With The Fourth of July just around the corner, we decided to begin planning our celebratory patriotic meal. The Fourth does not need to be limited to the safe choices of American beers with hotdogs. We do love those, but we love even more the idea of pairing American wines with classic dishes to spice up the occasion. How do you properly incorporate nice wine in your holiday hosting, and/or meal plans? We hope you enjoy our ideas and suggestions for how you may enjoy the holiday with food and wine.

Blue (Bleu)

Luckily for us wine lovers, the majority of wines are in two colors which happen to be 2 of the 3 statement colors for The Fourth of July (Red and White). For all things patriotic, it would be sad to omit the third and final color. So, how do we incorporate the blue? We think a wedge salad with bleu cheese dressing is a great addition to your Fourth of July meal. This salad and particularly the bleu cheese is paired perfectly with a Riesling. Specifically summertime, is ideal for Riesling because it is light, and refreshingly sweet. This 2012 wine called Luminous from Anthony Napa Wines is an ideal match, and is available on moraswines.com for 15.99.

Red

If you do choose to indulge by barbecuing burgers, we think cheddar cheese is an ideal topping choice. Cheddar cheese pairs nicely with Cabernet Sauvignon which is one of our favorites. Cabernet is an easy drinking wine with intense character. It is usually recommended to be paired with cheddar cheese and meats to compliment their bold flavor. We just received a Cabernet Sauvignon through NakedWines.com called The Rebel. We can’t wait to sip this while enjoying those juicy cheddar cheeseburgers.

White

Our white choice for the holiday, in addition to the Riesling and bleu cheese pairing, is a Viognier. Viognier wines are newer to Western wine regions than most, but this is one of the reasons this wine sticks out to us. This wine is essential for warmer weather, when you deserve a crisp and cool glass of vino. This white wine holds both citrus and floral aromas anOn the fourth sip this during the hot afternoon, while prepping for your barbeque, or sitting by the pool and enjoying some cheese, olve, and nut appetizers. You won’t be disappointed. Our choice for this Fourth of July is F. Stephen Miller’s Angel’s Reserver 2014 Viognier from NakedWines.com.