"But wine (a light, acidic red or a fruity, crisp white) only pairs well with the flavors of Thanksgiving, it doesn't address the physical trial of feasting that the holiday entails. The biggest meal of the year calls for a more strategic beverage choice, but unfortunately, Americans are unaccustomed to drinking the kinds of drinks that might ward off post-meal lethargy."
"It's strange how little headway the European tradition of the digestif has made in American eating. Our insistence on an efficient, post-work dinner is antithetical to much of southern Europe's leisurely late-night dining, where the digestif shines the brightest. In Spain alone, there are dozens of liqueurs produced from specialty ingredients like sloe berries, cherries, saffron, and anise seed-lots and lots of anise seed. France also has a robust digestif culture with venerable herbal concoctions like Chartreuse and Bénédictine"
Thanksgiving's large, rich meal often produces post-meal lethargy that light wines do not relieve. A digestif soothes with texture and bitterness while aiding digestion after heavy eating. European cultures regularly use postprandial liqueurs and spirits—Spain's fruit and spice liqueurs, France's herbal concoctions, and Italy's amari or espresso—to conclude long, leisurely meals and counteract fullness. Americans tend to favor quick, efficient dinners and lack a widespread digestif tradition, leaving many without a beverage designed to settle the stomach and refresh the palate after the holiday feast.
Read at Slate Magazine
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