The first course is a homemade soup, courtesy of an old recipe by Don Reid at Butternut Farm. It's called "Battle of Lexington Soup," and is made with chicken stock, onion, pumpkin puree, heavy cream, nutmeg, and cracked black pepper. While I was making the soup, I grabbed the first wine out of the fridge. Since it was unseasonably warm, and I have been strangely interested in trying some new white wines lately, I decided to go with a Portuguese white wine - an Alvarinho.
The only Portuguese wine I've ever had is true Port, so this was interesting to me. Alvarinho is a white grape, sometimes called Albariño, originating in Galicia, Spain, but grown widely around the Iberian peninsula. This one is made in Moncao, Portugal, in the northernmost region of Portugal, bordering Spain.
I like the slightly effervescent nature of the wine - little tiny bubbles in the glass, with a light clear gold color. The flavor was pleasingly tart; it had a sort of green apple zing to it. It was buttery - smooth, with no sharp oakiness - with a crisp finish, again reminiscent of tart green apple juice. It's refreshing and delicious, and more complex than a Riesling or a Gewurztraminer. I thought it was a great prelude to the soup course, which would be a little heavy for the white.
After finishing the white, then having the soup, it's time to talk red wine for dinner. A full segment on choosing a wine is forthcoming in the weeks ahead, but for now you should know that several factors go into choosing a wine for dinner. For me, I was interested in something more full-bodied and strong, since the turkey was delicately seasoned but we also had heavy foods like mashed potatoes, etc. Too delicate or old of a wine would end up being lost in all the spiced Thanksgiving flavors.
Hence, I chose a 2013 Filón grenache, from Spain. Grenache (sometimes spelled Garnachia, or Garnaxia) is a grape very widely grown, and although it's not uncommon to see straight grenache, it's generally blended with other wines, and I've reviewed numerous of those blends (grenache / syrah / Mourvedre / tempranillo / etc. blends of varying combinations.) Today's wine is just straight grenache, a strong red wine with some character. The table is set, everyone's seated, so let's pour this wine.
It pours dark, almost black, with a little brownish-red on the meniscus of the glass - this is called "bricking" and is a sign of aged wine. However, Grenache has been known to brick even in young bottles, so don't look too much into it. It had a young, grapey aroma with a taste to match - bright, strong, and a little hot and sour. It wasn't as polished as I would have liked, and perhaps I should have chosen another bottle, but overall it performed nicely and was enjoyable.
Now on to dessert. We served the usual pumpkin pie, ice cream, apple pie, and chocolates, and normally I would have brought along some single-malt or a Port. But today I figured I'd take along a 2010-vintage Old Guardian barleywine from Stone. It's one I've had in my cellar since 2010, and is part of the ongoing experiment to see how well those beers age. As you may recall, I've reviewed them a few times over the years: once in 2013, and once earlier this year. I've also referenced them in various posts.
Nice color when candled - we used to call it "neon Thanksgiving turkey." Taste-wise, it was super strong, hoppy, and sweet, with flavors of ripe tangerine, baker's chocolate, and prunes. The aging certainly changed the taste and hop profile, and turned the alcohol and winey flavors up to 11. I enjoyed the strength of this, coupled with those aged and strong flavors that I come to expect in an older barleywine.
And to round out the evening, I chose a Montecristo No. 2 Yellow torpedo-tip cigar, sized 6x50. A great smoke to wrap up a delicious meal!
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