Red or White Wine With Turkey? How to Choose (and Why Most Tables Pour Both)

Both work with turkey. White wine, ideally Chardonnay, suits the breast, gravy and creamy sides; red wine, ideally Pinot Noir, suits dark meat, stuffing and cranberry. If you open one bottle, open Pinot Noir. Domaine de la Rivière, a Russian River Valley family estate, pours its 2022 Two Forces Pinot Noir beside its 2021 Ritchie Vineyard Chardonnay, one of Robb Report's Top 50 California Chardonnays of the Century.

Below: the red and the white we'd pour, the verdict, the honest case for white and for red, which wine suits white meat and dark meat, a dish-by-dish table from sage stuffing to pumpkin pie, where Rosé fits, which reds and whites to avoid, and how to serve both at one dinner, including how much of each to buy.

Which red and which white do we pour with turkey?

Domaine de la Rivière settles the debate at its own table by opening both: an old-vine Chardonnay and a fuller Pinot Noir from the Russian River Valley, one at each end of the table. A brighter Chardonnay and a savory, mid-weight Pinot are the second pair, for a bigger crowd or a longer evening.

For the white side of the tableRitchie Vineyard Chardonnay2021: one of Robb Report's Top 50 California Chardonnays of the Century. 1972 Old Wente vines.2021 · $85

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For the red sideTwo Forces Pinot Noir2022: 98 points, The Tasting Panel; Double Gold, San Francisco Chronicle International Wine Competition.2022 · $95

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For white-wine drinkers, all eveningFlora Marie Vineyard Chardonnay2021: 94 points, Wine Enthusiast and the Cristaldi Report; Double Gold, American Fine Wine Competition.2021 · $75

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For the whole tableMiddle Reach Vineyards Pinot Noir2021: 94 points and a Cellar Selection, Wine Enthusiast; Double Gold, San Francisco Chronicle.2021 · $75

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Or settle the debate in one box: The Thanksgiving Table holds a Rosé, a Chardonnay and a Pinot Noir for the meal, three bottles for $189 with $25 flat-rate shipping.

For Thanksgiving

The Thanksgiving Table

Our Thanksgiving set: a Rosé for when everyone arrives, a Chardonnay for the turkey, and a Pinot Noir for the cranberry and everything after.

• 2025 Shoshana Rosé of Pinot Noir
• 2021 Flora Marie Vineyard Chardonnay
• 2022 Two Forces Pinot Noir

$189$25 flat-rate shipping

See the set

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Is red or white wine better with turkey?

Neither wins outright. White wine is the better match for turkey breast, and red wine is the better match for almost everything around it: dark meat, stuffing, cranberry and roasted vegetables. If you can open only one bottle, open a Pinot Noir. If you can open two, pour a Pinot Noir and a Chardonnay side by side.

The argument lasts because both sides are right about different things. The old rule, white wine with white meat, describes a slice of roast breast well, but nobody eats turkey on its own at a holiday dinner. The plate carries tart cranberry, salty and herbal stuffing, rich gravy, and sweet and creamy sides, and the wine has to get along with all of it. A light red with soft tannin covers more of that plate than a white does, which is why Pinot Noir is the single bottle we'd choose.

Our own red side is the 2022 Two Forces Pinot Noir, Domaine de la Rivière's signature wine, blended from estate Vineyard eleven and El Diablo Vineyard fruit. It has black cherry, rose petal and baking spice over fine-grained tannin, enough depth for dark meat and smoked birds and soft enough for the breast. The 2022 scored 98 points from The Tasting Panel.

What is the case for white wine with turkey?

White wine matches turkey breast, the part most people eat. Breast meat is lean and mild, with almost no fat, so it needs body and acidity rather than tannin, which makes lean meat taste dry. A Chardonnay with moderate oak also matches gravy, mashed potatoes and buttery sides, and it suits guests who drink white all year.

• No tannin to dry out the breast. A slice of white meat without gravy is where red wine is weakest and white wine strongest.
• Texture for the creamy dishes. Mashed potatoes, mac and cheese, creamed onions and pan gravy are all butter and cream. A Chardonnay with some body meets that weight; a thin red can taste sharp against it.
• It starts the meal. Most hosts pour white with appetizers, and a good Chardonnay carries straight on to the table.
• Some guests prefer it. At most holiday tables a few people drink white all evening, whatever is on the plate.

White wine's weak point is cranberry sauce, which makes a heavily oaked, buttery Chardonnay taste flat. The fix is a Chardonnay with real acidity and modest oak. Domaine de la Rivière's 2021 Ritchie Vineyard Chardonnay comes from Old Wente vines planted in 1972 at Ritchie Vineyard, farmed by Kent Ritchie. It is fermented with native yeast, and is dense and mineral rather than buttery. Robb Report named the 2021 one of the Top 50 California Chardonnays of the Century. For a lighter, brighter white, the 2021 Flora Marie Vineyard Chardonnay, from the Montrachet clone on a steep ridgeline above the river, has white peach, honeysuckle and a saline finish.

What is the case for red wine with turkey?

Red wine matches the rest of the plate. Dark meat, sausage and sage stuffing, cranberry sauce, mushroom gravy and roasted vegetables all have the savory depth or tart red fruit that a light red echoes. The right red is low in tannin and fresh in acidity: Pinot Noir first, Gamay second. Heavier reds lose the argument for everyone.

