As the calendar marches us into holiday season, most of us will begin soon to plan for our Thanksgiving Day meal. Choosing the wine can be challenging, though. There are so many different types of food, flavors and textures. I’ll simplify matters for you.
One of the favorite choices among my family is Sauvignon Blanc. Although it originated in Bordeaux and the Loire Valley, it also has found hospitable surroundings in New Zealand, Chile, South Africa, and Australia. This column focuses on California.
The grape’s flavor profile comes in several styles, though it’s usually assertively aromatic, with refreshing acidity. Generally, expect brisk green citrus, grapefruit and occasionally stone fruit, a distinctive (sometimes spicy) herbaceousness. Wines made from riper fruit often display melon, nectarine, peach, or even tropical fruits.
2022 Ancient Peaks ($18) (90) juicy, apple, citrus, saline notes
2023 Charles Krug ($23) vibrant, lemon, lemongrass
2023 Balletto ($25) bright, lime, apple, savory
2023 La Crema ($25) delicious lime, apple, spicy herbs
2023 Presqu’ile ($28) citrus, herbaceous, round
2023 Clockwise ($30) elegant, lemon, melon, apple
2023 Cliff Lede ($38) brisk grapefruit, pear, peach, barrel fermented with semillon develops richness
2023 Goosecross ($39) succulent grapefruit, apple, tropical, honeydew
2022 Gamble ($55) wonderful, intense, tropical and stone fruit, sharp structure, oaky richness
Zinfandel is my go-to red for Thanksgiving for many reasons. It is my favorite red wine. It is the quintessentially American grape: an immigrant that succeeds here (California) better than anywhere else. Zinfandels have good acidity, approachable tannins, exuberant raspberry, cherry, and blackberry fruit. Aromatically, black pepper is a signature trait, with some versions exhibiting savory and herbal details.
Seghesio Family Vineyards, founded in Sonoma County in 1895 by another immigrant Edoardo Seghesio, today is one of the finest and most reliable Zinfandel producers – especially with access to old vines, which concentrate fruit flavors and wine volume.
Seghesio sources its grapes from several growing zones throughout Sonoma County. Although these Zinfandels are fairly high alcohol, under the stewardship of Viticultural Director Ned Neumiller and Winemaker Andy Robinson in weaving Old World and New World practices, they taste flavorful, elegant, refined and food friendly.
2022 Sonoma County ($26) very approachable; abundant fresh, wild blackberry and currant, licorice accents
2022 Sonoma County Old Vine ($40) 50-75 year-old vines mostly from Alexander and Dry Creek Valleys; spirited raspberry, cherry, forest floor, baking spice, invigorating tannins
2022 Home Ranch Vineyard ($65) Alexander Valley Estate vines up to 125 years old; bold, edgy black cherry and plum, mocha, polished, luscious, structured tannins
2021 Montafi Ranch Vineyard ($75) 100-year-old Russian River Valley Estate vines; enticingly complex, bright, expressive, briary, raspberry and red plum, savory sage, licorice, black pepper and eucalyptus, rich texture, fine tannins