Food and Wine Pairings for Different Occasions and Moods

What to Look For:

1. •Bubbles—pét-nats if you can find them.

2. •Unfiltered and skin-contact wines for a dynamic full expression of the grape.

3. •Well-balanced wines are versatile for food pairings.

Dry Farm Wines Pick:

It’s a rustic Italian wine that ticks a lot of celebratory boxes. The pop of opening a sparkling wine sets the tone for the evening. This one is a pét-nat, so it has a light, delicate bubble from natural fermentation. You get a lot of flavor because it’s a skin-contact wine and unfiltered (which also makes it look a bit cloudy). It essentially contains the fullest expression of the grape—stems, skin, seeds, yeast, and all. The grape is Lambrusco di Sorbara, though Spuma is certainly less sweet than a typical Lambrusco wine. It’s incredibly well-balanced, so foodwise, it goes with almost anything. It’s also enjoyable on its own, sans food.

What to Look For:

1. •Wines with lower sugar and lower ABV are a better choice for daytime drinking.

2. •Whites grown in warmer climates that won’t suffer at room temperature.

3. •Something bright with acidity to balance your menu—our picnic basket always has some rich elements like nuts, cheese, charcuterie, or hummus.

Dry Farm Wines Pick:

This South African wine—made from Chenin Blanc grapes—is true to its warm coastal growing climate. It’s got some minerality, and surprisingly, it still tastes nice at room temperature, once the chill has worn off. When it’s super chilled, those mineral notes are right up front, but as it mellows to room temperature, you’ll get more subtle fruity notes. So no need to stress over the cooler and ice. All Dry Farm Wines skew lower in alcohol, but this is one of the lowest at 11.56% ABV, making it ideal for daytime drinking. It’s not overly acidic, but it can cut through some rich foods you might have packed for your picnic.

What to Look For:

1. •Wood-barrel-aged wines have a more luscious mouthfeel that will linger on your palate.

2. •Bold-flavored wines for pairing with bold foods.

3. •Check the region and winemaking style—these can result in very different flavor profiles, even from the same grape.

Dry Farm Wines Pick:

Just because you’re staying in and having dinner in sweatpants doesn’t mean you can’t have great wine. This Chenin Blanc from the Loire Valley is bold, rich, and complex—lots going on here. While it’s made from the same grape varietal as the picnic wine above, this Chenin Blanc is wildly different because it’s from a cooler climate, so it drinks best chilled. It has a slightly higher alcohol content than the picnic wine. And it’s aged in neutral oak barrels, which doesn’t impart flavor, but the porous wood allows for oxidization, resulting in an incredibly luscious palate-coating effect. This wine can stand up to bold flavors, so don’t be shy with your menu.

What to Look For:

1. •Approachable wines with an interesting story will please novice and expert wine drinkers alike.

2. •Old-vine wines: Small but mighty crops produce wines with intense flavor.

3. •Earthy, aged reds—the depth of flavor works well with anything grilled.

Dry Farm Wines Pick:

When you’re hosting a BBQ, your guests’ level of wine knowledge will likely vary. Looking for something approachable enough for a wine novice and interesting enough for your experts? This Cab Franc fits the bill. It’s very earthy, with some acid, made from old-vine grapes, meaning the vines have been harvested for upwards of twenty years. Old vines tend to produce fewer grapes, but those grapes are packed with flavor. This wine is also aged in barrels, then bottled and aged some more, so both the color and flavor have had a chance to develop and intensify over time. It’s ideal for anything charred coming off the grill—rib eye steaks, merguez sausages, shishito peppers, or za’atar flatbread.