CHRISTMAS DINNER WINE PAIRING

What is the best wine for Christmas dinner, well it depends on what you enjoy; however, there are definitely some great recommendations to suit the type of food you are eating.

Christmas dinner may be over a few courses and there may be several glasses to fill with several palates to please….

A few suggestions from our range of wines

To start with, perhaps Graham Norton Frizzante Prosecco, Graham Norton Frizzante Rose or our Kylie Frizzante DOC Prosecco to toast the special day - best served chilled great on its own or as an aperitif.

If you are in the mood for Champagne - what about fabulous Pol Roger?

STARTERS

For starters, smoked salmon, cold meats, we would recommend a light refreshing wine such as Vidal Sauvignon Blanc or perhaps Marieta Albarino. If you prefer red wines then we would recommend a light fruity red such as Esk Valley Pinot Noir, the Villa Maria Private Bin Pinot Noir or the Fat Bastard Pinot Noir.

MAINS

Turkey and it has been a traditional favourite since Victorian times and let’s face it Christmas isn’t Christmas without turkey. Like most poultry it is medium-weight and with a mild flavour and low fat.

In order to match the weight of the palate its best to pair with a medium-full-bodied white wine or a medium-full bodied red wine with low tannins (tannins react with fatty protein molecules and will seem very harsh in the absence of fat). This could be an old red wine (as tannins precipitate out with age) or a young ripe fruity wine made from a grape variety that is naturally low in tannins such as Pinot Noir - Ritual Pinot Noir, Vidal Reserve Pinot Noir or our Casa Silva Reserva Pinot Noir would be a fantastic match here!

Turkey comes with all the traditional sides of herb-filled stuffing, roasted veggies and an assortment of savoury dishes. Sauvignon Blanc is hands-down one of the top white wine picks for turkey and savoury dishes, as it tends to bring its own herbal tones to the table again you could go with the Sarah Jessica Parker Sauvignon Blanc or Villa Maria Reserve Sauvignon Blanc or even The Fat Bastard Sauvignon Blanc.

However, we may also consider what it is you enjoy best with your turkey to give it a bit of flavour is it cranberry sauce or gravy as this is where most powerful flavours are usually found.

Cranberry sauce will not go with a mellow aged red wine – instead choose a young, ripe, fruity wine low in tannins such as The Big Top Old Vine Zinfandel, our Emporium Primitivo di Manduria or even McManis Zinfandel.

If you prefer your turkey with gravy then a full-bodied wine is a good choice for wine lovers. The roundness and weight will match the sauce. Our personal favourite here at Wines Of The World is Vidal Legacy Chardonnay which won The Best Chardonnay at the Decanter World Wine Awards 2015. There is also the option of our Pierre Andre Chablis or the Veramonte Chardonnay Organico Reserva to name a few from our Chardonnay selection.

If you prefer red wine, a mature Tempranillo Rioja would work well as aged wines have less tannin. For this we would suggest Beronia Tempranillo Especial.

As Turkey is mild in flavour there are plenty of other options of light fruity refreshing white wines that pair up nicely and will also complement the ham such as Riesling and Gewurztraminer.

At Wines of The World we have McGuigan Shortlist Riesling, the delicious Villa Maria Private Bin Riesling and the Preiss-Zimmer Gewurtztraminer.

Luckily the red wines which we recommended for the turkey, Esk Valley Pinot Noir , The Fat Bastard Pinot Noir and Beronia Tempranillo Especial will also pair up well with the ham.

DESSERTS

To finish there is the option of a dessert wine or a port why not treat yourself to something new for the occasion that’s in it.

Sweet dessert wines, which have a high sugar content, are best paired with sweet desserts that also have a high sugar content. Dessert wines also go well over vanilla ice cream and you could always serve your ice cream with apricots that have been infused in the dessert wines, try it, it’s delicious! For this, we have Pierre Amadieu Muscat Beaumes De Venise or the Gabriel Meffre Muscat Beaume – de- Venise

If you don’t have a sweet tooth and would like to have something to pair with a cheese board or Christmas pudding then we would highly recommend a port such as Cockburns 10 Year Old Tawny.

Or if it’s something chocolatey you enjoy for dessert then Cockburns Vintage Port is perfect for you, it also pairs up nicely with strong cheeses such as Stilton or Roquefort.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us at sales@winesoftheworld.ie or call us on Freephone 1800 844 101 we are more than happy to help!

HAPPY CHRISTMAS FROM ALL OF US AT WINES OF THE WORLD!