Here we are, about to enjoy a cracking Christmas and wave goodbye to 2018. It’s been a busy year for The Wine Tipster. I’ve seen some great racing at The Jockey Club courses across the country, presented on wine and bubbles to some fabulous audiences and discovered plenty of top tipples along the way.

I’d love to say I’ll be winding down, but as we all know there’s plenty of racing on over the festive season.  Look out for my Unibet Racing blogs on December 19th and December 26th on King George Day for all my latest tips. 

If you haven’t quite finished your festive shopping I’ve got a few suggestions (not all wine-related, I promise). Peter Stafford-Bow is back with a new book set in the world of wine featuring wine buyer Felix Hart. Brut Force is the sequel to Corkscrew and would make a great gift for the wine-lover in your life (Available from Amazon, RRP £9.99, Kindle edition £3.99).

If it’s music you prefer, I can thoroughly recommend The Nightingales. I saw them at a great gig at The Moth Club in Hackney and their new album Perish The Thought is my album of 2018. (Buy from Tiny Global Productions, CD £15, digital version £7).

At Wine Tipster HQ, we’ll be heading out for Christmas this year and I’m looking forward to seeing what will be served up with our slap-up meal. For me, Christmas is a time full of tradition but also a great time to try different things and experiment with something new. I’m usually a big fan of getting into the kitchen and cooking a proper roast, but sometimes with a bit of a differences – maybe goose or venison. I’m also a big fan of fish and seafood as it pairs so brilliantly with some wines, so will be preparing us a platter for those festive evenings when you fancy something a little lighter.

Have you planned your festive tipples yet? I’ve put together my suggestions for a few different wines and tipples you can try this festive season. I hope you all have a wonderful time and here’s to a successful 2019. 

Merry Christmas from The Wine Tipster!

 

1. Prosecco DOC La Gioiosa et Amarosa NV Treviso, Veneto, Italy

Christmas wouldn’t be complete without some fizz and as we all know, I’m a big fan of Prosecco. Owned by the Moretti Polegato family, Villa Sandi always produces impressive, elegant Proseccos and the La Gioiosa is a perfect example.A delicious match with seafood. £11.99. Stockist: Majestic

2. Astoria Prosecco DOC “Galie” Extra Dry Treviso, Veneto, Italy

Another great example of Prosecco, this “Galie” Extra Dry is grown in the hills of the Astoria Estate approximately 150m above sea level, giving it an elegant, fruity and flowery bouquet with a harmonious flavour. Perfect served with canapes, smoked salmon and delicious Grana Padano. £13.75. Stockists: Gerard Steel, Amazon and at York Racecourse

3. Masottina Prosecco DOC Brut, Treviso, Veneto, Italy 

Masottina founded in 1946 in Conegliano, produce a range of high quality award winning Proseccos, including this award winning Brut, which won a gold medal in the Decanter Wine Awards. Stylish, smooth, with floral and fruity notes, this is top class. £11.99 Stockist: www.winedirect.co.uk www.fmv.co.uk

4. Ridgeview Bloomsbury Sparkling NV, Sussex

Based in East Sussex, Ridgeview is a great example of an English sparkling wine – a brilliant alternative to champagne during the festive season. These are great celebration wine, or pair well with seafood and fish, so try a glass with your salmon at Christmas. £28.99. Stockists: Waitrose

5. Vilarnau Cava Brut Reserva Rosé NV, Sant Sadurni d’Anoia, Spain

This is a high quality, dry pink Cava with an intense crimson colour, red fruits and citrus flavours, which will definitely impress over the Festive period as will the brilliant packaging. £12. Stockists: Tesco, Ocado, Cafe de la Post

6. Croft Twist Fino Spritz

When I first tried Croft Twist a couple of years ago, I thought it was wonderful. A modern British take on Spain’s rebujito cocktail, it mixes cask-aged Croft Fino with sparkling water, English elderflower and lemon and mint cordial. At 5.5% ABV, it’s great for Christmas if you’re after something a little bit lighter. It’s also a great wine to surprise people with. Don’t tell them what it is and see if they guess… For the perfect serve, pour over ice and garnish with a twist of lemon peel and a sprig of fresh basil. £7.00. Stockists: Ocado, Waitrose, Sainsbury’s

