Holiday Meal Pairings to Make the Most of Your Menu

With the holiday season in full swing, it’s safe to say that good food, time with loved ones, and cozying up by the fireplace make this time of the year something most look forward to. When creating the perfect holiday dinner menu, though, it can be a bit tedious to find the perfect groupings of main courses and drinks that come together to make the meal as tasty as possible. To help inspire you, we wanted to share some delicious wine pairings to match your main course meat or poultry options for your next holiday dinner or get-together to leave your guests looking for the next one!

Beef

Starting off, we wanted to explore some delicious pairings you can create when serving beef dishes. While beef isn’t necessarily at the top of the list for most popular main courses during the holiday season, it is still worthwhile exploring if you’re a fan of steaks, ribs, or even chops for your main course meal. When it comes to beef, exploring wines like Cabernet Sauvignon will help balance the flavors out of the dish; Cabernet Sauvignon, according to Wine Country, typically has concentrated black fruit flavors with an earthy body and is perfect for the winter season. Additionally, Sangiovese is another wine typically recommended for serving with beef as its flavor profile is the ideal complement to any heartier dish, as noted by Wine Cooler Direct.

Chicken

When serving chicken as the main course for any holiday meal, there are a variety of wines you can pair to enhance the taste and overall experience for your guests. For instance, if serving roast chicken, it is recommended to enjoy a light-bodied red wine like Pinot Noir, Zinfandel, Grenache, or Counoise. On the other hand, if serving much smokier chicken dishes like barbeque chicken or Chicken Coq Au Vin, it’s recommended to pair a more medium-bodied red wine such as Cabernet Franc, Merlot, or Sangiovese. These wines typically match the boldness of the chicken without overpowering the flavors, so picking will allow you to truly enjoy the food while enjoying the wine as well! 

Fish

Adding a tasty fish for the holidays can help switch up the menu and add variety to your food preparation, and finding the perfect pairing can enhance the experience even more so! When it comes to fish, the type you are making can impact the variety of wines recommended to pair well with the dish. For instance, Wine Folly notes four categories of pairings depending on the type of fish being prepared: lean and flaky fish like sea bass, medium-textured fish like trout and arctic char, meaty fish like tuna, and intensely flavored fish like sardine or herring. Each fish has a different flavor and may not pair as well with certain types of wine as other fishes might, so learning the distinctions between them can help you in your search. 

When it comes to lean and flaky fish, zesty and refreshing white wines are noted to help balance the delicateness of this type of fish’s flavors, so wines like Champagne, Cava, Sauvignon Blanc, Muscadet, and Cava are noted to be great choices. 

When enjoying a medium-textured fish, white wines with either a medium body or rich, full-bodied aged in oak are mentioned to pair deliciously. For instance, try a New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc, White Rioja, Fiano, or Pinot Gris to help balance the fish dishes richer flavors without overpowering the meal's beautiful taste.

For meatier fish or fish with a steak-like texture, pairing a rich white, rosé, or red wine will help perfectly complement the dish's flavors without being too bold or overpowering. Wines like Vintage Champagne, Dry Rosé, Marsanne, or Grenache Blanc are perfect wines for a meal like this!

Finally, for strongly flavored fish, like anchovies, sardines, or mackerel, it is recommended to pair a red wine to compliment the intensity of the flavors of the fish! Choosing a wine like Pinot Noir, Gamay, Cava, or Champagne Crémant will help match the flavors of the dish you are enjoying while still maintaining both the wine’s and the fish’s complexities.

Ham

When it comes to ham, a variety of wines are considered top-tier choices to complement your dish. Given ham’s sweet and salty flavors, it’s recommended to pair this meat with wines that have a bit of sweetness and boldness to it. Therefore, wines like Riesling, Moscato, Lambrusco, and Zinfandel make excellent choices, although picking the right wine will depend on how the ham you are eating is prepared. For instance, choosing the right wine for a dry-cured ham will differ from the wines you’ll pair for a smoked ham, as the dish's saltiness levels and other flavors will affect the desired outcome for the pairing. 

All in all, creating the perfect holiday menu can help make mealtime during the holiday that much more enjoyable. Whether you're spending time with close family and friends or are hosting a bit bigger of an event, we hope this provided a bit of inspiration to help you get started on having the best end to the holiday season you can have. Have a safe and wonderful New Year and we hope to see you in 2023!