The Unexpected Red That Will Upgrade Your Thanksgiving Wine Plans

While most Thanksgiving wine guides steer you toward gold-standard pinot noirs and crowd-pleasing chardonnays, Alex Cuper has a more intriguing proposition: look south. Way south.

As the sommelier behind the wine programs at El Che Steakhouse & Bar and Brasero in Chicago, Cuper has built a reputation for curating one of the most expansive and carefully considered South American wine collections in North America. These aren’t just lists padded with familiar malbecs; they’re thoughtful explorations of Argentina, Uruguay, Chile and beyond.

At Brasero alone, he’s assembled 100 bottles under $100, all focused on South and Latin American producers. It’s the kind of wine curation that makes you rethink what you thought you knew about a region.

I’ve long admired Cuper’s approach to his wine lists, which balance accessibility with genuine discovery. So when he told me that carménère has become one of his favorite wines for Thanksgiving, I was intrigued. This is not a varietal that typically enters the holiday conversation, and that’s precisely the point.

“It has this beautiful velvety fruit characteristic to it, much like merlot, but also a good one has great structure and just an overall quality that plays nicely with a full Thanksgiving spread,” Cuper explains.

That versatility matters when you’re trying to bridge turkey, sweet potatoes, tangy cranberry sauce and rich gravy, all on the same palate.

Carménère, for those unfamiliar, is Chile’s signature red grape. Once thought extinct in France, it was rediscovered in Chilean vineyards in the 1990s, often mistaken for merlot. In the right hands, it offers the approachability of merlot with more grip and character, exactly what you want when you’re entertaining at home and need a wine that won’t fade into the background.

The Splurge-Worthy Centerpiece

For those willing to invest in a bottle that becomes the centerpiece of the meal, Cuper points to Lapostolle Clos Apalta. Though carménère-driven, this wine often incorporates cabernet sauvignon and merlot for added complexity and aging potential. Cuper describes it as capturing “all the beautiful parts of carménère, done in an old world style of wine making,” with remarkable elegance, rich dark fruit and structure that complements virtually anything on your Thanksgiving table. It will set you back more than $100 depending on where you buy, but this is the bottle sparks conversation and lingers in memory long after the leftovers are gone.

Alex Cuper, sommelier at El Che Steakhouse & Bar and Brasero in Chicago

El Che Steakhouse & Bar and BraseroThe Overachiever Alternative

But here’s where it gets interesting. Cuper suggests that Lapostolle Petit Clos “may be even better than its big brother.” Bold claim. The Petit Clos leans more toward a classic Bordeaux blend: still carmenere-driven but with cabernet sauvignon, merlot and petit verdot joining the mix. It carries a touch more grip while remaining approachable, and crucially, it’s more than half the price of the Clos Apalta. For those of us who believe the best bottle is the one that delivers maximum pleasure without inducing financial regret, this is the move. It has a price tag roughly half of that of Clos Apalta.

For The Big, Bold Crowd

Then there’s the reality that most Thanksgiving tables include at least one person who gravitates toward those big, assertive wines that have always held some appeal for American palate. Cuper has them covered with Montes Purple Angel, made in a decidedly New World style with deep red and black fruits, coffee and dark chocolate aromatics, and what he calls “plush” tannins with a seemingly endless finish.

For a more accessible price point, Montes recently released Montes Wings, which offers similar qualities with slightly less depth but plenty of crowd-pleasing appeal.

Thanksgiving Wine: The Bigger Picture

What makes these recommendations compelling isn’t just the bottles themselves. Wine enthusiasts typically wlecome an invitation to think differently about holiday entertaining. South American wines offer exceptional value and quality, yet they remain underexplored on many American tables.

When you’re hosting at home, you have the freedom to introduce something unexpected, to tell a story about what’s in the glass. Cuper’s wine lists at El Che and Brasero prove that South American wines can anchor serious dining experiences. His Thanksgiving recommendations extend that philosophy to the home table, where the stakes are both higher (family judgment can be harsh) and more forgiving (there’s always pie to save the day).

This year, while others reach for the expected, you might just find yourself pouring Thanksgiving wine with more character, more story and yes, more carménère.