7. Chapel Down Bacchus 2017, Kent

One of the most popular English whites around at the moment, Bacchus is a great example of a white wine. And more English still white – Bacchus, Chapel Down. Ironically Bacchus won at Royal Ascot, tipped up by The Wine Tipster! £13.99. Stockist: Waitrose

8. Beronia Rueda Verdejo 2017, Spain

This is a fantastic easy-drinking white from the Rueda region of north-west Spain. You’re bound to be entertaining during Christmas and there’s always someone who says they don’t like Sauvignon Blanc or Chardonnay so it’s a great one to add to your selection of wines on offer. £8.99. Stockist: Waitrose

9. Peter Yealands Reserve Sauvignon Blanc 2017, Awatere, New Zealand

Yealands are a great example of environmental and sustainable winemakers and their crisp, Reserve Sauvignon Blanc with flavours of passionfruit, mango and citrus is perfect on its own or with fish and buffets over the festive period. Try their Land Made Sauvignon Blanc across The Jockey Club racecourses. £11.59 on offer to £8.49. Waitrose

10. Côtes de Provence Rosé de Léoube 2017 Château Léoube, Provence, France

This is a top-class, bone dry rosé. Well balanced and with flavours of strawberry and white peach. It works well as an aperitif but would also go well with lighter festive dishes or a Boxing Day buffet of seafood and cold meats. £17.99. Stockists: Daylesford daylesford.com Oxford Wine Company, Charlbury Deli & Cafe, Waddesdon Manor

11. Les Dauphins Côtes du Rhône Villages 2017, Rhône, France

This wonderful Côtes du Rhône red is so truly French in style with ripe fruit aromas and wonderful spicy fruit flavours. This is great value and always does so well in tastings. A must for Christmas. It also pairs brilliantly with vegetarian dishes so is a great one to pull out when you’re entertaining. £9.99 down to £7.49. Stockist: Waitrose

12. Wirra Wirra Church Block Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz, Merlot 2015 McLaren Vale, Australia 

This great example of a New World red from McLaren Vale is an Australian favourite and I’m rather partial to a glass too. Approachable yet with an element of consistency, it’s a great one to serve with a full festive roast dinner, or even just a few drinks on its own. £13.49. Stockist: Ocado

13. Louis M. Martini Sonoma County 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon, California

This is classic, intense Cabernet Sauvignon is packed with ripe, concentrated and complex flavours of blackcurrant, plum, with sweet spice, subtle oak and a tremendous finish. A classic! Another one that pairs brilliantly with a roast dinner, making it perfect for the festive season. The Jockey Club has also just started listing this wine across its courses, so if you’re heading to Kempton Park on Boxing Day, make sure you look out for it. £19.95. Stockists: Uvinum.co.uk greatwesternwine.co.uk

14. Château Peyredon Lagravette, Haut-Médoc Cru Bourgeois 2010, Bordeaux, France 

Cru Bourgeois wines offer a tremendous opportunity to get some great value, complex clarets and this wine from the outstanding 2010 vintage just does that. This Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot blend has lovely, classic Cabernet blackcurrant fruit, with spice and savoury character. Definitely a wine to decant and enjoy with beef or game over the festive period. £14.50. Stockist: The Wine Society  

15. Royal Tokaji Late Harvest 2015, Hungary

If you’re looking for something a bit sweeter over the festive season but want to try something different, head for Hungary for a Tokaji. From the Tokaj wine region in Hungary, this wine has a wonderful balance of sweetness and acidity,which makes it a great pairing with lighter desserts and particularly blue cheese. I think it tastes great on its own too! £11.99 on offer to £9.99 (50cl) . Stockist: Majestic

16. Gonzalez Byass Matusalem Oloroso Dulce Muy Viejo VORS, Jerez, Spain

Who doesn’t want a tot of sherry on a festive evening. This stunning sherry, which gets its dark colour from thirty years of ageing in sherry butts should be on every Christmas table and all year round, for that matter! Matusalem Oloroso (ABV 20.5%) has aromas of dark chocolate and prunes, with delicious, rich, complex, nutty character on the palate. A lovely match with Alex James’ delicious Blue Monday. Stockists: The Oxford Wine Company, Waitrose. £19.99 per 37.5cl.

