Thanksgiving dinner is a literal feast for the senses. It’s a mouthwatering spread of your family’s favorite dishes, from the sweet to the savory to the buttery and beyond.
It’s also one of the hardest meals to pair wine with. Between turkey, stuffing, gravy and pie, how do you even begin to decide what wine to serve with Thanksgiving dinner? That’s where our Thanksgiving Wine Pairing Guide comes in.
Thanks to our wine experts, you don’t have to stress. They’ve perfected Thanksgiving wine pairings that complement every course, from sparkling sips that start the meal to dessert wines that end it on a sweet note.
Keep reading for expert-recommended bottles to pair with every dish on your Thanksgiving table (yes, every single one).
Hosting hero tip: If you’re only looking to serve one or two wines at Thanksgiving, look for the wine glass icon for the wines that will pair well with absolutely everything on your table.
While the main feast is cooking, you and your guests are likely snacking on something: a veggie tray, apples and caramel, or maybe crackers and soft spreads to kick things off. (Does anyone else’s family gorge themselves on a meat and cheese tray while waiting for everything to be done? No? Just us?)
Regardless of what you’re munching on before the main event arrives, you’ll want to start with something light and refreshing to kick-start your palate.
Sauvignon blanc’s bright acidity and unoaked character make it a perfect pairing across a variety of appetizers. It especially shines when paired with softer cheeses and assorted fresh cut veggies (think cucumbers, peppers, etc.). This one has a tasty fresh expression with tropical fruit, fresh citrus, green apple and enough herbaceousness to keep it light and complementary.
The opportune time to serve an obscure wine is before the main meal starts and everyone’s antsy to dig in. Give your guests a conversation starter with this alternative white wine varietal from Italy made with Falanghina grapes. Falanghina is an ancient variety with considerable character—a bit of a grown-up pinot grigio, if you will. It has a clean, refreshing character that makes it a perfect pairing for seafood-based appetizers, like crab dip or shrimp cocktail. It’ll start as a tummy-rumble distraction and end as everyone’s favorite part of the meal.
Bubbly is the ideal beginning to any celebration, and it’s no coincidence that sparkling wines pair well with virtually every food group. This one is from the region of France believed to be the birthplace of sparkling wine (surprisingly, not Champagne) and sells for a fraction of the price of most Champagnes, meaning you can share a toast with every family member without breaking the bank. If you’re only planning to pour one or two bottles at Thanksgiving, make sure this is one of them. It makes the perfect celebratory sip and between-bite palate refresher.
Alright, now it’s time to play ball. The gravy boat just hit the table, Aunt Karen’s icing her arm where she burnt it taking the turkey out of the oven, and you’ve had a conversation with your 13-year-old in the hallway about why yes, they do need to sit with their cousins at the kids table.
There are going to be a lot of different dishes served during Thanksgiving’s main course, but here are a few wines that can stand up to every flavor on your plate.
Your first thought might be to reach for a buttery chardonnay on Thanksgiving, but you should actually do just the opposite. Go for a slightly more acidic, unoaked chardonnay instead so your palate isn’t weighed down with too much creaminess. This Napa Valley Chardonnay, with its balance of richness, acidity and elegance, makes it the kind of wine that pairs well with turkey and other traditional Thanksgiving dishes, from stuffing to cranberry sauce.
Many Thanksgiving side dishes are swimming in butter and cheese: mashed potatoes, mac ‘n’ cheese, corn casserole and more. To cut through the abundance of fat, choose something with a good balance of fruit, spice and tannins. Our experts suggest this Côtes du Rhône, a red wine from one of the iconic winemakers of France. This blend has the perfect balance of ripe berry notes and earthiness, making it a great pairing for richer Thanksgiving dishes.
Pinot noir is a universally food-friendly wine because of its low tannins, ripe fruit flavor profile and refreshing acidity. This bottle comes from the Russian River Valley, a region famous for its world-class pinot noirs. It’s also a fantastic value for its price point. If you’re looking to stock up on only one or two wines for Thanksgiving, this one is a stand-out choice.
Hopefully you wore stretchy pants. It’s time for dessert.
We’re supposing that, like most families, you’ll be serving a plethora of pies, but these wine pairings will work with whatever cakes, cobblers, casseroles or tarts you have planned, too.
After a heavy meal, a light, refreshing and delightfully sweet dessert wine is the perfect way to round things out. Moscato ticks all the boxes. This one is pleasantly sweet, fragrant and well-balanced with notes of candied tangerine, peach and apple. Pair it with cherry pie, fruits of the forest tart or apple crumble.
Most Thanksgiving desserts are nutty, caramelized and rich with baking spices: pumpkin pie, pecan pie, apple cider donuts, etc. These desserts pair best with a Tawny Port, or this gem of a fortified wine from Australia made in the style of Tawny Port. The richness of this wine is the perfect complement to the richness of pumpkin and pecan pie.
There’s one sweet wine on our shelves that out-sells the rest year after year, and for good reason: this Sangue di Giuda is the best frizzante (slightly effervescent) sweet red wine to serve with any dessert at Thanksgiving. It has just the right level of sweetness and acidity to balance flavorful desserts without being too cloying or heavy. It’s the red wine that even red wine haters will drink happily, and the only sweet wine we’d serve at Thanksgiving if we had to choose just one.
