Wine

This pared-down mulled wine recipe is great for impromptu entertaining this weekend.

This simple gravy can be made in advance to avoid a last minute scramble before serving your Thanksgiving feast. Or use the rendered turkey fat and pan juices to make the gravy after roasting your bird for maximum flavor.

Save your fresh berries for eating out of hand: Frozen blueberries have a more intense color and concentrated flavor then fresh ones, so your granita will be deep violet and sweet.

This brisket is braised for hours, just as many Jewish briskets are, but we incorporate white wine instead of the more typical red, and butternut squash instead of potatoes. This makes for a lighter, brighter brisket, if such a thing exists, so it’s a better fit for holiday meals served during the warmer months.

This French-inspired decadent lobster features a buttery pink sauce and herbes à tortue (a combination of dried thyme, oregano, basil, and marjoram).

Sangria often veers too far on the side of sugary. Grilled stone fruit adds a natural caramelized sweetness to the drink, and lends a smoky char to tame it down.

Everyone should have an house spritz—a seasonal standard whose proportions are known by heart and ingredients are stocked easily. This is ours. A simple riff on the classic spritz formula originally built to highlight Lini’s fruity, irresistible lambrusco rosato, this has become a spring-summer staple for both of us. Gentian-tinged Cocchi Americao plays the bitter role, while sour grapefruit acts as a foil to its sweetness, simultaneously pumping up the volume on the lambrusco. Built in a pitcher or portioned out in a wine glass, it’s a drink that embodies the spritz philosophy of being both beautiful and simple.

Inspired by a cocktail from New York City bartender Natasha David, the crimson-colored Tarocco Spritz is a nod to the flavor and color of the Sicilian Tarocco orange, often referred to as the “half-blood orange.” A mixed-heritage cocktail, this drink has a bumped-up base of gin to match the vibrant bitter aperitivo liqueur Cappelletti. The drink’s acidity comes courtesy of blood orange, lemon juice, and prosecco, bound together by the unlikely addition of vanilla, which complements Cappelletti’s notes of spice and oxidation.

The precursor to the Pimm’s Cup, the old Claret Cup employs a wine base to make a drink that is light and redolent of additions such as borage, cucumber, or strawberries. There are multiple recipes, but we like a simple one that modifies wine with just a bit of sherry (or even vermouth, in a pinch). Claret was what the English used to call wines from Bordeaux. Really, any red jammy wine will do—Cabernets or even Syrah, although a decent Côtes du Rhône or a Beaujolais is what we use most often. Don’t overthink it—use whatever fruit you’ve got in the fridge and see what you prefer. In fall, it’s lovely to grate a little nutmeg and cinnamon on top.