TJs has a Perfect Pair of White Wines to Pair with Traditional Thanksgiving Fare

Fast facts:

• 2019 Chateau Ste. Michelle Gewurtztraminer, Columbia Valley, Washington ($7.99 @Trader Joe’s, California)
• 2020 Pine Ridge Chenin Blanc + Viognier,  Napa, California ($11.99 @Trader Joe’s, California)

Trader Joe’s has a pair of perfect Thanksgiving white wines. Neither will break the bank and both are delicious.

For starters, let’s address the qualifier in the subject line of this post, where we speak about “traditional” Thanksgiving” fare.

We recognize that some readers may not celebrate with a turkey and all the fixings.  Some may eschew meat altogether.  Some may eschew the holiday altogether!

But all that said, we are focusing this post of pairing wines – in this case white wines – with the traditional turkey feast. Have no fear, our picks for red wines will follow next week. And we already disclosed our pick for the dessert course in our post last week.

It’s a little tricky picking wines for this menu.  There are several considerations that come into play. The first is that you are not necessarily pairing wines to turkey, but rather to the dominant sides. The latter tend to be – it has to be said – fat laden.  I’m  not judging. Heck, my own plate is assembled to be ready to receive a big heavy dollop, or two, or three – of gravy.  And in our house there is no shortage of butter in the stuffing. So you need some acidity in the wine to cut through all that density.  Most Chardonnays are too round and buttery. What’s more, you want the wines to be moderate in their levels of ABV (alcohol by volume) lest you not make it to the dessert course. (Some like to blame the trypophan in the turkey, when it might just be the ABV in the wine.) Where most American table wines clock in at 14.5% – 15.5% ABV, the CBV is just 11.7% and the “Gewurtz” is only 12.5%. It doesn’t sound like much, but it is.

Long time readers of this blog (thank you!) may recognize both of these wines, as they have been featured here before. You can find a prior review for this Gewurtraminer here.  It is a particulary interesting read, trust me, from the early days of the pandemic.

 

Tasting Notes:

Pours a pale straw color. It has medium pronounced aromas of apple and apricot. Flavors of apricot, peach, and honeycomb prevail. Semi-sweet with medium acidity, medium alcohol, and medium plus body. It is well-balanced with a long finish, plus moderate complexity and intensity. A very good wine and typical of the Gewürztraminer variety.

 

Anyboy else feeling like COVID 19 has bent the time space continumm?  Good to hear I am not alone. Otherwise, I don’t know how to explain how if feels like I just reviewed this wine last year when it was actually FOUR VINTAGES ago.

Tasting Notes:

Crisp, bright, and vivacious, CB+V is an aromatic white blend boasting a bouquet of honeysuckle, orange blossoms, ruby grapefruit, white peach, and jasmine tea. The entry is both bright and mouth filling, exhibiting refreshing acidity and roundness, opening to flavors of tangerine, lime, and lemon curd, lemongrass, ginger, white peach, and green apple. This delicious wine finishes clean and long with a lingering hint of lime.

 

If your local Trader Joe’s carries this bottling, give it a try and let us know what you think by dropping a note here in the comments section or on our Facebook or Instagram posts.

And if your weekend does find you shopping  at your local TJ’s, also keep an eye out for our Lucky 13 list of TJ’s wine. It’s a shopping list comprised of our most recent reviews.

Or if you’re headed to Costco, you can find our most recent reviews of Costco wines here in our Lucky 13 list of Costco wine finds.

Cheers!