As winter has eased its grip, Easter and the beginning of Spring are finally here. Sometimes for those with demanding or unpredictable life/work schedules, advance planning for large holiday get-togethers can be quite a challenge. We’ve decided to host a last minute, quasi pot-luck Easter feast and with the help of 14 of our amazing friends, it’s going to be a great one.  So if you’re still trying to decide what wine to serve with your family feast, let us try to help. Here’s what we’re planning.

For the variety of appetizers our friends are bringing, we’re going to open a couple of bottles of Prosecco. Since we don’t know exactly what tasty bites are coming our way, we’ve found that a nice dry Prosecco is versatile and can stand up to a variety of different flavors. You could certainly choose to serve a Crémant d’Alsace, or Champagne. Bottom line, in our opinion, bubbles are always great.

Our other friends are bringing an apple and feta salad with almond vinaigrette. To match the flavor profiles and acidity of both the apples and the vinaigrette, I think I’m going to bring out a Grüner Veltliner from Austria.  A 2014 Josef Ehmoser Grüner Veltliner from Hohenberg, Austria will hopefully do the trick.

The Big Ham: For a taste of home we’re going to serve a 2014 Dr. Konstantin Frank Dry Riesling from the Finger Lakes. Riesling is incredible with a baked ham, but you can also opt for Gewürztraminer. As an experiment we’re also going to open a 2004 Domaine Le Conte des Floris Villafranchien. I want to see how the Grenache, Carignan and Syrah blend work with the ham.  A Pinot Noir from Olivier Leflaive is on stand-by as well.

Lamb or Beef: If you’re serving a delicious roasted lamb instead of ham, go with a bolder, heavier bodied wine like a Zinfandel/Primitivo, or a Cabernet Sauvignon. Our friends are bringing the ham, and we’re also making braised beef. The Cabernet and Zinfandel would be great with the beef as well but we’re pulling an affordable and tasty 2010 Chateau Trois Moulins from Bordeaux.

Be sure to stop back this week as I update how our Easter meal went and if the wine pairings worked out as planned. If you try any of these pairings, let us know what you thought of them.

We wish all of you, your families and friends a happy Easter and a very happy Spring season! -EZ