How can you make it more exciting than turkey and pie? Have it with the right wine! Our Thanksgiving dinner wine pairing guide is an easy solution!

Before we jump to pairing wine, let's deconstruct the food to some of its essential elements that will help us find the right wine.

Oh, that self-stuffing feeling of Thanksgiving! Every year we promise ourselves never to eat turkey ever again! Twelve months later, it's like our "hard drive of a brain" is erased.

As Thanksgiving approaches, we are salivating just thinking about roasted turkey with golden glistering skin, juicy stuffing, mashed potatoes bathing in gravy, crunchy green beans, and stuffed mushrooms, dinner rolls, cranberry sauce, pumpkin pie and more. By the way, vegans enjoy this holiday just as much, if not more, with a vast array of vegan options and meat substitutes out there.

Appetizers

We noticed a few trends when we browsed for Thanksgiving Appetizer Recipes.

Stuffed mushrooms, creamy pumpkin and root soups, crostinis, roasted veggies, dips, and bacon-wrapped thingies are among the most popular recipes. In broad terms, appetizers tend to have earthy flavor elements - think mushrooms, fatty - think bacon, oily - think roasted veggies, and acidic - think sour cream or cranberry. The tricky one is acidity because the sourness or tartness is often a hidden element that enhances our food and is not always easy to detect.

Main Course

Whether you are an omnivore, pescatarian, vegetarian, or vegan, your main dish is likely to contain some meat real or imitated. Let's not forget about all the side dishes that can go along with it. In the main course, proteins and fats are the kings counterbalanced by slightly acidic sauces that refresh our palate and keep us coming for more. Notice the common theme yet between appetizers and the main course?

Dessert

No Thanksgiving dinner is complete without dessert. Pecan, apple, pumpkin or cranberry pies make sure we are stuffed as a bird on the table and ready to promise to never it turkey ever again... until the next Thanksgiving.

Our Thanksgiving dinner wine pairing guide is for everyone who likes to make sense of every bottle on the table, and every sip during holiday meal.

Ideally, it's best to find matching wine for each of your courses. There are times when it's not feasible because your family might be small for three or more bottles, or you're the only one drinking wine, or you're invited to Thanksgiving dinner. Whatever the reason, we will help you find that ONE bottle that will go with everything on the table.

What kind of wine would it be if there can be only ONE or TWO or Three? We will help you pick the wine for your Thanksgiving dinner in 1, 2, 3.

What kind of wine would it be if there can be only ONE? You got options!

Rosé wine is no longer just for the Memorial weekend and summer picnics. It extended its season through Thanksgiving and for a good reason. It's very food-friendly and can unite both red and white wine lovers.
When it comes to food, dry rosé can add complexity to earthy and savory flavors of Thanksgiving dishes, counterbalance the fats and oils and sweeten cranberry sauce. Rosé fruitiness pairs well with apple and berry pies, but might clash with overly sweet pumpkin or pecan pies and taste sour or even touch bitter. Although fruitier or off-dry Rosé might work.

Thanksgiving is one of the quintessential American holidays, and it's a perfect reason to celebrate with American Rosé. Thanks to the growing demand for this wine, Oregon and Washington winemakers responded, and now we have lots more choices than your aunt's pink Zinfandel from California.

What we like about Oregon and Washington Rosé its diversity and very berry character. You can find it made from Pinot Noir, Sangiovese, Syrah, Nebiolo, and other grape varietals. To help you pick one, we put together an objective and non-sponsored list of wines in our article Oregon and Washington Rosé Wine Uprising.

There are thousands of choices, and red wine lovers can easily get lost and pick a good wine that may not work with Thanksgiving meal. 

The full-bodied, tannic, and heavy hitters, such as Cabernet Sauvignon or Chianti, for example, may overpower and clash with food. 

If you prefer red wines, your best bet is Pinot Noir. It has been long recognized as an excellent option for Thanksgiving and for a good reason. 

Be that salad, veggies, fish, poultry, or red meat - there's Pinot Noir for that. The fruit, acidity, and earthy notes of high-quality Pinot Noir pair well with most Thanksgiving dishes and even some berry desserts. So you're not a fan of Pinot Noir, try some from our list below for Thanksgiving, and you might change your mind.

