Wine Occasion: Meeting The Parents

The first dinner with the future in-laws can be tense. It is your job to make a good first impression, demonstrating that you are the best possible mate for their daughter. Obviously you have to bring a gift, and what better gift than a bottle of wine. Be careful here – this situation requires delicate balance. You want to seem sophisticated enough to know your wines. But you don’t want to seem like you drink SO much wine that you have a sophisticated knowledge. You want to buy a bottle of quality so you don’t seem spendthrift. However, you don’t want to buy too expensive of a bottle to seem extravagant and wasteful. Basically, good luck with all of that.

There are other considerations that you must confirm. First off, make sure the parents drink. And they approve of you drinking. And marrying their daughter. Once those things are out of the way, time to procrastinate your way to the wine aisle at the grocery store.

A side note: You might read in a lot of other places that you need to consider what’s for dinner, to pair red wines with meats and white wines with seafood and poultry. I am here to say that this is all crap. Drink what you like. Or at least what you think the future in-laws will like. That being said, ask your fiancé what her parents like to drink.

Wine Suggestions:

$ White – La Ferme Julien Blanc

This is a wine from the Rhone Valley in France (you don’t need to know where it is, you just need to know that it’s pronounced “ROAN”). It’s made from the Perrin family, which is known for their wines in Southern Rhone – an area called Chateauneuf du Pape (the Pope’s New Castle). Did you know there were two papal centers in the 14th Century? One was in Rome, and the other in Avignon (Southern Rhone). See what interesting conversations you can find yourself with a bottle of wine?

$ Red – Sandeman Ruby Port Wine

I’m throwing a curveball here. Port is a dessert wine from Portugal, so it’s to be drunken AFTER dinner. There are different styles of Port, and I’ve suggested here a Ruby style. This is a bit more sweet and the style name connotes the color as well. This is a solid choice because it’s drinkable for mom yet masculine enough for dad. You win both ways.

$$ White - Veuve Cliquot Champagne Brut

This is the classic standard for all champagnes. And yes – this is champagne because it was made from grapes grown in Champagne, France. All other sparkling wines NOT made in Champagne are called sparkling wines, NOT Champagne. Okay, sorry, I needed to get that off my chest.

Anyway, about Veuve Cliquot - François Clicquot owned a champagne house in the early 19th century but died young. His bride, Nicole-Barbe Ponsardin, became a veuve (French for widow), and took over the family business, making it into the success it is today. She also wore black for the rest of her life, never remarrying and instead mourning her fallen husband till the end of her days. You can mention to the future in-laws this is what you expect from their daughter as well.

$$ Red - Trefethen Estate Cabernet Sauvignon

You cannot go wrong by buying Napa Cabernet Sauvignon. This is the quintessential American wine. Napa Cab (as Cabernet Sauvignon from Napa is also known) made Americans proud because in the 70’s, they trounced French Bordeaux wines (the region in France also known for its Cabernet Sauvignon) in blind taste tests. Therefore, any red-blooded American will LOVE Napa Cab. It’s just patriotic to do so.

Note: If your fiancé and/or her parents is/are from France, buy Bordeaux and claim that the blind tastings in the 70’s were rigged…