Christmas is just around the corner and the highlight of the Jump Racing calendar is upon us at Sandown Park this weekend (3rd and 4th December). The Tingle Creek Festival is always a magical two days of high quality racing and is a great chance to spot your winners for the Cheltenham Festival next Spring. The Wine Tipster is excited to be presenting at Sandown this year in the fantastic award-winning Equus Restaurant where he will be talking food, drink and horse racing.

The Opening Day – Tingle Creek Friday 3rd December

Today’s 6 race card is a must watch from start to finish, with the Grade Two Winter Novices’ Hurdle headlining the day. The Wine Tipster is looking out for Mahler’s Promise, who is a superb jumper and has good course form in the 1.50 Novices’ Limited Handicap Chase. In the Grade Two Ballymore Winter Novices’ Hurdle at 2.25 Harper’s Brook, who was really impressive when winning a Novice Hurdle at Carlisle on seasonal debut, looks open to plenty of improvement, whilst in the 3.00 Handicap Chase One True King can strike for the inform Nigel Twiston-Davies team. In the final race of the day the Pertemps Network Handicap Hurdle Mr Harp, off bottom weight, has been overlooked. He put in some good performances last season when winning at Uttoxeter and then running well at Warwick in a hot Handicap Hurdle. Mr Harp will come on plenty from his seasonal debut at Ffos Las.

Watch the racing on Racing TV and ITV4.

Tingle Creek Saturday 4th December

Saturday is a storming race day with two Grade One races on the card – The Henry VIII Novices’ Chase and The Tingle Creek Chase which is 1 mile 7 furlongs and 119 yards, has 13 fences, and 52 years of history. It is named in honour of the great National Hunt racehorse from the 1970s who won the Sandown Park Pattern Handicap Chase 3 times.

One of The Wine Tipster’s favourite racing moments of all time was the 2018 Tingle Creek Chase which was run in appalling conditions but Altior and Un De Sceaux raced heroically with Altior just taking the win. An emotionally charged day for all watching, here’s hoping to some more racing history moments at this year’s Tingle Creek.

Check out his Unibet Racing blog for selections and includes the top races from Aintree too.

Watch the racing on Racing TV and ITV4.

Celebrating In Style

Get ready for Christmas at the Tingle Creek Festival this year with hospitality and entertainment to get you in the festive spirit. Join The Wine Tipster in the Equus Restaurant for a stunning view of the racecourse and top quality hospitality.

It’s wine time, and the perfect accompaniment to the races, whether at home or at Sandown Park, is a glass of the wonderful Louis M Martini Cabernet Sauvignon 2018 from Sonoma, California. This wine just shows how brilliant Cabernet Sauvignon from California can be, with intense dark fruit flavours and spicy and herbal notes (available from The Great Wine Co. £22).

Staying in California, the Bogle Chardonnay 2019, is a lovely balance of creamy and buttery flavours, with gentle oaky notes and attractive crisp acidity (also available from The Great Wine Co. £16.50).

For those of you looking for a glass of bubbly then try the Ruggeri Prosecco DOC Rosé Millesimato 2020 Brut from Treviso in the Veneto region of North-East Italy. Their white Ruggeri Prosecco DOC Argeo Brut, Treviso also has a lovely freshness, with citrus fruit and good acidity too. Both available from the Great Wine Co. (Rosé £13.95, white £11.10 on offer).

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Here’s to another smashing Tingle Creek Festival – keep up with The Wine Tipster over the weekend via Social Media, and share how you’re celebrating the meeting. Cheers!

Start the festive season with a bang this year with the highlight of Sandown’s jump racing – the Tingle Creek Festival. For the first Friday and Saturday of December, Sandown hosts two days of superb jump racing, which this year can be celebrated in person by a limited number of spectators. Don’t worry if you didn’t manage to get tickets, they sold out in 17 minutes! However you’re celebrating this year, read on for The Wine Tipster’s Sandown tips.

Friday 4th December

Tingle Creek Friday opens the festival with a top line up of races.

The Wine Tipster is especially excited to see his My Racing Manager Friends runner Funambule Sivola in the 1.50 Novices’ Limited Handicap Chase! Funambule Sivola won impressively at Wetherby on chasing debut last week and is carrying a seven pound penalty for that success today. This is much more competitive contest and his slick jumping will need to come to the fore this afternoon.

My Racing Manager was created by Elli Morgan, and The Wine Tipster is delighted to be involved. My Racing Manager has had two Cheltenham Festival winners with Coo Star Sivola and Flying Tiger.

The race card for Friday:

12:45 – 3m (3m37y) Sandown Park Amateur Jockeys’ Handicap Chase (Class 3) (4yo+ 0-130)

1:15 – 1m7½f (1m7f119y) Handicap Chase (Class 3) (4yo+ 0-125)

1:50 – 2m4f (2m4f10y) Novices’ Limited Handicap Chase (GBB Race) (Class 3) (4yo+ 0-135)

2:25 – 2m4f (2m3f173y) Ballymore Winter Novices’ Hurdle (Grade 2) (GBB Race) (Class 1) (4yo+)

3:00 – 2m7½f (2m7f98y) Pertemps Network Handicap Hurdle (Pertemps Hurdle Series Qualifier) (GBB Race) (Class 2) (4yo+)

3:35 – 2m4f (2m3f173y) Mares’ Handicap Hurdle (Challenger Mares’ Series Qualifier) (Class 3) (3yo+ 0-130)

