The Friendsgiving Weekend
Thanksgiving weekend is almost here, and there’s a second celebration on the calendar. Friendsgiving is the friends’ version of the long weekend. It’s also part of Come Over October, a movement that encourages us to put down our phones and invite the people who matter most to come over to share a glass of wine.
Who better to help us than Natalie MacLean, editor of Canada’s largest wine review site at nataliemaclean.com.
Welcome, Natalie.
Great to be back with you! Friendsgiving is Thanksgiving without the seating chart. That’s why Come Over October pairs so well with it. Just open your door and open a bottle. Every wine on today’s table comes from a family winery right here in the Maritimes.
Let’s start in New Brunswick. What’s the first bottle?
Magnetic Hill The OC Osceola by the Sea
New Brunswick
This is from Magnetic Hill Winery in Moncton. It’s named for Magnetic Hill, where cars seem to roll uphill on their own. The Everett family is known for their fruit wines, but they also grow grapes to make traditional sparkling, red and white wines.
Their son, Zach Everett, backpacked through Europe and came home wanting to plant vines. Today, he makes this wine from Osceola Muscat, a beautifully aromatic white wine grape.
Visiting this winery is a must: you can watch Ballet by the Ocean, enjoy a four-course meal on the ocean floor at low tide and stay at their beautifully restored 1867 guesthouse.
All of today’s wines are sold at the wineries and at liquor stores in their home provinces. You can also order them directly and have them shipped to your door. When you do, you’re supporting a local family farm that in turn invests back in the places we live.
Feel free to smell the Osceola by the Sea.
It has aromas of lemon peel and apple with tropical notes. It’s gently off dry with a light spritz and vibrant acidity. You get a salty, sea-breeze finish. Wouldn’t this be terrific with mini lobster rolls on the back porch? What grows together, goes together.
More Pairings
- Friendsgiving fish cakes: golden, pan-fried haddock and potato cakes, crisp on the outside and fluffy inside, served hot from the skillet with a sweet chili dip.
- Seared Digby scallops: sizzled in brown butter until the edges caramelize, still tender and sweet in the centre, finished with lemon zest and chives.
You’ve brought a second bottle from Magnetic Hill. What’s this one?
Magnetic Hill Mystique
New Brunswick
Is there any flavour more iconic for Thanksgiving or Friendsgiving than cranberry? In fact, most of us eat turkey as an excuse to double down on cranberry sauce. Now we can have it in our glass too.
This wine goes back to the family’s roots. The Everetts were strawberry farmers who bought an old, haunted house in Moncton. That’s where they started making fruit wine. Mystique is one of the original fruit wines they still make every year.
Every cranberry is grown on their farm or within 50 kilometres of it. Their first goal was 5,000 bottles a year. Today they make 150,000. Fruit wine is where they started, but not where they stopped.
Feel free to smell the Mystique Cranberry from Magnetic Hill.
This wine is bright and tart, with juicy cranberry and notes of cherry and raspberry. Serve it chilled. It’s $15.50. Top it with a splash of soda and you’ve got a spritz for the whole crowd. Wouldn’t this be wonderful with a maple-glazed ham on the potluck table?
More Pairings
- Harvest turkey sliders: slices of roast turkey and melting brie on warm, toasted buns, with a smear of grainy mustard for a salty, tangy bite.
- Salty snacking board: crisp prosciutto, smoked almonds and aged cheddar at room temperature, arranged on a wooden board with crackers and sliced pears.
Now we’re crossing into Nova Scotia. Tell us about this white.
Blomidon Tidal Bay
Canning, Nova Scotia
Tidal Bay is Nova Scotia’s own appellation, and it’s one of a kind in North America. Most appellations are defined by a place.
Tidal Bay is defined by a style. It’s made only from Nova Scotia grapes.
It stays at 11% alcohol or less. Each winery puts its own spin on the blend. Blomidon Estate Winery sits on the shore of the Minas Basin near Canning.
Feel free to smell the Tidal Bay.
Winemaker Simon Rafuse beautifully blends L’Acadie Blanc, Seyval Blanc and Muscat. It leans toward citrus and green apple, with crisp acidity and a cool, coastal minerality. It’s like the ocean in your glass.
This is the glass you sip slowly as the conversation warms up. Wouldn’t it be great with a thick broth of seafood chowder by the fire?
More Pairings
- Shucked Atlantic oysters: briny and ice cold on a bed of crushed ice, with a spoonful of shallot mignonette and a squeeze of lemon.
- Herb-crusted haddock: baked until flaky and opaque, with a golden crust of parsley, dill and breadcrumbs, served warm with roasted fingerling potatoes.
And we finish with a red from the Annapolis Valley.
Planters Ridge Quintessence Red
Annapolis Valley, Nova Scotia
Planters Ridge is in Port Williams; in a timber frame barn that’s more than 150 years old. Nova Scotia is famous for its crisp whites and sparkling.
Planters Ridge is showing the world it makes serious reds too. Quintessence is their signature red, a blend of three cool-climate grapes: Lucie Kuhlmann, Castel and Marquette.
Feel free to smell the Quintessence Red.
It’s dry and full-bodied. Dark berries and cedar on the nose lead to blackberry, pepper and dark plum, with a long, smooth finish. Serve it at 16 to 18 degrees. Wouldn’t this be delicious with a wild mushroom risotto at the harvest table?
More Pairings
- Herb-roasted Nova Scotia lamb: rubbed with garlic and rosemary, roasted until the crust crackles and the centre stays rosy pink, sliced thin and served warm.
- Grilled flank steak: charred over high heat, sliced against the grain into juicy ribbons, finished with flaky salt and cracked black pepper.
Natalie, these suggestions are fantastic! Any final words of wisdom for our viewers?
Send the invite today. That reminds me of a couple of years ago, when our family reunion in Halifax almost didn’t happen. Somehow, we pulled it together. More than 30 aunts, uncles and cousins showed up. An aunt and uncle who were there that day have since passed away.
I’m so grateful I had that one more chance with them. The wine helped us linger long enough to hear their stories from when they were children.
Here’s to open doors, open bottles and open hearts. Come Over October!
Thank you, Natalie! Where can we find you and these wines online?
On Instagram, I’m at @NatalieMacLeanWine and online, my website is nataliemaclean.com.
Come for the Maritime wines, stay for the memories they make.
Posted with permission of CTV Your Morning. Please drink responsibly.
