What are the Best Easter Wine Pairings?

What are the Best Easter Wine Pairings?

There are a range of options for Easter wine pairings-so where do you start? You have enjoyed Easter dinners featuring the classic lamb and Bordeaux wine combination. This year, why not enjoy an Easter or late spring dinner featuring Burgundy wines?  You will have an enjoyable treat, with fine wines complementing your choice of courses. We have come up with some great menus complete with traditional Easter fare and some suggestions for  Easter wine pairings.

When I think of Burgundy, a game dinner usually comes to mind. That is perfect for the fall, with a fine full Burgundy wine to accompany the dinner. But with Burgundy, your choices are not limited to the fall specialties. Let’s try a lighter dinner. We’ll pair it with fine wines to complement the dishes you have taken care to choose and prepare.

Three menus are offered for your selection, with first courses and desserts.

Menu #1 for Easter wine pairings:

• A first course of Coquilles of Scallops sautéed with mushroom caps and sherry sets the palate for fine flavors to come.
  • Here, try a Kir, a traditional Burgundian aperitif. This drink was invented by Canon Kir; he intended it to solve a nice problem. What should the Burgundians do with the inexpensive white wine they produced?
  • To make your Kir use white wine (usually Chardonnay). Add a jigger of fruit wine, perhaps framboise (raspberry) or cassis (blackcurrant liqueur).
  • Serve this course with your choice of Macon-Lugny Chardonnay ($14). Macon-Lugny is one of the remaining bargains of Burgundy white wine. And to finish it off, add a fruit wine of your choice.
• Next enjoy a main course of roasted Cornish Game Hens. Add wild rice and Cumberland sauce, to round out this family favorite.
  • For the wine, I suggest a white wine, like a fine Chablis.
  • As a main course wine, take a step up in flavor and wine enjoyment.
  • There are some 40 first growths in the Chablis appellation. My favorite, full of subtle flavors, is Les Vaillons. And William Fevre makes a delectable wine ($38). If this is unavailable, try Fevre’s “Champs Royaux” (2014, $21).
• Dessert for all three dinners would be your choice of two favorites.
  • Try a pavlova with a meringue crust. Add fresh sliced strawberries and whipped cream.
  • Or, you might prefer the oohs and ahhs, that serving a coconut cake will produce. It is made with an angel food cake topped with toasted coconut, and a touch of light rum. T
  • his is the perfect time to serve Cremant de Bourgagne Brut NV (Domaine Gracieux $16). Your guests are sure to see why this traditional (and reasonably priced!) sparkling wine of Burgundy is enjoyed.

Menu #2 for Easter wine pairings

• White asparagus with Hollandaise sauce starts the meal.
  • Here again, a Kir would be a welcome and palate-refreshing treat.
• A Rib Eye of Beef with small roasted red potatoes fills in the main course.
  • Pair this with a full-bodied red wine, perhaps a Cote de Nuits with lots of flavor, but not too heavy.
  • A Latour Nuits St. Georges (2012, $55) would be an excellent choice. Latour has specialized in village appellation wines of very high quality. The result is a series of wines which are comparable to more expensive first growths throughout the Cote d’Or.
  • You will see why Nuits St. Georges is the favorite red wine of many who favor Burgundy wines. A budget choice would be Drouhin’s Cote de Nuits-Villages (2014) at $28.

Menu #3 for Easter wine pairings:

• Our third dinner selection is a traditional Easter Ham served with baked sliced sweet potatoes.
• Start this meal with Honeydew melon slices with sherry.
  • You may wish to serve your Cremant de Bourgogne for a sparkling wine treat with the first course. If so, since a champagne-like beverage is being served, you have decided to pour a Kir Royale also!
• Ham is rather full-bodied and needs a substantial wine to complement its flavors.
  • I suggest a fine Meursault, one of the best Burgundy white wines. A Latour Meursault, a village appellation wine made with great care, retails for $54.  That price is about half what fine wines from neighboring Puligny-Montrachet or Chassagne Montrachet would cost.
  • Or, you could stick with a sparkling wine like Cremant de Bourgogne. (It tastes like champagne, but legally unable to use that name.) The effervescence of the wine is the perfect accompaniment for the the ham. Your guests will enjoy a treat, either way!

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