Pumpkin spice seems synonymous with fall when it comes to specialty drinks and food, but what if we’d like to pair this flavor with wine? Here to share her tips is Natalie MacLean, author of the national bestseller Wine Witch on Fire: Rising from the Ashes of Divorce, Defamation, and Drinking Too Much .
First, what is pumpkin spice and how did it become so popular?
Pumpkin spice is made from cinnamon, clove, nutmeg and allspice. It usually doesn’t contain any real pumpkin bits, but that’s never stopped a good marketer from positioning it as the smell and taste of warm fuzzy feelings about fall, family and snuggly sweaters. We love it because it’s both sweet and tangy like life’s perfect postcard moments (!)
So how would you pair this with flavor wine?
A pumpkin spice bread or muffin that’s more savory than sweet would work well with this Quebec white wine blend from Domaine Pelchat LeMaitre-Auger that’s aged in oak barrels for almost a year to add some vanilla spice and toasted hazelnuts. This wine would also pair well with a salad topped with roasted pumpkin seeds or pumpkin-stuffed ravioli drizzled with sage butter.
Domaine Pelchat Lemaître-Auger La Noce Sparkling Wine
Saint-Joseph-du-Lac, Quebec, Canada
If you prefer red wine, try a California Zinfandel such as this 7 Deadly Zins with aromas of black cherry and dark spice. This would also drink beautifully with a pumpkin curry or soup.
7 Deadly Zins Old Vine Zinfandel
Lodi, California, United States
What about a pumpkin spice cake that’s a little sweeter?
I’d go with a late harvest wine such as this German Riesling Auslese from Rothenberg with notes of apricot and lemon meringue. These wines have more residual sugar because the grapes hang on the vine a bit longer, but it also has some zingy acidity for the spice. Also try this wine with a pumpkin spice glazed ham.
Wegeler Weinguter Geheimrat J. Wegeler Geisenheim Rothenberg Riesling Auslese
Rheingau, Germany
You could opt for a red that has some natural sweetness like this Caymus Cabernet Sauvignon from the Wagner Family with notes of cocoa, anise and cardamom spice. It would also nestle in nicely alongside roasted pumpkin slices and smoked paprika.
Caymus Cabernet Sauvignon
Napa Valley, California, United States
How about pumpkin pie?
We want to match the sweetness in the pie with greater sweetness in the wine otherwise the wine will taste bitter by comparison. I recommend this lovely Peller Estates Riesling Icewine or this French Sauternes from Chateau Doisy Daene. Both have a voluptuous, mouth-coating texture with seductive aromas of peach preserves and honey.
Both would also make great companions to certain coffee drinks that are really more of a pumpkin spice ice cream dessert than a coffee.
Peller Estates Signature Series Riesling Icewine
Niagara Peninsula, Ontario, VQA, Canada
Chateau Doisy-Daëne Sauternes
Sauternes, Bordeaux, France
Bonanza Lot 4 California Cabernet Sauvignon
California, United States
You can find the wines Natalie recommended as well as her new book Wine Witch on Fire: Rising from the Ashes of Divorce, Defamation, and Drinking Too Much on her website nataliemaclean.com .
