7 Aromatic White Wines For Thanksgiving

Thanks to Icon Rock and Bolla for providing me free bottles of wine to sample in exchange for a fair and honest review for aromatic white wines for Thanksgiving.

When it comes to Thanksgiving food, all rules are thrown out the window. The flavors you will find on the table are all over the board making it hard to find the perfect wine. I like to open several bottles so I have options. For Wine Wednesday, here are 6 aromatic white wines for Thanksgiving.

We will tackle the reds next week.

White wines tend to go well with turkey and a lot of the side dishes. Pour a glass of the lighter styles as a welcome and build from there. Many of these have great acid to cut through some of the fattier dishes. The fruit found in them is often good with salty dishes and if it's a hot day, many are quite refreshing.

Pinot Grigio is a good way to start a meal. It is typically on the light side but there are some that might surprise you with their complexity. Look for ones from Alto Adige for more depth. Otherwise this one from Bolla is a good value and easy to find.

Italian whites in general, are good food wines. Try Gavi. It is a region not a grape. This wine is made from cortese grapes. Gavi tends to be dry, minerally and good with food in general, specifically vegetables and cheeses.

Sauvignon Blanc is a good wine with salads and seafood. Keep in mind the ones from California tend to have more rounded fruit. Those from New Zealand and Australia tend to be more acidic. Those from France are a little more subtle generally speaking.

Chardonnay can be a wildcard when it comes to white wines for Thanksgiving and typically not my first choice. The ones that are big, buttery, and oaky can compete with rather than compliment many of the heavy dishes on a typical buffet.

Last week I had lunch with the owner of Tamber Bey in Calistoga, California and his chardonnay was beautiful. All of his wines were. The chardonnay is made without any oak but it still has great body and richness.

Another California Chardonnay that is consistently good is Hahn. You can easily find this in the stores. But the winery has multiple tiers like this appellation series.

Chardonnay from Oregon is commanding the spotlight more and more. One of my favorites comes from Mad Violets. However, Angela Vineyards is quite nice too.

For something totally different, look to Early Mountain wines from Virginia. Since Virginia was said to be the original destination of the pilgrims, I have to include a wine from there for Thanksgiving.

Early Mountain has four different vineyards and grows a variety of grapes like petit manseng. It's one you don't see a lot on store shelves, found most often in southwest France.

It's really hard to have a perfect pairing for Thanksgiving so pull the cork on something you know you like, then experiment with something new and have fun tasting both with different foods on the table. Just be sure to pick up some white wines for Thanksgiving festivities

Drink Responsibly