Food

I am trying not to be a curmudgeon about the approaching holidays. Being noncurmudgeony was easier before Halloween became a national holiday. Halloween continues to encroach on Christmas. Note I have not mentioned Thanksgiving. Retailers skip right over it, promoting Christmas items alongside trick-or-treat goodies.

Like retailers, most of us are ambivalent about Thanksgiving. Admittedly our perspective about the holiday is a bit fuzzy. Beliefs historically held about Thanksgiving have been debunked.

For instance, we know Pilgrims did not wear black clothing with white starched collars. They wore bright clothing. Yet if candle Pilgrim effigies and Pilgrim salt and peppershakers are to be found, their clothing is always black and white and their shoes and hats have large buckles affixed to them. Thanks to historians, we now know Pilgrims were buckleless, but apparently Chinese sweatshops have not gotten the memo to retool.

Historical Thanksgivings were not religious celebrations, but rather harvest festivals. While thanks may have been given for nature's bounty at early gatherings, the focus of such gatherings was celebration rather than quiet, contemplative prayer associated with the Puritans.

Although we use the term Puritan and Pilgrim interchangeably, they in fact were two different groups. Pilgrims came on the Mayflower settling at Plymouth to establish a foothold in the new world for financial gain. Puritans came to America a decade later seeking to practice religious freedom and settled in Boston.

We can only speculate about the menu for the first pilgrim harvest festival. They likely ate seafood, lobsters, fish and clams. They may have eaten wild turkey, but more likely their main meat entrée was venison. They did not eat pumpkin pie, because sugar was almost non-existant. Nor did they have sweet potatoes. They were not common at this time in history. They did not eat corn at their first Thanksgiving meal either. We know this because if the meal took place at the time most historians think corn would have already been harvested and dried for animal consumption.

Despite these revelations, families do come together to celebrate Thanksgiving the fourth Thursday in November and have done so since 1941 when Congress passed a bill making the fourth Thursday of November the official date of national celebration. Prior to 1941, the date of celebration varied from state to state.

Current food magazines and cookbooks offer an array of recipes for non-traditional Thanksgiving preparations such as crawfish and andouille cornbread dressing and roasted turkey with mole sauce. More traditional recipes for Southern preparations also abound.

Thanksgiving meals regardless of ethnic persuasion usually feature a cornucopia of flavors. This cornucopia of flavors calls for a cornucopia of wines. Once again I recommend serving an array of wines. Pick up several of these for your Thanksgiving feast and fortify yourself for oncoming bargain holiday shopping.

For starters try:

Canella Bellini, Canella Rossini, Canella Mimosa. $15.75 at Tyson Art and Frame in Golden Springs. Premixed Italian wine cocktails made from Prosecco, an Italian sparkling wine, and fruit juices. The Bellini features peaches, the Rossini strawberries and the Mimosa oranges. Serve chilled as an aperitif with hors d'oeuvres. Delicious, refreshing, premixed drink conveniently ready to serve.

For the table try these suggestions:

Kuehn Vin D' Alsace 2006 Gewurztraminer. $29.25 at Tyson Art and Frame. The Alsace region of France produces the world's best Gewurztraminer (ga vert strah mee ner). Light white, slightly sweet wine with good acidity. Hint of floral on the nose. Versatile. Ideal for most turkey preparations.

Ferrari Carano Alexander Valley 2006 Chardonnay. $25.00 at the Wine Cellar on Quintard Ave. California is undergoing a chardonnay revolution. Winemakers are backing off heavily oaked wines. This chardonnay has subtle oak influence. Thirty percent of the wine is aged in new oak and the remaining 70 percent is aged in older, more neutral oak barrels. This wine will not overpower turkey preparations, but has the necessary structure to hold up to a rich meal.

McManis 2007 Pinot Noir. $14.99 at the Wine Cellar. Moderately priced pinot noir from a producer known for consistent quality. Relatively subtle making it ideal to pair with an array of foods.

Fritz 2007 Russian River Valley Pinot Noir. $27.25 at Tyson Art and Frame. Excellent pinot with flavors of strawberries and red fruits grounded with an earthiness in the nose. Nice structure, balanced with a nice finish.