Each year we leave our drinks shopping later and later so here are my Ten to Follow win bets for Christmas and the New Year.

Champagne Fever is top of many tipsters lists for the Arkle Trophy at Cheltenham in March and this horse’s name sums up the Yuletide period for fizz sales so here is my combination exacta with the Tote (first three in any order) for bubbles: Pommery Brut Royal NV £29.99, down from £38.99, Sainsbury’s  is dry, delicious and creamy, whilst the award winning Louis Roederer Brut Premier NV has made its mark as a consistently high quality performer, Majestic £42.00 buy two bottles save 1/3 to £27.98.  If you are looking for a well-bred, Group 1 quality champagne  from a great vintage year then Dom Pérignon 2004 Gift Box, £120.00- £135.00 Majestic, Selfridges has class and elegance in abundance with a memorable finish.

There have been some famous New Zealand racehorses including Playschool, ridden by Paul Nicholls,  then jockey and now seven times champion jumps trainer, who won the Hennessy and Welsh Grand National in 1987. It was around that time that many people were discovering that a chilled  New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc was the wine for them and the fan club has only carried on increasing over the years so if you are a member or haven’t yet  signed up the try this delicious, zingy, fresh, peppery, spicy, Peter Yealands Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2012 £10.85, Co-op with your smoked salmon  – some NZ Sauvignon Blanc is just too full on for this kind of matching – but this is spot on.  You may also want to snap up the  ante-post 11/4 on the Nicholls’ trained Big Buck’s for the World Hurdle at The Cheltenham Festival.

From the list of runners with drink related names at The 2013 Cheltenham Festival I tried to include Vino Griego (successfully backed at 25-1 to win at their January meeting)  in my group for this year’s Cheltenham Festival Racecourse Radio piece, however I was given a yellow card for this one as Vino Griego didn’t quite match up to Champagne Fever, John’s Spirit and The Liquidator! (hugely impressive on his last run). Despite my reprimand, I’m a big fan of Vino Griego and I’ll be backing him for his next run, which will hopefully be the Argento Chase. In vino terms, Oldenburg Vineyards Chenin Blanc 2012,  Stellenbosch, South Africa, £16.99 – £17.95, Berry Brothers & Rudd, www.sawinesonline.co.uk is a classy, premium, subtlety-oaked and complex white which is ideal with fish dishes in a creamy sauce. Alternatively if you are having the full roast turkey with all the trimmings then mark your card with Château Cissac 2009 Haut-Médoc Cru Bourgeois, Bordeaux, France, £17.95. Stockists: Tanners www.tanners-wines.co.uk, The Sampler. 2009 is one of the great well-bred Bordeaux vintages with winners at all grades and this intensely fruity, well structured red will most definitely bring some Christmas cheer.

As a punter I’m always on the look out for a bit of value and with Yuletide it is no different with Torres Vina Sol 2012, Catalunya, Spain, £6.69, Sainsbury’s, Tesco, down to £5 in Asda and Casillero del Diablo Cabernet Sauvignon 2011,  Viña  Concha y Toro, Valle Central, Chile £7.99-£5.99, Sainsbury’s, a couple of runners I would definitely back. These are perfect wines to enjoy whilst taking in the King George VI Chase at Kempton on Boxing Day and the Coral Welsh Grand National at Chepstow on 28th December.

We invariably don’t spend enough time on the cheese course or the wines to match, however make it different this year. Hugel Gewurztraminer Vendange Tardive 2007, Alsace, France, £33.00, The Wine Society, vintagemarque.com is a brilliant, top class, off dry wine with complex flavours of citrus, honey and pear, with a truly memorable finish. This is a great match with blue cheese and worth every penny of your pre-Christmas winnings. Alternatively, your tipple might be port, so check out Sandeman’s Late-Bottled Vintage Port 2008, £15.99, Waitrose, which is definitely well-handicapped.

Cheers!

The Wine Tipster was introduced to wines from the Dão region in northern Portugal when the wines were mainly cooperative produced, rustic and heavy handed on the tannins.  Today, is a different story, with many quality producers like Quinta da Bica, Dão Sul, Quinta de Pellada, Quinta de Saes and Quinta da Falorca making some of the best wines in Portugal, with the latter one of my favourite wineries from this region. Last night, after decanting, we had the Quinta da Falorca Reserva Lagar 2009, Quinta Vale da Escadinhas, abv 14%, £18.99,  www.armitwines.co.uk , which on the nose has plums, damsons and herbacious aromas, then intense flavours on the palate of ripe cherries, plums with spice and flint notes. This Touriga  Nacional, Arganoés and underrated Alfrocheiro dominated blend has many years of pleasure ahead. Also, look out for Quinta da Falorca’s Garrafeira 2004, Quinta Vale da Escadinhas abv 14.5%, £42.85, www.armitwines.co.uk which is refined, complex and full of the most delicious fruit flavours.

Away from the Dão region, the incredible 2009 Bordeaux vintage produced delicious wines at all levels, with Cru Bourgeois wines offering quality and value for us all to enjoy. For example Cháteau Arnauld Haut – Médoc 2009, abv 14%,  Cru Bourgeois,  is packed with full flavoured fruit, with tannins soft enough to enjoy this Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot blend now or certainly keep.

Staying in France, Sainsbury’s Taste the Difference Macon Villages 2010, abv 12.5%, £6.99 is strikingly good value as an aperitif wine and another example of much good white Burgundy is available.

Today at Cartmel I’m hoping that the Lucinda Russell trained Cadore in the 4.55 The Cartmel Cup will scoop the prize in a competitive race at 11/2.

Cheers and happy punting!

The 2009 vintage in Bordeaux has rightly been described as a vintage of a lifetime and yes if you wanted a bottle of Château Lafite Rothchild 2009 today it would set you back £1,047.67 from Grand Cru Store However, away from the first growths like Lafite Rothchild, Latour and Margaux there is plenty on offer at decent value from wines awarded Cru Bourgeois in Bordeaux. Many of the Cru Bourgeois wines are a handicap certainty for current drinking (with a few hours decanting), whilst others will be being able to sustain a top flight performance for many years ahead. For some immediate enjoyment take less than a tenner into Waitrose and buy a bottle of Château Segonzac 2009, Cru Bourgeois, Premières Côtes de Blaye, £9.99, save 20% until 14^th August to £7.59, to taste all the wonderful dark fruit flavours that this beautiful year produced in Bordeaux, coupled with some friendly

tannins and medium to full bodied structure. Moving up the price scale but still offering tremendous value is the Château Petit – Bocq 2009, Cru Bourgeois, Saint-Estephe, £150 case of 12 x 75cl bottles in bond delivered, www.justerinis.co.uk with silky smooth, yummy, refined fruit, subtle oak fine structure, needs decanting and will provide real enjoyment for the next five to seven years. This was a terrific match with quality rib eye on Saturday. One of my consistent favourites is Château Cissac 2009, Cru Bourgeois, Haut Medoc, £17.99, The Sampler, whilst Château La Haye 2009, Cru Bourgeois, Saint-Estephe, £25.00, www.swig.co.uk is a wine that needs to be included in your next Bordeaux case.

There are numerous other Cru Bourgeois wines to look out for from wine merchants like The Wine Society, Haynes Hanson & Clark and Tanners.