The only challenging part with Pinot Noir is the choice because there's so much of it of mediocre quality. Pinot Noir is one of the hardest wines to make because this grape is so finicky and sensitive to climate and weather. 

If you want better quality Pinot Noir, expect to spend north of $20 regardless of the country of origin. The sweet spot for enjoyable entry-level Pinot Noir is $25 to $35. 

In the stores, you most likely to see Pinot Noir from Burgundy of France, California, Oregon, and New Zealand.  

France and New Zealand tend to produce the drier and earthier Pinots while California known for super ripe and fuller-bodied wines. Oregon Pinot Noir is in a sweet spot. It has the right balance between earthiness expected from French wines and fruitiness expected from California. We had a chance to pin these wines against each other at our Pinot Noir Face-Off wine club event and taste the difference. 

We tend to gravitate towards Oregon Pinots because often it has the best parts of both New and Old World wines. There are many so-so entry-level bottles under $20, but to taste the best expressions of this grape from Oregon, try Pinot Noir from Willamette Valley and start with a bottle at $25-35. In this price range, we like and recommend Roserock Pinot Noir by Domaine Drouhin. It's a consistent winner and best value year after year. 

At mid-level, we like Brick House 2015 Cuvée du Tonnelier or Ayres 2016 Pioneer. 

And if you're invited to Thanksgiving dinner, you can say thank you with Roco 2016 Ancient Waters or Domaine Divio 2015 Toison d'Or.

For more Pinot Noir options, you can check our reviews here.

Not sure about Rosé? Wanna take the road less traveled by?

There's a third sure bet option for you! It works with any appetizer, dish, and dessert. Moreover, it works on any occasion but seldom recommended on Thanksgiving. It's "a cure it all" - Champagne! 

Champagne is a perfect match for Thanksgiving because it can satisfy everyone, including turkey connoisseurs, pescatarians, and devoted vegans. Bubbles can accompany your entire dinner by complimenting veggies and fish, counterbalancing fat, and oil. Ever had Champagne with roasted turkey? It's a slam dunk. 

It also will introduce pleasant acidity to desserts and even pecan and pumpkin pie. It will keep your palate refreshed, and you might even eat less. After all, those bubbles take up the room too. 

There are tons of sparkling wine options, and if your budget allows, go for Champagne, if not, pick a bottle made following the traditional method. There's an option for every taste and budget. For inspiration, you can check our article on French Sparkling Tasting with our Wine Club members. 

Now let's put it all together. You can turn ordinary Thanksgiving dinner into the epicurean event to remember. The best way to do it is by pairing a different wine with each course because the right combination is more than a sum of two.

For starters, you can mix and match the wines we mentioned above for the main course and appetizer and just add dessert wine that we discuss in a bit.

There are few things to keep in mind when you pair wine and food for Thanksgiving. You can either match the profile of the dish or counterbalance it.

Tempting Beginnings: Appetizing Wine

For example, there are two options if you start with something like Caramelized Butternut Squash and Gorgonzola Crostini.

This appetizer has elements of both fat (creaminess) and acidity (sourness.) The fat comes from the cheese and olive oil in crostini. The acidity comes from natural tartness in the taste of Gorgonzola cheese and cranberries in the recipe. So how can you wineswing this appetizer?

You can emphasize the acidity with something like Pinot Gris based Dazzle Rosé from Long Shadows Vintners from Washington or other rosé wines we mentioned before. 

Another good option is 2017 Hubert Brochard Sancerre Sauvignon Blanc from France or 2018 Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand or 2018 L&R Sauv Blanc by Succession Wines from Washington.

To play on the creaminess of this appetizer, you will need a wine with similar notes. If you thought of Chardonnay, you were absolutely right. 

The trick here is to avoid "butter bombs" Chardonnays and find the wine with the right balance between butterness and acidity. 

With that in mind, there are a couple of good examples such as 2016 El Enemigo Chardonnay from Argentina and 2016 Dutton Ranch from California. Just like Butternut Crostini appetizer, these wines have both creamy and acidic components, and that's a recipe for a memorable food and wine pairing. 

Both Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay also work well with creamy soups, stuffed mushrooms, dips, salads, bacon-wrapped Brussel sprouts and other veggie appetizers. 

