If any of you are beginning to think about wine for Thanksgiving Dinner, remember, that turkey has the most delicate flavor of anything on the plate, especially if your a white meat fan. You are for the most part matching the wine with the other food on the plate. If you want a wine to go with the turkey think soft, light and delicate. Like Riesling, Beaujolais, Chenin Blanc. So, on my next post I'll give some suggestions on what to serve with Thanksgiving dinner.

As the leaves change color and fall to the ground, pumpkins hit the doorstep, and weekends are all about football and fall festivals, we find ourselves wanting heartier foods and soft, spicy red wines. Here are some great choices for tailgating, your grandmother’s beef pot roast or a Halloween party where three bean chili or shepherds pie is the entrée of choice. So, if you are looking for a hearty, spicy, soft red, look no further and try one of these.

Agricola de Borja Borsao 2005 - Borsao is a blend of 80% Garnacha and 20% Tempranillo. This wine is stainless steel fermented to allow the intense aromas of fresh sweet berries and pepper to flow out of the glass. Medium body with a silky texture, wonderful ripeness of fruit and a note of tobacco on the finish.  Excellent quality at a great price.

Candido Salice Salentino 2001 - A wine from Puglia that has a nose of red and black cherries and fresh tobacco. It is a lighter blend of 80% Negroamaro and 15% Malvasia Nero. With a fresh flavor of dried red fruits and Mediterranean herbs and a touch of anise on the soft, smooth finish. Named by Decanter Magazine as on of the top 100 Wines of Italy, October 2006.

Jaboulet Cotes du Rhone  - ‘Parallele 45’ Rouge 2003 Aroma of red fruits, especially raspberry, pepper and herbs. Full-bodied, soft and smooth with flavors of plum, raspberries, cocoa and spice. Good balancing acidity with a touch of wood spice on the finish. Very balanced. A blend of 50% Syrah and 50% Grenache.

Jacob’s Creek Shiraz Reserve 2003 - Cherry and blackberry fruit with fragrant cooking spice and ground pepper notes and a little toasty oak on the nose. Silky texture with blackberry, licorice, cooking spice and ground black pepper flavors with smoky oak finish. Hope you have the grill going at the tailgate party.

Marietta Cellars Old Vine Red, Lot 40 - A proprietary red table wine primarily composed of Zinfandel, Petite Sirah and Carignan with small amounts of Cabernet and Syrah added to the blend with various Italian varietals rounding out the lot. (Now that’s a blend.) Inviting ripe blackberry, black pepper and spice nose with a touch of oak. Very mouth filling with rich black and red berry fruit flavors and a little subtle oak on the long finish.

Tapena Tempranillo Tierra de Castilla 2005 - Deep purple wine with flavors and aromas of luscious red cherry fruit, with a touch of earthiness and anise. The finish is long with a hint of spicy mocha. Produced by the Ferrer family of Spain. If you are into cooking you’ll love the painted bottle and the versatility of this wine.  Tapena is also available in the Garnacha varietal and both wines are very food friendly.

Susan Anderson

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