fair for Life label. It’s a fair-trade certification.

Most of us know fair trade from coffee and cocoa. Mouton Cadet brought it to Bordeaux.

Mouton Cadet wanted sustainability to include people, not only the planet. Their long-term goal is to create a more human Bordeaux. Canada is the first country outside of France where they’ve launched the certified wine.

Behind the label is a community of more than 100 growers. They get long-term contracts and fair prices. One percent of the wine’s sales goes into a fund they decide how to use.

You recently dove into that story on your podcast, right? What’s it all about?

It’s called ‘Unreserved Wine Talk’ and each week features candid conversations with the most fascinating people in the wine world. Nestled in colourful stories are practical tips on how to choose wine from a restaurant list, pair it with food, and spot great values at the liquor store.

You’re an OG podcaster, Nat. Didn’t the New York Times name your podcast one of the best?

They did. It was the only Canadian show. Proof that a misspent youth can become a career.

Natalie, I have to say I’m a bit of a snob when it comes to reds. I feel like they need to be a bit pricey in order to be good.

Tommasi Ripasso Valpolicella
Italy

Jess, you taught me that at a party where they’re serving white and red, to always go for the white! Are we wrong here?

A great red doesn’t have to break the bank!

This is a Tommasi Ripasso Valpolicella. It gives you a serious, rich red without the serious price tag – it’s under $30. The Tommasi family have made wine near Verona since 1902. That’s four generations, so I guess the trial phase is over 😉

They’re Amarone royalty, one of Italy’s great red-wine families.

Amarone is their famous big, rich red. Ripasso is the baby Amarone. Once the Amarone is made, they re-pass this wine over the leftover Amarone skins. Nothing wasted. It started as a farmers’ trick.

It picks up the richness and the spice. The Tommasi family was among the first to put the word Ripasso on the label in the mid-1990s.

It’s a full-bodied red, with cherry, black pepper and silky tannins. Do you like it?

We’re ending with another red, this one is from BC.

You have the Township 7 Interlude Cabernet Sauvignon from BC and it has a terrific story.

Township 7 Interlude Cabernet Sauvignon
British Columbia

In January 2024, a brutal cold snap hit the Okanagan. The temperature dropped to minus 27 degrees. It wiped out most of the crop. Without any grapes, many wineries would have had to close their doors and people would have lost their jobs.

So they looked across the border. They brought in fruit from Washington State. Township 7’s winemaker, Mary McDermott, worked hand in hand with a Washington winery. She visited those vineyards frequently the way she’d tend her own.

Then she brought the grapes home to Naramata and made the wine there. That’s why it’s called the Interlude series. It was the bridge until the B.C. vines came back from the freeze.

The wine industry shows what good neighbours can do, even when there’s a border and a lot of nonsense between them.

This is a structured red with blackberry and a little spice. It’s ready for whatever’s at the centre of your table, including indecision. Let’s be honest, we’re not all carving a turkey. Some tables have goose. Some have a roast.

Others have duck, which is usually accompanied by a 15-minute explanation of why turkey is overrated for Thanksgiving. Let me know what you think of it.

Natalie, thank you for sharing these wines ahead of the long weekend. Cheers and happy thanksgiving everyone!

Posted with permission of CTV’s The Social. Please drink responsibly.