Happy Seconds: Wine for the Bird

Chances are you're going to have roasted turkey as the main course if you eat meat. After all, we kept to our promise not to eat turkey ever again, at least for a year.

Those who tired of good old turkey may opt-out in favor of chicken, duck, or go all-in with Turducken.

Yet some might skip the birds all together and enjoy roasted ham, pork ribs or loin and other meats.
For vegans, vegetarians and pescatarians options are limitless because there are no "must-haves," and you can eat whatever you want or stick to tradition with an imitated turkey meat.

Whether you omnivore or vegan any wines that we mentioned so far will pair well with most of the main courses. Our suggestion to go with Champagne if you never had it with a roasted turkey, chicken or pork.
The refreshing profile of sparkling wine balances the richness of the meat and puts you in a festive mood with bubbly sensation in your mouth.

If your main course is a duck, beef, or lamb, try it with Pinot Noir or better yet with Luc Belair Rare Rosé from Southern France. The red fruit profile compliments well these meats, and you get bubbles too.

Typically, full-bodied or tannic wines such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah are too powerful for turkey but will pair well with red meats or duck.

Sweet Endings: Dessert Wine

Although the trio of turkey, stuffing, and mashed potato are the stars of the evening, we all know it's the dessert that keeps us lingering at the Thanksgiving table. 

Whether you wait all year for a pumpkin pie or creamy New York cheesecake, apple tart or vegan pumpkin cone, pecan pie or the cousin of Turducken - The Chocolate Pumpkin Piecaken, it all tastes better with a dessert wine. 

The following two dessert wines are worthy of a royal table and were, in fact, almost exclusively consumed by monarchs of Europe from the 17th through the 19th century. 

You may have heard of Sauternes from the Bordeaux region of France. Nowadays, it's considered the top dessert wine in the world. The most expensive bottles from the top producer sometimes sold for tens of thousands of dollars. Still, luckily for us non-royals, we can buy less exclusive and just as delicious Sauternes at more reasonable prices. For example, the 2012 Chateau Climens Premier Cru Barsac comes from one of the top producers of the region.

Moreover, grapes for it come from the same Barsac village that the most expensive Sauternes wine made from. Wanna feel like royalty this Thanksgiving? Here's your chance. 

The second royal wine to consider is Vin de Constance from Southern Africa. In the 19th century, it was the most valuable and expensive wine in the world. Napoleon had a standing order for a few barrels every year. At the end of the 19th century, the production of Vin de Constance stopped for over 100 years and was only resumed in the 1990s by the same winery that was producing it since the 18th century. 

2013 Vin de Constance can give you a chance to toast Thanksgiving with the same wine Napoleon did. Hard to beat that and talk about it on Instagram!

Both Sauternes and Vind de Constance can pair well with most Thanksgiving desserts. They have enough sweetness not to be overshadowed by sweets. You can have the most delightful wineswinging experience pairing it with pumpkin or apple pie, chocolate or cheesecake. 

There's one more wine you should try that goes particularly well with pecan pie, chocolate cake or any nutty and chocolaty desserts. 

1987 Pedro Ximenez from Spain is a very sophisticated dessert wine that you will never forget. It's among the most underrecognized and undervalued wines in the world. Pedro Ximenez is made from the sweetest grape in the world and aged in old casks, some of which can be 200 to 300 years old. We think it makes it extraordinary, wouldn't you agree?

It's not always possible to find vintaged Pedro Ximenez (with the year of harvest on the bottle). No worries. Pedro Ximenez typically produced as non-vintage because it allows winemakers to make very complex wine at very accessible prices. It only made as vintage in exceptional years. Even if it's non-vintage, you'll have the most memorable experience drinking this wine. 

Why these three wines work with dessert? Their sweetness is only part of the story. The backbone of the success of Sauternes, Vin de Constance, and Pedro Ximenez is acidity. Behind all that apparent sweet taste hides the tartness that we cannot sense, and yet it keeps refreshing aftertaste when we sip these wines. 

So here's a novel idea for Thanksgiving dessert! Have one of these wines instead of cake or pie. You'll be surprised how little your sweet tooth needs and how immensely satisfying these wines can be.