Wine Pairings for Summertime Grilling

To us, nothing feels like "summer" more than an evening spent grilling on the patio. Growing up, this meant all of our cousins driving out to our sunny Carmel Valley house to escape the Carmel fog. We've grilled just about everything that comes into season during the summer months and are always trying to find creative yet balanced wine pairings for each dish. Here are some of our go-to pairings featuring wines from one of our all-time favorite wineries from home, Morgan Winery. Now, grab those grilling tongs, a glass of your favorite wine, and let's get grilling!

xxx Ivy & Eve

Be sure to use our code IvyAndEve at checkout on Morgan's website for complimentary shipping on your first order! 

Chicken - Lightly Oaked Chardonnay 

Nothing beats a lightly oaked Chardonnay with grilled marinated chicken. We love using refreshing citrus marinades and fresh herbs like rosemary, thyme, or basil to keep the flavors light, especially on hot summer evenings. Lightly oaked Chardonnay pairs great as it complements the mild flavor of the chicken and the slightly toasty flavors from the grill!

Veggie Skewers - Sauvignon Blanc

It's not summer without grilled veggie skewers! We love including fresh veggies from Ivy's garden, like summer squash, peppers, and tomatoes. A nice chilled Sauvignon Blanc pairs so well with grilled veggies because of its high levels of vegetal pyrazines, the compound that gives grassy or "bell peppery" notes to some wines. 

Our pick: Morgan Winery 2021 Sauvignon Blanc

Salmon - Rosé 

Rosé is the perfect companion to grilled salmon or any seafood, really! The fresh acidity from rosé cuts through the rich fattiness of salmon, while the lightly fruity notes complement (and don't overpower) the delicate flavors of many seafoods. Rosé also pairs well with lighter sides like fresh watermelon salad, pesto pasta salad, and lightly dressed greens! 

Our pick: Morgan Winery 2022 Rosé of Grenache

Burgers - Petit Sirah

A massive juicy burger's bold, beefy flavor deserves to be paired with an equally bold wine like a Petit Sirah. This wine's dark fruit and heavy tannins can handle the fatty meat from a beef burger. Petit Sirah also pairs well with mushrooms, so a portobello mushroom burger works perfectly if you need a vegetarian option.

Steak - GSM

We love a classic tri-tip on the grill, and nothing pairs better than a GSM (Grenache, Syrah, Mourvèdre blend) or another Southern Rhône-style red blend. GSM blends incorporate a nice balance of brambles, rosemary, and baking spice that enhance the flavors of the steak, while the acidity and rich tannins of the wine cut through the fattiness. 

Our pick: Morgan Winery 2020 Cote Du Crows

Sausages - Syrah

Grilled pork or beef sausages are an excellent pairing for Syrah as the Syrah's punch of dark fruit on the palate and peppery afternotes match the bold flavors and spices in most sausages. We love pairing Syrah with spicy/sweet Italian sausages or something savory like garlic rosemary or cheesy portobello sausages. 

Our pick: Morgan Winery 2021 G17 Syrah

BBQ Meats - Zinfandel

For those of you who love BBQ meats, we suggest pairing your meal with a glass of full-bodied Zinfandel. The Zin's rich and fruity palate balances the intensely smoky flavors of the BBQ. Zin's typically have higher alcohol content (14-17%), allowing them to hold up to the deeply hearty, fatty BBQ meats. 

Mushrooms - Pinot Noir

We love grilling our favorite fungi, as grilling mushrooms enhances their savory, earthy flavors. This is a wonderful food pairing for our favorite varietal, Pinot Noir! A bright and fruit-forward Pinot Noir will lift the savory flavors of mushrooms, while a more terroir-driven Pinot will heighten the umami of the mushroom. Either way, we're game! 

Our Pick: Morgan Winery's 2021 Twelve Clones Pinot 

Fruits - Riesling

You can grill so many great summer fruits, but peaches are definitely our favorite! You can add them to salads, as a side to your grilled chicken and fish, or serve them alongside your favorite ice cream! We think grilled peaches and vanilla ice cream are the perfect ending to our summer meals. Riesling is a good pairing option for grilled fruit since it has harmonious notes of honeysuckle, citrus, and stone fruit. Depending on your mood, food course, or sweet tooth, you can purchase dry, off-dry, or sweet rieslings to pair with your dish. 

