Thermador Immersive

Dinner parties to

A glass of sparkling wine is a must for any celebration. Chef Bruce suggests Blanc de Blanc from Westport Rivers Vineyard in Westport, Mass. “I have been a fan of this sparkling wine for a long time,” he says. This bubbly beverage can greet your guests, take them through dinner, and even reach into the evening sweets. “It’s so versatile and pairs with everything from first course through fruity, creamy desserts,” Bruce says. For guests who might prefer a beer to kick off the meal, Coolship Red from Allagash in Portland, Maine, is the perfect pour. “It’s a spontaneously fermented wild [or sour] ale aged in French oak with Maine raspberries, so it has sharp acidity, notes of ripe fruit, and mild tannins,” explains Nick Giannotti, bar manager at Boston’s Tip Tap Room, which boasts 30 revolving local craft beers. Coolship compliments first course salads and seafood—perhaps those Island Creeks shucked onsite at your formal gathering. When a land animal is the guest of honor at your dinner party, offer a white wine to keep it company. "I like to pair Pinot Gris of Greenvale Vineyards with a roasted chicken or pork dish,” Bruce says of the tangy refreshing sip with a honey aroma. The Portsmouth, RI, vineyard on Aquidneck Island is a sixth generation farm producing small quantities of estate-grown wines.

You’ve carefully selected beverages for the evening. Now, make sure they’re kept at the right temperature until your guests arrive and are ready to imbibe. Whether you’ve curated a staggering stash of craft beers or a few bottles of a cherished vintage, Thermador has a refrigeration set-up to cool your drinks to the optimal degree. The 24-Inch Built-in Wine Preservation Column offers three zones to ensure wines are stored at the ideal temperature, while the LED display and eye-catching wenge wood wine presenter enhance the look. “It gives you a temperature range of 41 to 68 degrees that can be changed anytime,” explains Charlie Hurley, a Massachusetts-based Thermador Dealer and part of the New England Appliance Group, “If you wanted to switch it around from red to white to champagne, you have complete control.” Thermador also offers under-counter refrigeration that goes down to 33 degrees for a nice cold beer for your guests. “You could be set up like a commercial bar application with more fit and finish for the home,” Hurley says. And in a modern layout, these appliances can be installed in the same area you’re entertaining in, too, serving as a functional decoration. “While you're having a dinner party and the caterers are in the kitchen, you can still have your company with you with instant access to these products,” Hurley says. Thermador also offers a 24-inch Glass Care Center Dishwasher, an under-counter washer with a no-slip soft rubber rack for wine glasses and beer steins. The impressive 26-wine glass capacity accommodates a larger party better than traditional dishwashers, which can hold about seven safely. You can fit it into your kitchen décor with stainless or custom wood paneling.

Definitely a beer pilgrimage location to put on your list. The limited-release bottles for on-site pours make the beer journey worth every mile.

Hill farmstead BREWERY / VT

Notch was the first brewing company in the U.S. to focus exclusively on session beer. Their dog-friendly biergarten is open year round.

NOTCH BREWERY / MA

Guided, walking tours on Saturdays and Sundays at noon, year-round. They also offer groups of 8 or more private tasting and tours.

Flag Hill DISTILLERY & Winery / NH

Settled along the Sakonnet River, the vineyard and tasting room experience integrates stunning wines on a breathtaking landscape.

Greenvale vineyards / RI

Their tours are one of the most popular things to do in Portland. Tours fill up in advance, so be sure to book ahead.

ALLAGASH BREWING Co / ME

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Click on your favorite beer to see optimal storage temperature.

Hefeweizen

40°- 45°

India Pale Ale

40°- 45°

Oktoberfest

45°- 50°

Porter

45°- 55°

Stout

45°- 55°

Marzen

45°- 50°

Amber

45°- 50°

There are currently 545 craft breweries operating in New England.

New England is also home to some of the nation’s largest craft brewers:

Wachusett (MA)

18tH 27tH 31st 33rd 35th 49th

Harpoon (MA/VT)

Shipyard (ME)

Long Trail (VT)

Narragansett (RI)

Allagash (ME)

Casual

Football games on the big screen, holiday potlucks with friends, Halloween festivities. All these get-togethers call for American mainstays of stew, chili, game day buffalo wings, and nachos. Nothing compliments hearty autumn fare better than a glass of red wine. “The 2014 Cabernet Franc of Turtle Creek in Lincoln, Mass. is great with stews in the winter, with lots of cherry fruit and body to hold up to heartier preparations,” Bruce says.

Vermont was named the craft beer capital of America. There are 11.5 craft breweries for every 100,000 adults aged 21 or older in Vermont, the most of any U.S. state.

