The Best Wine Pairings for Easter

Easter is right around the corner and in preparation for the festivities we thought we would put together a few wine pairing suggestions for Easter Brunch and your favorite Main Courses — ham and lamb.

When choosing wine for Easter Brunch it is important to look for easy quaffing varietals. Try a light, mild red wines with low tannins and crisp, refreshing whites. Here are a few of our favorite bottles for Brunch:

• Domaine Eugene Carrel et Fils Vin de Savoie Rose comes from the village of Jongieux, about 40 miles southwest of Geneva. Established in the 14th century, Eugene manages the estate with his son Olivier and his son-in-law Sebastien. The indigenous varietals and surprisingly warm weather produces a rose with a delicate mousse that carries aromas of ripe, aromatic red berry and blood orange. The refreshing and persistent finish is quintessential Jongieux.
• Domaine Labbe Vin de Savoie Abymes might just be the brightest, crispest, most refreshing white wine that you've ever tasted. It is produced from 100% Jacquere--a crisp and delicious grape variety native to the region of Savoie in far Eastern France. This off-the-beaten-path region is home to some of the finest white wine values that France has to offer. The Abymes is one of our favorites. The "Abymes" moniker actually refers to the boulders present in the vineyard. It is punctuated by flavors of freshly sliced lemon, green apple, white pear, and a textbook Savoie minerality.
• Peter Zemmer Schiava Gentile comes from the southern end of Alto Adige in the mostly German speaking village of Cortina. This third generation estate producer crafts high quality wine from the best Alpine vineyard sites in Italy. Sunshine abounds for 300 days of the year and the warm days and cool nights allows the grapes to ripen fully, yet attain maximum amount of acidity. This gives the wines balance, elegance, and an intense lingering finish. Sciava is an ancient grape varietal that goes back to the middle ages. The red raspberry and delicate peach aromas are fresh and the flavors are lively, dry and and harmonious. Put a slight chill on it and enjoy it with appetizers, pasta dishes, and white meats
• Langmann Schilcher Sekt Blauer Wildbacher Rose is a fun bubbly from Austria. It has a bright pink color with a floral strawberry aroma. Powerful, minerally Mousseaux on the palate with berry fruit, strawberries and cassis, raspberries, with good balanced distinct acidity and expression of terroir. A characterful wine for all occasions!

Ham especially is one of those meats that makes itself available to both white and red wines. The key to pairing with ham is countering its saltiness with fruit and/or residual sugar and cutting through its fattiness with acidity and freshness. For this reason spicy and crisp white blends, and cherry driven Pinot Noirs and Gamays will work quite well. A couple bottles we had in mind to pair with Ham:

• Diehl Riesling Halbtrocken is a delicious German Halbtrochen Riesling (halbtrochen translates as "half-dry", which would put its residual sugar content somewhere between a Trocken [dry] and a Kabinett) in a convenient 1 liter size, which is becoming quite popular with producers from Germany and Alsace
• Brooks Amycas White is a delightful, crisp and floral blend of Pinot Blanc, Gewurztraminer, Riesling, Pinot Gris, and Muscat with good acidity and lovely aromatics. It is inspired by the Edelzwicker (noble blend) wines found in Alsace, and like its French cousins is very pleasureable, with or without food. As soon as you pop the cork on a bottle of Brooks Amycas White Blend your senses are overwhelmed with as array of aromatics of strong citrus and stone fruit. At first pour the air is replaced with bright and vibrant aromas of sweet fruit, honey, and the exotics of the tropics. You're reminded of flowers, mango, papaya, and fresh melon that makes your mouth water for that first life changing sip. As the first splash caresses your tongue you're bombarded with a combination of complexity, balance, and utter ease.
• Domaine Laurent Pere et Fils Bougogne Passetoutgrains is a blend of Pinot Noir and Gamay. The nose brings an array of red fruits with a floral touch. The palate stays light and etheral, red cherry dominates and the ample acidity keeps things lively and fresh. This would be great with a light chill and will not overpower lighter dishes, making a great food pairing choice.
• 2012 Chignard Fleurie - Even after many successful years practicing his craft, fourth-generation vigneron Michel Chignard claims to be a novice. He is a modest man, kind and courteous, but in every aspect of his winemaking one clearly sees a passionate perfectionist. The Chignard family is also blessed with vineyards in one of the best sites of the Fleurie appellation, Les Moriers, an arrowhead-shaped parcel that juts right down into Moulin-a-Vent vines. The name Les Moriers comes from the word "murier" or mulberry tree. This area used to be planted with mulberry trees, the preferred food of silkworms. The land was once used to produce silk fabric.

As for Lamb, we generally prefer mostly reds, and reds that are fairly meaty, concentrated, and also well fruited. Chateauneuf du Pape and other, ripe, full-bodied wines will be perfect. A couple bottles we had in mind to pair with Lamb:

• 2012 Domaine de la Guicharde Cotes du Rhone Rouge is a deeply colored, saturated black-purple wine that presents ripe and intense flavors of dark berries, cassis, licorice and spice. Arnaud Guicharde took care to retain the wine’s fruity acidity (preserved due to the cool late-summer nights) and as a result, the 2011 has superior balance and length.
• 2012 Yves Cuilleron Syrah "Les Vignes d'A Cote" is cultivated on plots of land that are covered in grass to fight erosion. No insecticides or pesticides are used in the production of Cuilleron's fantastic wines. This syrah shows an expressive bouquet of tart red berry fruits. A soft fruity palate with fine tannins compliment the fresh finish beautifully.
• 2010 Adelaida Cellars Zinfandel is produced from family owned vineyards located in the craggy hillside terrain of Paso Robles' west side. Only 14 miles from the Pacific Ocean these are steep and elevated sites, characterized by chalk rock limestone soils. The Zinfandel is dry farmed on old vines producing low yields. That coupled with a slightly cooler 2010 vintage with longer hang-time resulting in expressive fruit and the classic combination of viscosity and "nerve" (the French word for crisp natural fruit acidity). The wine aged 20 months in French, American, and Hungarian oak. Initial aromas of cola and baked crabapple lead to a medium bodied palate. Tasting of briar patch, dusty black fruit, and cured tobacco leaf, finishing with hints of cocoa nibs and grindings of black pepper.
• 2011 Saint Cosme Cote-Rotie - 92 Points Wine Advocate "The 2011 Cote Rotie offers the classic perfume of the appellation, with savory meatiness, cracked pepper, rendered bacon fat, currant bud and lavender-like qualities all soaring from the glass. Coming mostly from schist soils (think Cote Brune-esque), it shows thrilling minerality on the palate, with medium to full-bodied richness, polished tannin and serious length. Count me a fan and this top-notch effort will evolve gracefully for 10-12+ years." ~(Wine Advocate)