The Ultimate Wine and Girl Scout Cookie Pairing Guide

With Girl Scout cookie season in full swing, we wanted to challenge ourselves to pair each cookie with the perfect wine. Sweets in general are super challenging to pair with wine. The intense sugar content of desserts often overpowers the fruity flavors in wines and can make even the most perfectly balanced wine taste off-kilter and overly accentuate the tannins making the wine taste bitter. With this in mind, we looked to find some fruit-forward wines with little to no tannins to pair with each cookie. 

You can find these wine varietals at your own local wine shop or big-name stores like BevMo and Total Wine & More!

If you haven't ordered your Girl Scout cookies yet, or can't find a local troop to buy from, we suggest ordering from Troop 6000 - a Girl Scout program that serves girls in the New York City shelter system. Led by trained Troop leaders also living in the shelter system, this program gives all girls and women in the NYC shelter system the opportunity to enjoy all that the Girls Scouts has to offer.

Online orders start February 27th - March 1st, 2023.

So, grab your favorite box (or several) of Girls Scout cookies, and test out these pairings! Tell us what you think and let us know your favorite pairings!

xxx Ivy & Eve

Thin Mint- Many think that chocolate would pair well with big, heavy reds like cabernet sauvignon or a syrah but it is actually the opposite! Big, heavy reds tend to have a lot of tannins which when combined with chocolate, make the wine taste bitter and the chocolate flat. To avoid this we suggest going with a low-tannin red wine like barbera or grenache.

Tag Along - We like to pair the #1 Girl Scout cookie with a Beaujolais or malbec. The juicy acidity in Beaujolais can help balance the creaminess of the Tag Along. A malbec makes a sweet harmony with its dark fruit and cocoa finish and the peanut butter and chocolate of the Tag Along.

Do-Si-Do - The classic peanut butter cookie. These simple yet flavorful cookies will pair well with zinfandel. Zin’s are known for their higher alcohol content and deep jammy flavors that marry well with this cookie and give off a grown-up PB&J kind of vibe! 

Gluten-free chocolate chip toffee - With such a classic cookie a nice glass of pinot noir will pair perfectly. The light tannins in the pinot combined with vanilla and cherry notes go nicely with the simple, yet delicious, flavors of these chocolate chip cookies. Although we do not have dietary restrictions we still thought these chocolate chip cookies hit the spot! 

Raspberry Rally - 2023’s new addition to the Girl Scout cookie lineup is the perfect partner for a nice chilled glass of bubbly Brachetto d’Acqui! These pretty pink-centered cookies complement and intensify Brachetto d’Acqui’s notes of raspberry, rose, and baking spice, making them a natural pairing for this sweet sparkler. Brachetto d’Acqui is also a low-alcohol wine (5.5-8%) so you won’t run the risk of a hangover from sugar AND alcohol!

Samoa - With something so decadent, try a dessert wine like cream sherry or tawny port, which has enough sweetness to stand up to the cookie and has similar flavors of caramel,  cocoa, and some nice toastiness. For a white pairing, choose something like a sauterne to really bring out the tropical notes of coconut and butterscotch flavors.

Adventurefuls - This newer addition to the Girl Scout cookie family is indulgent! The cookie mimics the flavors of a brownie topped with caramel and sea salt. Because this cookie is so rich we recommend pairing it with an equally rich port wine. 

Trefoil - This delicate shortbread cookie couples well with a champagne-brut nature or brut zero. The acidity, and toasty notes of the bubbly work well with the buttery cookie flavors. Alternatively, the Trefoil will pair perfectly with a Moscato d'Asti as this wine is no stranger to cookies: In Italy, it's common to drink with biscotti! 

Tost-yay - These may be one of our new favorite Girl Scout Cookies! In the fun shape of toast, these cookies taste similar to cinnamon toast crunch cereal. The cinnamon is light enough to pair nicely with a glass (or two) of prosecco.

Lemonades - A delightfully zingy cookie with a light citrus frosting coating the bottom. These cookies will pair well with a sauvignon blanc, a dry riesling, or albariño as these wines all tend to have defined tropical, and citrus flavors.

What pairing did you like best? Have any other pairing suggestions? Let us know in the comments!

Pair Your Wine with the Perfect Scented Candle

October marks the real beginning of fall in Virginia. The leaves start changing in earnest, and we get (a few) cooler days and evenings creep in earlier and earlier. October is also Virginia Wine Month! For us, celebrating Virginia Wine Month has meant a day-trip to a few Charlottesville area vineyards, local wine tasting events, and making an effort to buy Virginia wines to pair with our nightly meals. It’s been a lot of fun learning more about Virginia wines, and a few may have even found their way into our top ten favorite wines!

