By DCist contributor Amy Monroe

According to popular lore, D.C. is a town of transients who call somewhere else home. Need support for this common theory? Just look at the mass exodus of residents who will exit the District today in name of spending Thanksgiving in their “real” hometowns.

But some D.C. dwellers stay behind. For those who do but who don’t want to have Thanksgiving dinner in a hotel restaurant, the dining options are generally two: dine alone in your apartment while watching John Madden dole out turkey leg trophies; or dine with a hastily assembled group of similarly D.C.-bound friends while watching John Madden dole out turkey leg trophies.

DCist insists that either of these options may be fun when paired with the right wine in the right quantity. To that end, we have drawn up a list of Thanksgiving-appropriate small- and large-format options for the single diner as well as the group diner.

For One
For solo diners who are loathe to crack open a full bottle for fear of passing out in the midst of a Hungry Man turkey dinner, there is nothing better than the 375-mL half bottle, which packs just the right amount of deliciousness into its diminutive form. Here are three picks guaranteed to play as nicely with a Boston Carver Combo as with home cooked turkey with all the trimmings.

Labouré Roi Pouilly Fuissé, France ($11 for 375 mL)
Hate Chardonnay? Love Chardonnay? Either way, this white Burgundy, which is made from Chardonnay, is a wine worth trying with a holiday meal. Buttery without being overblown and mineral-rich without being austere, it has enough softness and enough edge to straddle the flavor divide between sweet potatoes and cranberry sauce with ease. And it’s so not what you’re expecting – in a good way.

Patricia Green Cellars Pinot Noir, Oregon ($15 for 375 mL)
Many consider it to be the most food friendly variety in the world, and we have to admit Patricia Green’s Pinot, with its suave, cherry-soaked, slightly earthy flavors is nearly perfect as far as we’re concerned. So yummy we’d think of it for all occasions, special or not. This one’s a winner with any Thanksgiving dish, or, if you don’t feel like eating, with nothing at all.

Nicholas Feuillatte Brut Rosé, France ($19 for 375 mL)
Want to turn your solo sup into a truly festive meal? Add sparkle with this rosé Champagne that’s both incredibly delicate and food friendly thanks to its pretty strawberry/raspberry aromas and lush body. Effervescence and high acidity, which all Champagnes possess in spades, are just the ticket to cutting through buttery mashed potatoes and creamy gravy.

For the Group Diner
For those who will be carving with comrades (or for solo diners who don’t mind passing out in the midst of a Hungry Man turkey dinner), a large format bottle might just be the way to go. Do the math; it can be a great value, especially if you’re blowing the budget on the prepared Thanksgiving dinner from Whole Foods or the take-out extravaganza from the Grill at the Ritz-Carlton. Bottles listed below are either in one-liter or magnum (two standard bottles) sizes.

Koster Wolf Muller-Thurgau, Germany ($11 for 1 liter)
You may be scared off by many things here: the unpronounceable name, the screw cap closure, the fact that it’s off-dry, but we urge you to think outside the box and inside the Thanksgiving table on this one. Most likely you’ll have some staples – turkey, ham, sweet potatoes (perhaps adorned with marshmallows) – and these staples share a common thread: a little touch of sweetness. That’s why this wine’s off-dry notes of peach and apricot work matchmaking magic like few other whites can.

Three Thieves Bandit Cabernet Sauvignon, California ($11 for 1 liter)
Yes, it’s in a box (that’s TetraPak in winespeak), but if you think the package is a predictor of the quality (or lack of), think again. Made from grapes that didn’t quite make the cut for Pine Ridge and Shafer (two big-deal, big-money names in Napa Cab), this mellow quaffer has a lovely nose redolent of berry, red currant and subtle spice. And, hey, when the guests start to get rowdy, at least you don’t have to worry about them breaking the bottle!

Cortijo Ill Rioja, Spain ($16 for magnum)
Tempranillo, the main grape of Rioja, just may be the most overlooked and underrated Thanksgiving wine around. Its flavor profile seems to morph, chameleon-like, to match tastebuds with any dish. Bright berry fruit? Check. Lively spice? Check. Earthy complexity? You betcha. Need an MVP at your table? Look no further than this big bottle that has the power to be all things to all plates and all palates.

Photo by flickr user vincenthorn and used under a Creative Commons license.