Whatcom wineries have holiday meals covered

With Thanksgiving on the horizon, the holiday season has nearly arrived, and the task of preparing the table with complementary food and wine combinations is often viewed with equal parts anticipation and dread.

Fortunately, the process of choosing holiday wines is easier than one might think.

Consider the traditional Thanksgiving Day meal … roast turkey, bread stuffing, mashed potatoes, green bean casserole. Those mildly seasoned foods provide little opposition to most wines, allowing for a variety of both reds and whites in styles ranging from sweet to dry.

Whatcom County wineries have you covered on all fronts, with excellent choices available at local grocers, wine shops, and tasting rooms.

Dakota Creek Winery 2013 Dry Riesling (about $22) and 2011 Dolcetto (about $24) — Ken and Jill Peck have been “fan favorites” of many Whatcom County wine lovers for the past decade, and their current releases include a white and red that should fit nicely at the holiday table.

The riesling “is bone-dry, almost like a sauvignon blanc,” Ken says, and for a red wine, the dolcetto is “a little lighter-bodied and a little fruity, so it pairs well with both ham and turkey.”

Dynasty Cellars 2014 DCR Rosé (about $16) and 2014 DCS Semillon (about $18) — Renowned countywide for their red wines, Peter and Olga Osvaldik also offer a pair of alternatives that are certain to be dinner favorites at Thanksgiving.

The delicious, off-dry rosé consists of a riesling/semillon base, with a bit of merlot and sangiovese blended in to provide the pink color. The semillon displays aromatics of fresh peach and meadow grasses, gentle stone fruit flavors, and a touch of herbaceousness on a dry finish.

Glacial Lake Missoula Wine Company 2013 “The Denier” (about $29) — After 18 months aging in new French oak barrels, this just-released red wine from Tom Davis and Tracey DeGraff is a combination of 90 percent merlot and 10 percent cabernet franc.

“It’s soft, plummy, with good acidity,” Davis says, “which makes it a great food wine.”

Samson Estates Framboise Raspberry Dessert Wine (about $13) — “The wine should always be sweeter than the dessert” is a good rule of thumb, and winemaker Rob Dhaliwal easily clears the bar with this crowd-pleaser made from local fruit.

Blueberry and cassis wine options are also available as nice, change-of-pace accompaniments to pumpkin pie.

This story was originally published November 12, 2015 at 5:11 AM with the headline "Whatcom wineries have holiday meals covered."