Along with celebrating Virginia Wine Month this fall, we have really been having fun connecting with our new home and support local businesses and creators. We recently connected with Kena and Reggie, founders of Hill and River Collection, and instantly fell in love with their candles’ wondrous scents and sophisticated packaging. Hill and River Collection was created out of a love of candles and the frustration of finding that too many candle companies have flashy packaging but no room-filling scent. After receiving a beautiful, yet dully scented candle for their first wedding anniversary, Kena and Reggie took matters into their own hands and created Hill and River Collection (H+R). 

At the heart of each H+R candle are four core elements: the wax, the wick, the vessel, and, of course, the scent. H+R candles are made with a soy blend wax to ensure maximum scent throw (candle term to describe how well the candle’s fragrance circulates throughout a room). One thing we really think makes these candles unique is their wood wicks. This detail really makes lighting each candle special, and the soft sound of crackling wood almost makes us forget the lack of a fireplace in our apartment! Each candle is housed in a warm amber-colored glass, which creates a warm glow every time they are lit. And, of course, each scent has been carefully crafted to have layers that unfold while lit, creating a more complete and enjoyable candle experience.

When connecting with Kena from H+R, we found we all shared an equal love of wine and candles and thought how much fun it would be to pair candles to wine, like you would with food! The more we thought about it, the more this actually makes sense. Like food, a candle’s scent will alter how you experience the wine you are drinking (and vice versa). Some fragrances will enhance your wine drinking experience, while some will clash. 

Below is our guide to pairing wine with your favorite candle scents. Try it out yourselves!

xxx Ivy & Eve

Wine: Peppery and herbaceous red wines like Cabernet Sauvignon, Carménère, and Cabernet Franc.

Scent: Woodsy scents with notes of leather and tobacco. 

We paired the Pollack Vineyards Cabernet Franc 2018 with the H+R Virginia Is For Lovers candle. This Cab Franc’s notes of fresh cracked pepper, dark fruit, and pomegranate, ending with a hint of velvety cocoa mingles perfectly with the aromas of cedar and barn wood with hints of peppercorn, sandalwood, and tobacco from the Virginia Is For Lovers candle.

Tip: If you’re feeling a lighter wine, try an earthy Pinot Noir. Feeling even lighter? Try a Sauvignon Blanc!

Wine: Full/Medium-bodied red wines like Syrah, Merlot, and Meritage blends with notes of baking spices and vanilla. 

Scent: Pumpkin spice and freshly carved pumpkin, with a hint of sweetness.

We paired the Veritas Winery Vintners Reserve 2016 with the H+R Appalachian Autumn candle. This Virginia Meritage blend has notes of black cherry, baking spices, and toasted vanilla, with a hint of tobacco, which works perfectly with the scent of warm pumpkin, warming spices, and a touch of buttercream from the Appalachian Autumn candle.

Tip: Feeling something white? A Pinot Gris (aka Pinot Grigio) can stand up to pumpkin spices. Or maybe something sweet? We’d recommend a Vintage Port.

Wine: Full-bodied white wines like Chardonnay and Viognier.

Scent: Lemon, caramel, vanilla with a hint of creaminess.

We paired the Barboursville Vineyards Viognier Reserve 2018 with H+R Lemon Cookies on Main candle. Viognier is a white wine varietal that grows fantastically in Virginia. Its complex notes of citrus, tropical fruits, honeysuckle, and minerals work well with citrusy and creamy foods, so it is an easy match for the scent of lemon, sandalwood, and vanilla with hints of caramel and cream from the Lemon Cookies on Main candle. 

Tip: If you’re feeling something a bit sweeter, try a Sauternes or late harvest Riesling.

Wine: White wines with pronounced notes of tropical fruits, citrus, and minerality.

Scent: Tropical fruits, citrus, and exotic florals.

We paired the Early Mountain Vineyards Petit Manseng 2018 with H+R Reid’s Vacation candle. Outside France, Virginia is the only place on earth that makes notable Petit Manseng. This Petit Manseng, in particular, has notes of tropical fruit, minerality, and a hint of salinity. So, basically, a vacation in a bottle. This wine pairs perfectly with the notes of grapefruit and green mango with hints of melon and jasmine from the Reid’s Vacation candle. We love how H+R describes this candle: “REID’S VACATION is just that... a vacation. When you need to get away for a few, light this candle, and imagine you are exactly where you are destined to be.”

This candle is extra special because it’s only available during October, Pregnancy & Infant Loss Awareness Month. This month, we take time to honor and remember those who have lost a child during pregnancy or lost a child in infancy. 

Tip: This would also go great with a festive White Sangria!

What are some of your favorite wine and candle pairings? Let us know in the comments!