#Christmas

Dec 22, 2022

WINE OF THE WEEK: Rustenberg Wild Ferment Unwooded Chardonnay 2022, Stellenbosch, South Africa

£12, Tesco If you’re faced with someone who thinks Christmas isn’t Christmas without Chablis, someone else who always chooses southern hemisphere wines over European classics and someone who never drinks Chardonnay because they still think it’s all big, fruity and oaky, try them on this svelte, unoaked Cape white made by the prestigious Rustenberg in Stellenbosch. As long as they’re open-minded, they’ll find themselves enjoying the Chablis-like precision and polish combined w

Dec 8, 2022

WINE OF THE WEEK: Quinta do Noval Late Bottled Vintage Port 2016, Portugal

£19.95–£26.75, Master of Malt, Cheers, Cambridge Wine Merchants, Ocado, Bon Coeur Fine Wines, Oddbins Never mind saving this until Christmas, I can't think of a more comforting wine in this cold weather. Late bottled vintage ports simply don't come better than this. Sit by the fire or wrap yourself in a blanket (or both) and soak up its rich embrace of blackberry, fig and black cherry, dark chocolate and mocha, Christmas-pudding spice and velvet-smooth tannins. Like Quinta do

Dec 1, 2022

WINE OF THE WEEK: Jacques Boncoeur Brut Réserve Champagne, France

£22 (on offer), Bon Coeur Fine Wines A timely reminder that in the season of the cheery Champagne deal supermarkets are not the only places to shop. Bon Coeur Fine Wines’ own brand Champagne is good value at its usual price of £28.60 and cracking value at £22, the offer price until the end of the year. And just like its price, it’s a really cheery Champagne – properly aged and with pretty fruit – so one with wide appeal, a useful attribute at this time of year, when you never

Nov 24, 2022

WINE OF THE WEEK: Ventisquero Kalfu Kuda Pinot Noir 2018, Leyda Valley, Chile

£12.99–£16.50, Hedley Wright, Frontier Fine Wines, Fintry Wines, The Wine Reserve, Beaucatcher Wines, Drinkfinder, Cambridge Wine Merchants, Harvey Nichols There was a clutch of inviting Pinot Noirs in the running for this week's wine, but Chile's Kalfu Kuda won out for its combination of carolling cool-climate fruit and barrel-matured mellowness – spot on for the Christmas table, whether it's set for a traditional turkey fest, or vegetarian, salmon or red meat alternatives.

Dec 18, 2018

The Festive White Wine Guide 2018

Dry and off-dry whites from around the globe to cover the festivities and all eventualities at prices from £6 upwards and from the supermarket giants to small independents. Listed in ascending order of price, as usual. Moncaro Verdicchio dei Castelli Jesi Classico 2017, Italy A rounded, off-dry white with almond nuttiness, leafy freshness and a hint of citrus-pith bitterness on the finish to off-set the touch of sweetness. Good value. Can be drunk solo or with light fish, pa

Dec 17, 2018

Festive fizz for 2018: anything except Champagne

17 December: I've updated this post (first published on 3 December) with the addition of two more English wines: Denbies Cubitt Blanc de Noirs 2013 and Nyetimber Classic Cuvée. The first of the season's round-ups is anything sparkling except Champagne. (That comes next.) They're selected for quality, interest and value for money and cross four continents, spanning the spectrum from easy-drinking crowd pleasers to quirky Pet Nat. There is, though, nothing ultra cheap. If you w

Dec 14, 2018

The Festive Red Wine Guide 2018

Red wines from all around the world to take you through all kinds of festivities and in some cases festivities for years to come. As always, they’re listed in ascending order of price, give or take differences in retailers’ prices and special offers. Ostoros Pinot Noir 2016, Hungary Astonishing to find something that tastes of Pinot Noir at this price – light and soft textured with fresh, sweet berry fruit and Pinot's delicate stemmy earthiness. Hats off to the Society's East

Dec 20, 2017

Matching Wine to Goose

Goose has a reputation for being difficult to match to wine. I really don't think it is. I always roast a goose at Christmas and usually on one or two other occasions during the year (I did one last month in southwest France and I've got a couple of fairly small ones in the freezer for, as yet unplanned, occasions here in London in 2018). That’s quite a lot of roast geese and matching wines in nearly 30 years. I vary the stuffings, but the recipe I return to for Christmas, be

Dec 19, 2017

The Festive White Wine Guide 2017

Sixteen dry whites to cover the festivities and all eventualities at prices from £7 to £48 and from the supermarket giants to small independents. New Zealand Sauvignon is conspicuous by its absence, not for any lack of enthusiasm on my part, but because it was clear from my tasting notes and scores that with NZ Sauvignon you pretty well get what you pay for. If you want something more expressive, expect to pay £13-£20 and head for the likes of Greywacke, Dog Point, Churton,

