Wine Pairings to Match Your Holiday Cooking Style

Sweet

You probably don’t like the taste of bitter or sour ingredients, but you like big flavours and might use salt to balance your dishes. You are a cook who favours sweet and smooth flavours if you cook a majority of these holiday recipes:

- Cornbread stuffing

- Dishes with dried or cooked fruit

- Sweet apple or cranberry sauce

- Maple syrup flavours

- Glazed vegetables

- Marshmallow-or brown sugar-topped

If you're a sweet cook, you'll like our Sweet Potato Skillet Kugel with Bronzed Marshmallows.

These wines match your cooking style:

WHITE WINE

Your white wine is off-dry and fruity, with aromas and flavours of apple, peach and melon, but it still has enough brightness to avoid seeming cloying with your food.

Try Bougrier Vouvray Chenin Blanc.

RED WINE

Your red wine of choice is medium-bodied and fruity, tasting of dark tree fruits and berries. It has just enough tannins to balance your food.

Try Mission Hill Five Vineyards Pinot Noir VQA.

ROSÉ

Rosé that’s soft and off-dry complements your palate. Though colour isn’t an indicator of rosé style, you’re likely on the salmon-coloured end of the spectrum.

Try Woodbridge By Robert Mondavi White Zinfandel.

PERFECT FOR HANUKKAH

Rosé that’s soft and off-dry complements your palate. Though colour isn’t an indicator of rosé style, you’re likely on the salmon-coloured end of the spectrum.

Try Dalton Safsufa Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon KPM.

Rich

You like the style of comfort-food dishes touched with decadence. Your holiday meal gets creamy and rich flavours and textures from dairy, bacon or pastry. Does your menu feature these?

- Gratin or mashed potatoes with lots of butter and cream

- Creamy gravy

- Cheese-topped vegetables or sides

- Buttery bread or buns

- Latkes or other fried dishes

- Tourtière or other pastry dishes

If you're a rich cook, you'll like our Tourtière with a Twist.

These wines match your cooking style:

CROWD-PLEASER

A rich and complex sparkling wine will complement the robust texture of your food with brightness and toastiness.

Try Mumm Cuvée Napa Brut Prestige.

WHITE WINE

Your white wine is full-bodied and rich, likely touched with buttery oak for creamy texture to match your cooking, with a touch of mouthwatering acidity.

Try La Crema Sonoma Coast Chardonnay VINTAGES.

RED WINE

Choose full-bodied and smooth red wine, brimming with currants and berries plus warm spice and vanilla from barrel-ageing. It has soft, velvety tannins.

Try The Prisoner Red Blend VINTAGES.

ROSÉ

An all-day rosé that’s easygoing and fruity will suit your menu. While dry, crisp rosés rule the summer, this more savoury, red-fruit-driven style works with holiday food.

Try Josh Cellars Rosé

Savoury

Even cooking the holiday meal, you consider a lighter approach. You use savoury and herbaceous flavours to accent vegetables, grains and pulses, substituting olive oil for butter and sprinkling nuts, citrus zest and herbs liberally. This is your wine style if you favour:

- Jus-style gravy using wine or broth

- Vinaigrette-dressed greens

- Grain salads

- Olive-oil roasted or dressed vegetables and greens

- Tart, citrus-enhanced cranberry sauce

- Balsamic-glazed vegetables

If you're a savoury cook, you'll like these Balsamic-Roasted Baby Potatoes and Carrots.

These wines match your cooking style:

HOLIDAY CLASSIC

A premium wine that packs wow factor, a Gamay-based Beaujolais from one of the 10 villages graced with the premium cru appellation typically has lovely floral aromatics.

Try Georges Duboeuf Beaujolais Brouilly.

WHITE WINE

Light and crisp whites with herbaceous notes match your menu’s fresh approach. A touch of citrus in your cooking makes this wine come truly alive.

Try Cloudy Bay Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc VINTAGES.

RED WINE

Your red-wine delight is fruity and light-bodied, with a touch of the fresh, green herbal flavours that enliven your side dishes.

Try Château des Charmes Gamay Noir VQA.

ROSÉ

A dry but medium-bodied rosé will bring a fruity (but not too sweet roundness to your flavour-Packed food.

TRY Apothic Rosé.

Meatless Menus

You cook vegan or vegetarian main dishes, but your food has so many robust flavours from nuts, miso and other umami bombs, your guests never miss the meat. You use non-dairy products and borrow spices from various cuisines. You tend to cook:

- Tofu, Tofurky or other soy proteins

- Roasted vegetable mains

- Non-dairy “cheese” or cream sauce

- Miso sauce or gravy

- Potatoes or other starchy root vegetables

- Lentil or other pulse/bean loaves/patties

If you're a meatless cook, you'll like our Warm Green Lentils.

These wines match your cooking style:

FOR TOASTING

A sparkling wine with plenty of flavour (such as cava, which often carries an undertone of anise that will make veggies sing), offers a festive toast with your meal.

Try Villa Conchi Brut Seleccion.

WHITE WINE

Your white wine is aromatic and flavourful, favouring New World varietals. It drinks well with most vegetables, even the brassicas and bitter greens that can be difficult to pair.

Try Robert Mondavi Napa Valley Fumé Blanc.

RED WINE

Think full-bodied and firm reds that ground your food and contribute earthy flavours earned through longer bottle ageing.

Try Muga Reserva Rioja VINTAGES.

ROSÉ

An easygoing and fruity rosé complements a menu that might incorporate spicy flavours from Indian, Asian or other vegetarian-focused cuisines.

Try Henry of Pelham Rosé VQA.