The Holidays & Wine: Your Guide

JUPITER, FL – November 3, 2017 – Holiday Food & Wine Pairing

Searching for the perfect wine to serve at a holiday gathering can be an exercise in futility, but it is certainly not a lost cause if you simply adjust your approach from technical to practical. With a dizzying array of varying flavors and dishes on top of numerous guests with different palates and tastes, it can be a daunting process when selecting your holiday wines. Here are some of my “cliff notes” to assist.

Thanksgiving

As Thanksgiving is a holiday more or less unique to the United States, I typically like to go all-American when thinking about what to pair with the big bird on the table with a wine that is also uniquely American, Zinfandel (not the pink imposter).

Recommendation: 2015 Robert Biale Vineyards ‘Black Chicken’ Zinfandel from Napa Valley, California ($38)

Chanukah

Not all kosher wines are created equal, and even though these wines are not mandatory for Chanukah in most circles, you may be pleasantly surprised if you look outside the box of what is stereotypically cooked fermented grape juice.

Recommendation: 2015 Celler Capcanes ‘Peraj Petita’ from Montsant, Spain ($18)

Christmas Eve

For Italian-Americans, as well as many of the non-paisano conglomerate in the United States, Christmas Eve is all about seafood à la ‘The Feast of the Seven Fishes’ or a variation thereof with crisp Italian whites. My late grandmother Lucia was a fan of Livio Felluga (one of the best examples around—her AND the wine).

Recommendation: 2015 Livio Felluga ‘Fruiliano’ from Friuli Colli Orientali, Italy ($26)

Christmas Day 

Typically a more robust food and wine affair over it’s evening prior counterpart, the Christmas Day holiday spread warrants wines of a bigger and bolder character. For this, I say go Bordeaux and seek out a second label from one of the greats.

Recommendation: 2009 Les Fiefs de Lagranges from Saint Julien, Bordeaux ($40)

New Year’s Eve

Champagne in my opinion is the best food pairing wine on the planet. It’s a great buzz too, especially when you stick to the real thing as opposed to the stuff that is synonymous with hangover-inducing swill. Go for the smaller producers (i.e. Grower Champagnes).

Recommendation: Doyard ‘Cuvée Vendémiaire’ Premier Cru Brut NV from Champagne, France ($40)

Stephen Asprinio of “Top Chef” fame is a South Florida native whose career has spanned across the country from a chef and sommelier to a restaurateur and hospitality entrepreneur.

To learn more about Stephen Asprinio’s copious talents, look out for his article in the upcoming issue of InJupiter.