Winter’s feasts

Wines for Winter Feasts…

Growing up on the Mississippi Flyway often meant roast goose or braised duck for Christmas dinner. One year when Dad had bagged a brace of blue geese, I came home from New York toting a pair of red Burgundies—a Nuits-Saint-George and a Volnay premier cru. They were incredible—with plush, spiceberry fruit redolent of cherries, boysenberry and other summer berries.

Rich Pinot Noirs shine with gamebirds—red Burgundies—Volnay, Pommard, Chambolle-Musigny—Pinot Noirs from Russian River Valley or Santa Rita Hills, Reserve Pinots from Oregon. Of course—if money’s no object the 2019 Romanée St.-Vivant is $3600 (yes, a bottle! Worth it? Well, if I had it, I’d buy it in a flash!). Jean-Claude Boisset Chambolle Musigny 2022 is somewhat more affordable at $84 to $89, boasting warm ripe berry and-plum flavors and spicy undertones. I’m impressed with New Zealand Pinots, too, especially Central Otago—currently a Pinot hotspot—that can be had even more affordable, such as Rockburn 2022 at $28.

Last month I recommended a clutch of moderate-priced Pinots for Thanksgiving roast birds, and received good feedback about the selections (check out November blog). Personally, I was particularly pleased with Cloudveil 2022 ($23) for its supple, bright, bing cherry fruit—so smooth and well-balanced Others to look for: Elk Cove 2022, King Estate 2022, Kate Arnold 2021, Kumeu Village 2023 (NZ), Faiveley Bourgogne Rouge 2021 (Burgundy).

Roast pork loin: Medium-bodied Pinots again work superbly with pork loin—I recently opened Robert Sinskey 2005 Pinot Noir from Carneros Napa, and was delighted with its vivid richness and fine balance. Well-structured Pinot can age longer than thought, as this nineteen-year-old proved. Current Pinots to look for of similar style: Sinskey 2018, Siduri Santa Barbara or Santa Rita Hills, Duckhorn Sonoma Coast. I also recommend the Rhône’s Saint-Joseph, all syrah, with pork loin. Its slight peppery notes add a nuance of flavor.

Beef, lamb, venison: Heartier meats call for heartier reds. With roast beef or lamb, you can’t beat good cabernet sauvignon. I recently tasted the excellent Jordan Cabernet Sauvignon 2019, bolder and more concentrated in this excellent vintage but most enjoyable (it will be even better in a decade), aromatic, with intense black cherry fruit, refined tannins and oak, a long finish.

I also like Bordeaux blends (varying amounts of cabernet sauvignon, merlot, cabernet franc, petit Verdot) with roast lamb or beef. As blends they’re more supple than young Cabs, whose tannins can be strident until age tames them (10 to 15 years mnimum for best cabs/Bordeaux rouge, at the $80 and up level). Chapellet Mountain Cuvée 2022, Dry Creek Meritage 2021, Cosentino Meritage 2021, Beaulieu Tapestry 2019.

Beef bourguignon, venison, cassoulet can take even heartier reds: the Rhone’s Chateuneuf-du-Pape, Cornas, or concentrated Syrahs from California. Expect to pay $70 and up for these heftier wines. I’ve found Cahors with cassoulet more to my liking than the usually recommended Madiran (from the tannat grape). Here also is the opportunity to venture into some of Spain’s bold reds, such as Pesquera and other Ribera del Duero, Argentina’s better Malbecs with their lip-smacking fruit.

Current pressures on the international wine market—one of many periodic boom/bust cycles—is about to benefit wine drinkers as wine prices soften. Soon, let us hope!