Dec 15, 2017

The Festive Red Wine Guide 2017

Twenty red wines to take you through all manner of festivities and in some cases festivities for years to come. As, always, they’re listed in ascending order of price, give or take differences in retailers’ prices and special offers. There are three wines I highly recommend but have not included below because they, or a previous vintage, were in last year’s Festive Wine Guide: Les Hauts de Saint-Martin Saint-Chinian 2015 (great value at £6.99, Co-op), the exemplary CVNE Rioja

Dec 13, 2017

The Festive Champagne Guide 2017

So here they are: my Champagne picks for Christmas, New Year and every other kind of festivity, whittled down with difficulty to what I hope is a reasonable number. There's a spread of styles, producers and prices, kicking off below £20 and finishing around £150. I've largely steered clear of Champagnes featured in the last two years' round-ups, which means missing out some with particular regret. This year there's only one pink but, as it happens, without planning it, there

Dec 11, 2017

Festive fizz 2017: anything except Champagne

The first of the season's round-ups is sparkling wines – anything alcoholic and fizzy except Champagne (the Champagne round-up follows shortly). They're selected for quality, interest and value for money and it's ended up as five rosés, three whites and two reds from five different countries across both hemispheres. There's no Prosecco this year – I'm prepared for the brickbats – but if you're looking for one, Sainsbury's Taste the Difference Prosecco Conegliano 2016 is bette

Dec 19, 2016

What to Drink with Goose? It's easier than you think

People overestimate the difficulty of matching wine to roast goose. I really don't think it's tricky. I do goose at Christmas every year and often on at least one other occasion during the year and have found all sorts of different wines over the last 25+ years. I've tried various stuffings, but the recipe that I return to, because it's always popular, is a rich, flavoursome one that includes chestnuts, prunes, sausage, herbs and spice (here's my recipe). Apart from a bottle

Dec 16, 2016

The Festive White Wine Guide 2016

A round-up of white wines – dry first, then sweet – to cover the festive season, whether it's a quiet night in, basic crowd control, or the ultimate celebration. There's also one rosé, a rosé like no other. There's nothing at a really bargain-basement price, as there is in my Festive Reds selection, simply because I don't find the same quality in whites at the bottom of the price scale. Wines are listed in ascending order of price within the two categories of dry then sweet.

Dec 14, 2016

The Festive Red Wine Guide 2016

Updated 15 December to take in a Christmas offer price in the Co-op – £5 off its Chateauneuf-du-Pape A round-up of red wines of all persuasions, origins and prices to cover the festive season whether you're looking for something cheap to fuel a party or something top-end for a celebratory meal. Wines are listed in ascending order of price. For alternative stockists, including in other countries, try wine-searcher.com. Percheron Shiraz Mourvèdre 2015, Swartland, South Africa A

Dec 9, 2016

The Festive Champagne Guide 2016

December 29, 2016: prices and stockists updated. I’m writing this a few days after The Wine Gang’s 2016 Ultimate Champagne Evening, so to say that I'm full of the joys of Champagne is to understate it. We got our taste buds into shape with an aperitif of Charles Heidsieck Brut Réserve (always a favourite) then showed Salon 2004, Delamotte Blanc de Blancs 2007, Dom Ruinart Blanc de Blancs 2004, Dom Ruinart Rosé 2002, Bollinger La Grande Année 2005, Bollinger RD 2002, Dom Péri

Dec 29, 2015

Quiz Time! A wine quiz with answers

The purpose of this blog is to provide you with some material for Christmas quizzes, longueurs in the conversation, one-upmanship with the family wine bore, charades (not the sort of charades I play –ed) and so on and so forth, perhaps leaving some leftover material for a pub wine quiz or two in 2016. Let’s do it with grape varieties – always rich pickings (sorry, terrible pun – just thinking of the Christmas crackers) and let’s focus on crossings and synonyms. · Cabest

Dec 10, 2015

The Festive Champagne Guide

Ten Champagnes to put you in the mood for Christmas and all the rest Listed in ascending order of price, ignoring special offers and quantity discounts. I've given a UK stockist and price (sometimes two) for each, but you can find other stockists in the UK and other countries on wine-searcher.com. Les Pionniers Brut NV Champagne Biscuity, rounded and fresh. Consistently good; remarkable value. The Co-operative's own label. 50% Pinot Noir, 30% Pinot Meunier, 10% Chardonnay. Th