Thanksgiving food and wine pairing recommendations

Thanksgiving is a great time to buy local by serving Lehigh Valley wines with your family's meal. Here are some food and wine pairing suggestions from our wineries, as well as their Wednesday business hours for last minute wine sales. All wineries are closed on Thanksgiving Day.

Vynecrest - Young and fruity Vynecrest Nouveau Beaujolais is a great wine to serve with turkey. Vynecrest is open from 11 a.m. - 5 p.m. on Wednesday.

Galen Glen - Try their semi-dry Riesling, dry Vidal Blanc or - if you’re looking for the WOW – the 2010 Gewurztraminer, which is the Best White Wine by a woman winemaker. They are open on Wednesday from noon - 5 p.m.

Clover Hill -

• Riesling ~ whether you choose the dry Generations Riesling or the semi-sweet Riesling the bright peach and apricot flavors with strong acidity is a classic white wine to pair with your Thanksgiving foods.
• Pinot Noir ~ The Generations Sparkling Pinot Noir will be sure to make your holiday table sparkle. The dry, red Pinot Noir is the classic red wine pairing with the turkey, stuffing and more.
• Vignoles ~ Serving this sweet, late harvest wine is the perfect accompaniment to your pumpkin pies and other desserts. 

They are open Wednesday from 10 a.m. - 5:30 p.m.

Amore - For pairing with white meat go with Gregg's Gregio and Vidal Blanc. With dark meat, try Blushing Beauty or Rose Amore.

Franklin Hill - Try the 2011 Seyval Blanc, White Jade (which is slightly dryer with a hint of oak) or their Kiss wine to pair with your Thanksgiving turkey. Serve their Pomegranate Peach wine as a martini with appetizers. It was just awarded a Gold medal at the 5th Annual International Women's Competition.
The winery is open until 5 p.m. Wednesday evening, and the Easton and Tannersville locations until 7 p.m.

Pinnacle Ridge - Traminette is a great pairing for the traditional holiday meal since it has enough structure and "stuffing" to hold up to the bold flavors of stuffing and cranberry relish.  Alternatively, a light red like their 2009 Chambourcin would work perfectly well. They will be open from noon - 6 p.m. on Wednesday.

Blue Mountain - Their 2011 Nouveau is very soft on the pallet with hints of strawberry and cherry and will be a great compliment to Thanksgiving meals. Mountain Spice (an apple wine) is wonderful this time of year. Heat it up slowly in a crock pot or on the stove and add half cup of brown sugar per bottle. They are open 11 a.m. - 6 p.m. on Wednesday.

Big Creek Winery - will be open on Wednesday from noon - 5 p.m.