 

If there was ever a time to crack open the bubbly, it’s the festive season. In the run-up to Christmas and the New Year the satisfying sound of a cork popping is almost an everyday occurrence.

Nowadays, it’s highly likely that the bottle being opened is one of Prosecco – the easy-drinking fizz that has taken the world by storm. Through my work with The Prosecco D.O.C (Registered Designation of Origin) Consortium, I present on Prosecco across the UK and am overjoyed at the level of interest in this fantastic, versatile fizz that is as accessible yet also complex and nuanced.

The different levels of sugar content with the ‘Brut’, ‘Extra Dry’ and ‘Dry’ styles and the different types of effervescence, with Spumante or Frizzante, offer a whole range of flavour profiles. And that’s before you begin to look at different producers across the two regions of Veneto and Friuli-Venezia Giulia that make up the home of Prosecco in north east Italy. The Proseccos produced by producers across the nine provinces in these regions – Treviso, Venice, Vicenza, Padova and Belluno in Veneto and Gorizia, Pordenone, Trieste and Udine in Friuli-Venezia Giulia – offer their own unique characteristics that mean there really is something for everyone.

You may be  looking for an aperitif or perhaps you’re on a quest for a perfect pairing with food, whether it’s Grana Padano PDO (Protected Designation of Origin), sushi or Parma ham. Whatever you’re after, there is a Prosecco for you. It’s just a case of knowing which one to choose.

I’ve picked out six top Prosecco producers whose wines will suit a variety of occasions this Christmas and New Year:-

Mionetto Prosecco DOC Treviso Extra Dry, Veneto, Italy, £10.75. Stockist: Tesco, Tesco Wine by the Case

This company, begun by Francesco Mionetto 1887 in Valdobbiadene, has an excellent range. The Extra Dry is a great example with lovely balance and notes of green apples, acacia and apricots, but for me their Treviso Brut is also really impressive.

 

Prosecco DOC La Gioiosa Et Amorosa NV Treviso, Veneto, Italy, £11.99 on offer to £9.99. Stockist: Majestic

La Gioiosa is owned by the lovely Moretti Polegato family, who produce this is delicious, elegant and soft Prosecco, which has floral and citrus character and is a delicious match with seafood. Make sure you have a bottle nice and chilled.

 

San Leo Prosecco DOC Brut NV, Veneto, Italy, £10.99 on offer at £7.99. Stockist: Waitrose

A great one for a party or aperitif, this Prosecco is packed with lively fruit flavours. As well as a standard bottle, it’s also available in magnum for that showstopping moment, currently £20.99 down to £15.99.

 

Prosecco Masottina DOC Brut, Treviso, Italy, £12.99. Stockist: www.winedirect.co.uk www.winetherapy.co.uk

Located in Prosecco’s Conegliano region of the Veneto and owned by the Dal Bianco family since 1946,Masottina produces a range of high quality Proseccos and this DOC remains as popular as ever. This Decenter Gold Medal winner is stylish, smooth, elegant and creamy, it will be a winner at any party and family celebration.

Prosecco Valdo Marca Oro DOC Extra Dry £10.00 on offer at £7.00, Sainsbury’s

This is a very well known producer and popular Prosecco, which should be part of your Christmas selections. Full of freshness and light, lemony fruit flavours, with lovely creamy character too.