• Cranberry. Red fruit with red fruit is the easiest pairing on the table, and cranberry is on almost every plate.
• Dark meat and skin. Thighs and legs carry more fat and a gamier flavor, which suits a red's dark cherry and spice.
• Herbs and earth. Sage, thyme, mushrooms and roasted root vegetables echo the dried-herb, forest-floor notes in Pinot Noir.
• It lasts the evening. A light red goes from turkey to the cheese plate without a change of bottle.

Red wine's weak point is tannin: a young Cabernet Sauvignon makes breast meat taste chalky and turns bitter against cranberry. Pinot Noir has some of the softest tannin of any red grape, which is why the red side of this debate is really a Pinot Noir argument. Cool-climate Pinot keeps its acidity: in the Middle Reach of the Russian River Valley, where Marla and Geoff Bedrosian bought a neglected Pinot Noir vineyard in 2011, fog cools the vines most mornings and evenings. Their 2021 Middle Reach Vineyards Pinot Noir is ripe raspberry, cola and dried herb over a savory frame, a red for the whole table; it earned 94 points and a Cellar Selection from Wine Enthusiast.

Which wine goes with the turkey itself: white meat or dark meat?

Pour white wine with white meat and red wine with dark meat. Skinless breast meat is very lean and dries out next to tannin, so Chardonnay or a very light Pinot suits it. Thigh and leg meat carries two to three times as much fat and a richer flavor, so a fuller Pinot Noir suits it. Crisp, salty skin flatters both.

Which wine goes with stuffing, cranberry sauce, gravy and the sides?

Red wins with cranberry sauce, sage and sausage stuffing, Brussels sprouts and green bean casserole. White wins with cornbread stuffing, mashed potatoes, mac and cheese, squash and sweet potatoes. Gravy and rolls are a draw; neither suits pumpkin pie. Across these 13 dishes, each side wins five.

Two patterns explain the table. Red wins wherever there is tart fruit, char, smoke, mushrooms or pork, the savory and earthy flavors that Pinot Noir shares. White wins wherever there is butter, cream, cheese or gentle sweetness, the rich textures that a Chardonnay with some body matches. A holiday plate holds both kinds at once, so opening one of each lets guests follow their plate rather than a rule.

Sweetness is the hardest case for both: candied sweet potatoes make any dry wine taste thinner, and red wine more tannic. With pumpkin, pecan or apple pie, stop pouring the dinner wines.

What about Rosé, the wine that splits the difference?

Dry Rosé is the compromise that works. Rosé of Pinot Noir has the red-berry fruit that suits cranberry and the freshness and lack of tannin that suit breast meat and fried or spiced turkey. It is lighter than either side, so it fits the start of the meal best: appetizers, the cheese board and the first toast.

Rosé is also the easy answer for a mixed crowd: white-wine drinkers will usually drink a dry Rosé, and red drinkers rarely object. It suits Friendsgiving potlucks and next-day turkey sandwiches, too. Serve it colder than either side, at 45 to 50°F.

Domaine de la Rivière's Shoshana Rosé of Pinot Noir is made from estate Pinot Noir, whole-cluster pressed and fermented dry; the 2025 is the current release. The 2024 vintage scored 93 points from The Tasting Panel, and the 2020 won Best of Show at the Tournament of Rosé. In The Thanksgiving Table it is the bottle for when everyone arrives, before the Chardonnay and the Pinot go on the table.

Which red wines and which white wines should you avoid with turkey?

On the red side, avoid high-tannin and high-alcohol wines: young Cabernet Sauvignon, Petite Sirah and big Zinfandel. On the white side, avoid heavily oaked, buttery Chardonnay, very light, neutral whites that disappear next to gravy, and sweet whites that clash with stuffing. Each fails for the same reason: it can't handle the whole plate.

None of these ruins a dinner. If a guest brings a Cabernet, pour it with the dark meat and gravy, where its tannin has fat to work against.

How do you serve red and white wine together at one dinner?

Open both before guests sit down and put one bottle of each at each end of the table, so nobody has to choose a side. Serve the Chardonnay at 50 to 55°F and the Pinot Noir slightly cool, 55 to 60°F. Plan on half a bottle per adult wine drinker, split about 60 percent red, 40 percent white.

• Temperature. Take the Chardonnay out of the refrigerator about 20 minutes before pouring, and put the Pinot Noir in for 15 to 20 minutes. Keep both away from the oven, which warms red wine quickly.
• Glasses. One all-purpose wine glass per guest is enough. If you have two sizes, the wider bowl goes to the red.
• Order. Pour white and Rosé with appetizers, then open the red when the turkey is carved. Once the food is out, let guests switch freely.
• Labels. Tell the table which is which. Half the fun of the debate is guests trying each wine with the same bite.

A 750 ml bottle pours five glasses, so the counts above cover a three- to five-hour dinner with one spare. Shift toward white if your table leans that way, and add a Rosé for appetizers. A magnum holds two bottles, about ten glasses. Shipped wine needs a few business days in transit and an adult 21 or older to sign at delivery, so order a week or two ahead; carriers are busy the week of the holiday. Domaine de la Rivière ships through Vinoshipper to most U.S. states, not all, and checkout confirms the address before payment.