Wines and Ciders for the Thanksgiving Feast
Here's an easy answer to the perennial question of what to drink with Thanksgiving: Anything you want.
It is wine most often, but it doesn't have to be. Cider is a wonderful choice, both alcoholic and nonalcoholic. So is beer, or iced tea, cider-wine blends or even just water.
On a day with many moving parts, beverages ought to be the least of your worries. Nobody comes to Thanksgiving to train their critical faculties on how wine pairs with whatever you choose to serve. They come to see family and friends, to stuff themselves and to enjoy whatever is in their glasses. It's a feast, not a test. Beverages are the easy part.
Over 20-plus years, I've written annually about what to drink with the Thanksgiving meal. I believe you can't go wrong, so long as you keep a few guiding principles in mind, based on the idea of a large, unruly party with many different foods that goes over many hours. Among them are these:
Have something on hand for people who are not drinking wine, maybe beer or cider and certainly nonalcoholic options.
Serve both white wines and red to accommodate everybody and err on the side of familiar rather than cutting edge. By that, I mean sauvignon blanc or Beaujolais rather than a tannic orange wine.
Figure a total of one bottle for every drinking guest. Most likely you won't come close to consuming it all, but nothing is worse than running out.
Avoid highly alcoholic wines (go under 14 percent, preferably) or those that are too tannic, sweet or oaky (ask your merchant if you're unsure). The wines ought to refresh rather than fatigue.
Many, many wines fit these criteria, especially in the $15 to $25 range, which is a sweet spot for good values. I've suggested 12 wines, six white and six red. If you don't see these exact wines, ask a good wine merchant for recommendations for similar bottles, or consult previous Thanksgiving columns.
Ciders are another wonderful option. They are lower in alcohol than almost all wines and would go great with a Thanksgiving meal. Ciders feel seasonal as well, even if the bottles you buy come from previous harvests. You could also try cider-and-wine blends or nonalcoholic cocktails.
The key is not to stress. With all the complications in organizing the feast, what to drink is the easy part.
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