Prosecco Biancavigna DOC Brut, £15.00, Armit Wines, www.armitwines.co.uk

Biancavigna make beautifully elegant styles of Prosecco and they are most definitely a Group One runner. Their Brut is soft, floral, creamy, very stylish and delicious. Great as an aperitif with my favourite pairing of Grana Padano aged between 16 and 20 months, which is ideal for any cheese board or the cruncher, intense Grana Padano Riserva aged over 20 months. Grana Padano is available in Waitrose, M&S, Harvey Nichols, Sainsbury’s and Co-op.

The Prosecco story is still developing and its growth and popularity will no doubt continue to expand. The important thing is to try and to understand the nuances between different producers, different regions and different contexts.

You can enjoy checking out Oz Clarke’s new World of Wine (£30 Pavilion Books) and dive into the world of wines, grapes and vineyards. But when it comes to finding the Prosecco for you, you’re best off indulging in a bit of tasting. So pop that cork and get the fizz flowing, and come and join me on one of my masterclasses in 2018.

For more details regarding the Prosecco D.O.C Consortium check out www.discoverproseccowine.it facebook.com/prosecco @DOCProsecco

The popularity of Champagne and Sparkling wines will continue to grow in 2016, as will the thirst for knowledge and useful tips amongst devoted bubbles fans.

Certainly from a presenting perspective at food festivals, race courses, wine societies and corporate events there is a much greater desire to know more about serving temperatures, vintages, magnums and different styles, providing this is communicated in a down to earth manner (not always the case as we know!). For example, The Wine Tipster’s Prosecco Consortium and Grana Padano sessions at the wonderful Taste of London show in Regent’s Park last year provided a great opportunity to educate and talk about the very bright future for Prosecco, not only in terms of the range of quality Proseccos in both spumante and frizzante styles, but also the differences between brut, dry and extra dry. A key pointer and interest for 2016 will be the growth of Prosecco sales over £10 retail, as the Prosecco story enters a new chapter in the UK. Here is a selection of The Wine Tipster’s winning bets:

Prosecco DOC Bosco del Merlo Millesimato 2014, Paladin, Veneto, Italy, £15.99. Stockist: www.thewinery,com  A real star at Taste of London was Bosco del Merlo, produced by Paladin, who are making a fine range of Proseccos. This Bosco del Merlo has attractive citrus fruit, subtle creamy character and crisp acidity. A perfect match with Grana Padano Riserva. Stylish!

Italia Collezione Prosecco Brut NV, Veneto, Italy, DOC, £11.99. Stockist: Waitrose  Prosecco is not only great for parties, it  is also perfect as a pre-dinner aperitif and this Italia Collezione certainly worked in our house over Christmas. Good value, well made, with aromas of white flowers, lovely refreshing green apple character and creamy texture. Cheers!

Daylesford Organic Prosecco NV, Veneto, Italy, DOC, £12.50: Stockist: Daylesford Daylesford is a cycle ride away for us so I’m a regular visitor not only for this delicious, well-balanced off-dry Prosecco but for their wonderful meats balls too!

Prosecco Salatin Extra Dry NV, DOC Treviso, Italy, £11.99 Stockist: Majestic Based in Cordignano north-east of Conegliano, Azienda Vinicola Salatin are producing a range of seriously good Proseccos. Off-dry, zesty, with citrus fruit and creamy character, Salatin was a great pairing with sushi over the festive period. A winner!

Valdo Oro Pura Prosecco Superiore NV Valdobbiadene, Veneto, Italy, £13.49. Stockist: Waitrose Really attractive, well made, rounded, soft citrus and creamy Prosecco with a subtle hint of sweetness and crisp acidity.  Well worth spending over a tenner for this excellent aperitif style or to pair with Grana Padano Riserva. A Grade One performer!

Prosecco DOC La Gioiosa Etamarosa NV Treviso, Veneto, Italy, £11.99. Stockist: Majestic Made by the well-known and high quality producer Gioiosa, this beautifully packaged Prosecco is lovely and elegant, making it a perfect match with seafood. Pure class!

 

 

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