Drinks with Dominique: Up and Down the Bunny Trail - Exit 9 Wine & Liquor Warehouse, Clifton Park, NY

Easter is another family occasion where wines can really shine alongside favorite dishes. Eggs are often a star on Easter tables, from deviled egg appetizers to quiches loaded with meats, veggies, and cheese.

Main-course meat favorites are traditionally ham and lamb. All of these flavors make for some amazing wine pairings. At the front of the store there's a display of selections specific to ham and lamb, and there are also wines (and spirits and canned cocktails) that will go with anything.

Among the choices for ham are a couple of off-dry Rieslings. Why? These wines are so beautifully balanced with bright acidity and subtle notes of honeysuckle that complement a glazed ham perfectly. We've also selected a classic Italian Pinot Grigio for something easy and refreshing; a velvety and stone fruit-forward French Vouvray; and a Sauvignon Blanc from Washington State that promises great taste and fewer calories.

For red wine drinkers - or if you want to enjoy a red in addition to a white (and why not?!) - there's Flowers Pinot Noir from the Sonoma Coast. Mat Kramer of Wine Enthusiast declared of this wine, "If there's an American Pinot more profound, I haven't tasted it."

If lamb is your main course, red wines are your best option. Lamb's slight gaminess calls for an earthy but not overpowering wine, so our line-up includes selections from countries that are known for their love of lamb - France, Spain, Chile and Greece.

The Guillon Bordeaux and the Gigondas from the southern Rhone Valley are both highly rated and deservedly so.

Special wines for a special meal.

Lamb is synonymous with Greek cuisine, and the Saint George made from agiorgitiko grapes has bright fruit notes, balanced tannins, and a long finish. Delicious. There's a Crianza Rioja from Marques de Caceres that's a "can't-go-wrong" red; an earthy but not overwhelming Cab from the Vina Santa Rita in Chile, where they've been making wines for over 135 years; and a sleeper, the Piedrasassi Syrah from Santa Barbara, a wine more in keeping with California's rich fruit offerings, inky and chewy.

There are a couple of lovely dry roses on the shelf, as these wines pair with all of Easter's treats, and are beautiful shades of pink. There are several sparkling wines that will delight you and any guests; a killer bourbon cream from Boone County to outshine any candies in your Easter basket; and some easy drinking canned cocktails.

Of course we're happy to make other suggestions for your Easter plans, whenever they take you.

Happy Easter from all of us at Exit 9!