Thanksgiving Wine Pairing: What to Pour With Turkey, Sides and Pie
Every family has the one dish. Maybe it's your aunt's cornbread stuffing, or the green bean casserole nobody admits to loving, or the turkey your dad has been brining since Tuesday. Thanksgiving wine doesn't have to match all of it. It just has to keep up.
Here's the good news. The table is so crowded that no single bottle can "pair" with everything, so stop trying. Pick wines with bright acidity and gentle tannins, open more than one, and let people pour what they like. That's the whole strategy. Below are the bottles we'd put on our own table this year, course by course, plus one to carry in if you're the guest.
The short version
- Turkey: a light, juicy red. Our pick is the 2023 Domaine des Marrans Chiroubles "Aux Côtes" Beaujolais ($42).
- Stuffing and sides: a dry, zippy white. Grab the 2025 Dönnhoff Estate Dry Riesling ($28) or the 2025 Diwald "Vom Loss" Grüner Veltliner ($30).
- Pie: skip the dessert wine. Pour the Martha Stoumen Post Flirtation orange wine ($30).
- Bringing a bottle? The Sommelier Curated Thanksgiving Wine Gift Box ($125) does the thinking for you.
How to pick Thanksgiving wine (without overthinking it)
Thanksgiving food is rich, salty, buttery and a little sweet, all on one plate. Two things in a wine help with that.
Acidity. It's the mouthwatering quality that makes you want another bite. Acidic wines cut through gravy and butter the way a squeeze of lemon does.
Low tannin. Tannin is the drying, black-tea feeling some reds leave behind. Big tannic reds can taste harsh next to turkey breast and cranberry sauce. Softer reds stay friendly.
So: lighter reds, crisp whites, and nothing too heavy or too oaky. Plan on about one bottle for every two to three wine drinkers over a long meal, and you'll be fine.
Best wine for turkey
2023 Domaine des Marrans Chiroubles "Aux Côtes" Beaujolais — $42
If you buy one red for Thanksgiving, buy this one. Chiroubles sits higher in the hills than any other Beaujolais cru (the region's ten top-rated villages), and the Gamay grown up there comes out floral and light on its feet. This bottle comes from a single parcel of roughly 45-year-old vines on steep granite, farmed by the Mélinand family, who've run Domaine des Marrans since 1970.
Expect fresh raspberry and cherry, a little violet, soft tannins and enough brightness to handle both white meat and dark. Put a slight chill on it (20 minutes in the fridge) and it's even better. It also happens to be the red your wine-shy cousin will finish first.
2024 Hanna Glatzer Carnuntum Blaufränkisch — $30
Feeding a crowd? This is your bottle to buy in multiples. Hanna Glatzer makes it at her family's estate in Carnuntum, just southeast of Vienna, from certified organic vineyards. Sour cherry, wild raspberry and a pinch of black pepper, with silky tannins and bright acidity. The pepper is lovely with sage, thyme and a well-seasoned bird.
Splurge: 2024 Bachelet-Monnot Maranges Rouge "La Fussière" Premier Cru — $85
For the smaller, slower Thanksgiving where the good glasses come out. Brothers Marc and Alexandre Bachelet make this red Burgundy (that's Pinot Noir) from seven parcels on one slope. Crisp cherry, a touch of forest floor, fine tannins. It's quietly gorgeous with dark meat and mushroom stuffing.
Best wine for stuffing, sweet potatoes and the rest of the sides
2025 Dönnhoff Estate Nahe Dry Riesling — $28
A lot of people hear "Riesling" and think sweet. This one is dry, and it might be the most useful bottle on the table. Green apple, citrus and a smoky, stony edge from volcanic soils in Germany's Nahe valley, where the Dönnhoff family has farmed since at least 1761. The acidity cuts straight through mashed potatoes and gravy, and it's gentle enough for anything with a little spice or sweetness, like candied yams.
2025 Diwald "Vom Loss" Grüner Veltliner — $30
Grüner Veltliner is Austria's go-to white, and it's made for herby, savory food. Think stuffing, green beans, Brussels sprouts. White pepper, lemon curd and green apple, crisp and light. The Diwald family has farmed organically in Wagram since 1976. If someone at your table says "I only drink white," hand them this.
Best wine with pumpkin pie (and apple, and pecan)
NV Martha Stoumen Post Flirtation Orange Wine — $30
You don't need a dessert wine for Thanksgiving pie. You need something with texture and a little spice of its own. Orange wine is white wine made with the grape skins left in, which gives it an amber color and a bit of grip. Martha Stoumen's version, from California's North Coast, tastes like dried apricot, chamomile and tangy citrus peel. Those flavors sit right next to cinnamon, nutmeg and pumpkin without competing. It's also a fun conversation starter after the second slice.
The bottle to bring as a guest
Sommelier Curated Thanksgiving Wine Gift Box — $125
If you've been told to "just bring wine," this is the easy yes. Our sommeliers picked three bottles to cover the whole meal: a dry Crémant d'Alsace from Domaine Christophe Mittnacht for the toast, a Domaine des Marrans Fleurie for the turkey, and a Diwald "Luft & Liebe" Grüner Veltliner for the stuffing. It also comes with our Thanksgiving Guide, two Turkey Day recipes and our holiday playlist. Your host gets dinner sorted. You get invited back.
Shop the Thanksgiving Gift Box
Or bring a game: the Blind Wine Tasting Kit
For the family that gets competitive over board games. Our Blind Wine Tasting Kit comes with two, three or four wrapped wines ($100, $125 or $150), The Argaux Tasting Guide and our tasting grid. Pour, guess, argue, repeat. It's the best way we know to fill the stretch between dinner and pie.
Want more host-gift ideas? Browse our full collection of wine gifts.
Thanksgiving wine pairing FAQ
What is the best wine to pair with Thanksgiving dinner?
A light, fresh red like Beaujolais (Gamay) and a dry, crisp white like Riesling or Grüner Veltliner cover almost everything on a Thanksgiving table. Both have the acidity to cut through rich food and neither is heavy enough to overpower turkey.
Should you serve red or white wine with turkey?
Either works. Turkey is mild, so pick a red with soft tannins, like Beaujolais or Pinot Noir, or a dry white with good acidity, like Riesling. Avoid big, tannic reds, which can taste bitter next to lean white meat.
How many bottles of wine do I need for Thanksgiving?
Plan on one bottle for every two to three adults who drink wine over a long meal. For ten wine drinkers, four or five bottles is a safe number. Buy a mix of red and white so everyone finds something they like.
What wine goes with pumpkin pie?
An orange (skin-contact) wine with dried apricot and spice flavors works well with pumpkin pie. If you'd rather keep it simple, a glass of whatever dry white is still open is better than forcing a big red with dessert.
What wine should I bring to Thanksgiving as a guest?
Bring something the host can open with dinner, not just store. A crowd-friendly red like Beaujolais or a ready-made trio like our Sommelier Curated Thanksgiving Wine Gift Box covers the toast, the turkey and the sides.
One last thing
The best bottle at Thanksgiving is the one that gets passed down the table. Pour generously, let people try a little of everything, and don't save the good one for later. Later is now. Happy Thanksgiving from all of us at Argaux.
Looking for what to drink once the leftovers are gone? Here are six wines to keep you warm this fall.