Hours: Mon—Wed: 11am – 6pm, Thu—Sat: 11am – 7pm, Sun: 11am – 5pm 50 Industrial Way, Portland, ME 04103 Phone: (800) 330-5385 allagash.com

ALLAGASH BREWING Co

Hours: Mon & Tues: 4-9pm, Wed: 4-11pm, Thur – Sat: 12-11pm, Sun: 12-8pm 283R Derby Street, Salem, MA 01970 (978) 238-9060 notchbrewing.com

NOTCH BREWING

Summer Hours (April through Dec): Monday–Saturday: 10am-5pm Sunday: Noon-5pm 582 Wapping Road, Portsmouth, RI 02871 (401) 847-3777 greenvale.com

Greenvale vineyards

Hours: Sun–Tues: Closed Wed—Sat: 12am – 5pm 403 Hill Road, Greensboro Bend, VT 05842 Phone: (802) 533-7450 hillfarmstead.com

HILL FARMSTEAD BREWERY

Hours: Every day 11am – 5pm year round. 297 North River Road (Route 155) Lee, NH 03861 Phone: (603) 659-2949 flaghill.com

Flag Hill Winery

When looking for high-end appliances, shopping local, as you did for food and drinks, should still apply, Hurley says. In a lot of big box stores, which don’t specialize the way local stores do, “you're not even going to see this type of product,” he says. “The manufacturers go through smaller businesses because it's a nicer experience when somebody wants to invest this kind of money in a product.” Whether it’s choosing drinks for dinner or where to store them, local really is the way to go. As Schwartz puts it, “Why leave home when our backyard is an embarrassment of riches?”

“It’s a spontaneously fermented wild [or sour] ale aged in French oak with Maine raspberries, so it has sharp acidity, notes of ripe fruit, and mild tannins.”

“The 2014 Cabernet Franc of Turtle Creek in Lincoln, Mass. is great with stews in the winter, with lots of cherry fruit and body to hold up to heartier preparations.”

The Maine Winery Guild has 24 members, although the scope of production goes beyond grapes to include fruit wines, distilled spirits, ciders, and more. Known for its "vineless" wines made with apples and other native fruits.

"It’s great to try local wines to experience the full scope of what this region has to offer,” says Daniel Bruce, Chef of Meritage in the Boston Harbor Hotel. Over 30 years ago, Bruce launched the Boston Wine Festival, now the nation's longest-running food and wine pairing series. Pour over advice from these experts and select what to serve at your next dinner party, whether that means cheering on the Pats over nachos or pulling out all the stops at a formal get-together at your house.

You’ve planned a dinner-party menu full of farm-to-fork dishes, so why shouldn’t the beverages follow suit? “It’s always better to go to the source,” says Karoline Schwartz, craft beer aficionado and general manager at Banners Kitchen & Tap, opening mid-October adjacent to the TD Garden, with 55-plus local and regional craft beers on tap. “Knowing a brewery is an hour or two away gives you comfort in the fact that [your beer] didn’t undergo a harrowing adventure to get to you. New England has a deep history of brewing and is home to some of the best breweries in the world.” Oenophiles, take heart. The region’s wine selections are also ripe for the picking, with vineyards peppering New England.

By Cheryl Fenton

Drink local

Don’t just go farm-to-table for your next gathering. Go vine-to-table, too.

at your next dinner party

As your meal comes to the end but the conversation continues, Bruce suggests turning to Flag Hill Winery in Lee, NH, for its North River Ruby Port to keep the party going. "This port is a perfect digestif and after-dinner sip. It pairs well with stone fruits and desserts,” he says, noting its perfect alongside an after-dinner cheese plate, especially blue and stilton.

When that filling fall menu includes a bit of spice (hello, Taco Tuesdays and crockpot chili), Bruce recommends accompanying the heat in a spicy dish with Ballet of Angels from Sharpe Hill Vineyards in Pomfret, Conn. “This is a refreshing semi-dry white wine with a delicious floral bouquet, citrus flavors, and a hint of grapefruit,” he says. Even though the hops amplify the heat, Giannotti has his own pairing for spicy food (think hot buffalo wings during a Pats game)—Exhibit A’s Wandering Thoughts, an IPA from Framingham, Mass. “While pretty much every brewer makes a New England IPA, this stands out to me,” he says. “This Imperial IPA with Southern Hemisphere hops hits all the notes of a hazy IPA. It’s juicy, tropical and C bitter.” Since lagers have come back to the forefront, according to Giannotti, he also celebrates October with a pour of Zero Gravity’s Kellerbier from Burlington, VT. “This has to be one of my favorite beers going right now. It’s light bodied but still has a ton of flavor.” And who says grilling season is over? Left of the Dial from Notch Brewery and Tap Room in Salem, Mass. is outstanding coupled with burgers and steaks. Plus, the balanced, slightly bitter Session IPA has low alcohol content, so you can have more than two before calling it a night.

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The columns hold up to 99 bottles, of variable sizes, allowing wine enthusiasts to show off and store their impressive wine collection with confidence.

Thermador 24” Wine Columns enable the consumer to store their wine reserve collection at the ideal temperature

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Available in stainless steel or custom panels, and in 24” glass door wine refrigerators or 24” double drawer refrigerators.

New Thermador under counter refrigeration units bring exceptional personalization to the kitchen and beyond

learn more

Features a gentle cycle that won’t damage glasses, with a no-slip, soft rubber lower rack and adjustable stands specifically designed to keep stems secure.

Thermador introduces: the Glass Care Center Designed specifically to accommodate all of your glassware

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Local New England Thermador Dealers

Available in stainless steel or custom panels, and in 24” glass door wine refrigerators or 24” double drawer refrigerators.

learn more

Features a gentle cycle that won’t damage glasses, with a no-slip, soft rubber lower rack and adjustable stands specifically designed to keep stems secure.

New Thermador under counter refrigeration units bring exceptional personalization to the kitchen and beyond

The columns hold up to 99 bottles, of variable sizes, allowing wine enthusiasts to show off and store their impressive wine collection with confidence.

learn more

Thermador 24” Wine Columns enable the consumer to store their wine reserve collection at the ideal temperature