It’s Holiday season! Nothing is more synonymous with the holidays than enjoying great food and drink with friends and family. Beyond all the sweet treats and office parties, an enduring tradition for many Americans is having a signature holiday dinner. Hosting such a celebration can be a time-consuming task. To save you time and money we’ve created this specially curated 4-course Winter Holiday Dinner plan, complete with a set of recipes paired with Sunstone wines. Just buy the wines and pair them with these great dishes, to the delight of everyone!
Each of these wines is available for purchase individually, but you can save 36% by buying all 4 together for just $109. Enjoy!
FIRST COURSE
RED & GREEN HOLIDAY SALAD
Paired With: SUNSTONE 2020 VIOGNIER, SBC
Our first course not only feels festive due to its holiday color palette, but it pairs perfectly with our 2020 Viognier (rated 90 points by Wine Enthusiast). This salad features green apples and pears, which just happen to match these same primary notes in the Viognier. But what vaults this pairing from good to great is the gorgonzola crumbles. Lighter white wines, including our Viognier, do very well with piquant cheeses like gorgonzola. When you’re putting this dish together, make sure to use a young gorgonzola, not aged. Aged gorgonzolas are a better fit with red wines. Enjoy!
Get the Recipe Here Buy This Wine Here Buy the Wine 4-Pack Here
SECOND COURSE
CHEDDAR-BLUEBERRY BUCKLE
Paired With: SUNSTONE 2019 CABERNET SAUVIGNON, SYV
At first glance, it may seem surprising to drink a big red like Cabernet Sauvignon this early in a meal. But we made an exception to that rule in this case because the pairing is that good. Before we get to the pairing, you might ask “What is a ‘buckle'”? In short, the best way to describe it is a cross between cake and bread. The addition of cheese to this one makes it more of a side dish than a dessert. Our 2019 Cab Sauv, SYV has plenty of red, blue, and black fruit notes, including blueberry, which complements the blueberries in the dish. But the addition of this unique blueberry-cheddar cheese sets this pairing apart. Cab Sauv and cheddar are a match made in heaven because hard cheeses with fat and bold flavors are the only kind that can stand up to a big red wine. Delicious!
Get the Recipe Here Buy This Wine Here Buy the Wine 4-Pack Here
THIRD COURSE
BRODETTO SEAFOOD STEW
Paired With: SUNSTONE 2019 SOLEIL ROUGE
For our entree, we were inspired by the Italian-American holiday called Feast of the Seven Fishes, celebrated on December 24th in many households across the U.S. East Coast and elsewhere. From a food perspective, the name of the holiday says it all- multiple fish and seafood dishes are served. In this case, we have a dish that combines them all into one- traditional Italian brodetto seafood stew, which is similar to its more well-known “cousin” cioppino. As longtime Sunstone members know, our Soleil Rouge is a Super Tuscan-style blend prominently featuring Sangiovese. Sangiovese is a natural pairing for any food with a tomato base, such as this stew, because the high acidity in the wine balances the acidity in the tomatoes. You will be making this one over and over again. Mangia!
Get the Recipe Here Buy This Wine Here Buy the Wine 4-Pack Here
FOURTH COURSE
CHOCOLATE LICORICE MERINGUE WITH CHERRIES
Paired With: SUNSTONE 2019 SYRAH, SYV
Let’s say you have a wine with notes of black cherries, cocoa, and licorice (hint: we do). What should you pair it with? How about a dessert with those exact same ingredients! That is the case for our fourth course. This unique meringue combines all of these flavors into one, seamlessly integrating with our 2019 SYV Syrah. While you might be thinking that a meringue is too light to enjoy with a red wine, this is the exception. This meringue is dense and chewy, not light and fluffy. What a great way to end a holiday meal!
Get the Recipe Here Buy This Wine Here Buy the Wine 4-Pack Here
The post Winter Holiday Dinner with Sunstone Wine Pairings! appeared first on Sunstone Winery.