Saturday 5th December

Tingle Creek Saturday hosts two top class Grade 1 races – the Henry VIII Novices’ Chase and The Tingle Creek Chase. With a history of over 40 years and named after a Jumps racehorse of the 1970s, The Tingle Creek Chase is one of the key races of the season with a purse of over £68,000. Here’s the line up:

12:05 – 2m (1m7f216y) The 1.50 Introductory Juvenile Hurdle (Gbb Race) (Class 2) (3yo)

12:40 – 2m (1m7f216y) “National Hunt” Novices’ Hurdle (Gbb Race) (Class 3) (4yo+)

1:15 – 2m (1m7f216y) Novices’ Handicap Hurdle (Gbb Race) (Class 4) (3yo+ 0-120)

1:50 – 1m7½f (1m7f119y)  Henry VIII Novices’ Chase (Grade 1) (Gbb Race) (Class 1) (4yo+)

2:25 – 1m7½f (1m7f119y) Tingle Creek Chase (Grade 1) (GBB Race) (Class 1) (4yo+)

3:00 – 3m5f (3m4f166y) National Handicap Chase (Class 2) (5yo+)

3:35 – 2m (1m7f216y) December Handicap Hurdle (Listed Race) (Class 1) (4yo+)

Look out for The Wine Tipster’s Unibet Blog on Saturday.

At Home

• Don’t miss a thing – catch every race live on Racing TV and ITV, and even rewatch highlights from racing history via Racing Replays (available 20 minutes after the winner crosses the line!).
• The Raceday App is a must for the At Home experience. Get your own digital racecard, exclusive content, and access to the Raceday 5 Game with a chance to win a bottle of Coates & Seely Rosé NV and £10,000!
• Get inspiration from others’ At Home Celebration creations here, don’t forget to share yours with The Wine Tipster, Sandown Park and The Jockey Club.
• Need to brush up on your racing knowledge and jargon? Check out Racing Explained for all the confusing terms.
• Keep up to date with all the entertainment events from The Jockey Club with their Content Hub.

Food & Drink

Taking inspiration from The Jockey Club, The Wine Tipster is looking forward to making this week’s featured dish, Braised Shank of Herdwick Lamb with Root Veg, Red Onion Jam and Greens. See the recipe from Senior Sous Chef Lawrie Jeffries here.

For something sweet, why not try a Vegan Lemon Cheesecake from Head Chef Warren O’Connor – a real winner with vegans and non-vegans alike.

To accompany a hearty winter dish this Festival, The Wine Tipster’s Top 5 Red Wines are a must for the cooler months. In particular, Don David Blend of Terroirs Malbec 2019, Calchaqui Valley, Argentina (Co-op £9) has a great autumnal flavours of blackberries and blueberries, with sweet spicy notes and silky tannins.

For another classic red, St. Hallett ‘Faith’ Shiraz 2018, Barossa Valley, Australia (Majestic £16.99 and £14.99 mixed case of six) is a must try, full of bold flavours of pepper and plums – perfect for a roast.

For a true celebration, pop open some bubbly this weekend. Moët & Chandon, official Champagne of The Jockey Club, is always a treat. The Wine Tipster especially loves their Moët Impérial, with its iconic fruitiness and elegant maturity.

Coates and Seely, official sparkling wine sponsors, is also perfect for Jump season. Pop open a bottle of their wonderful English Sparkling Brut Reserve NV for a hit of green apple freshness and a rounded palate.

Lastly, Rosé – a great all-rounder. Château Léoube’s Rosé de Léoube (Daylesford £18.99) is an elegant and dry wine with a perfect combination of minerals and fruit.

The Wine Tipster hopes that whether you are attending The Tingle Creek Festival in person or enjoying it at home, that you have a most wonderful weekend and some wins! Look out for his Unibet Blog on Saturday for tips.

This year’s Festival of Food & Wine Racing Weekend at Ascot Racecourse was a roaring success. In addition to a fantastic day of racing, racegoers were able to visit a brilliant selection of over 40 food and wine stalls.

Culinary genius Raymond Blanc and Wine Expert Oz Clarke were joined by Racing Tipster, Neil Phillips in the Furlong Club Gastronomes Theatre who together brought you not only great demonstrations but plenty of entertainment too! Guests began the day’s busy schedule with a glass of Chapel Down English Sparkling Wine followed by a perfect coffee preparation and coffee cocktail demonstration with Lavazza. They then enjoyed an Old World versus New World tasting with cheese and charcuterie provided by Wondering Wine Kitchen and wine pairing suggestions to accompany seared Halibut with Shellfish Risotto created by Sodexo Head Chef Ben Dutson. The Wine Tipster presented a fantastic Pie and Wine Tasting with two Sweeny & Todd Pies paired with Delicato Family Vineyards Old Vine Zinfandel and Soave Classico Monte Carbonare, Italy courtesy of Bibendum Wines. Fiona Smith presented beer and food pairings with Stella Artois.

In addition to his MC duties and wine presenting, The Wine Tipster also marked the racecard for the day which resulted in four winners including Dutch Law at 12/1 and Frontispiece at 7/1.

We look forward to seeing you again in 2017.

With thanks to Grown Up Marshmallows, Wiltshire Chilli Farm, B.O.B’s Lobster, Cake Hole, Sweeney & Todd Pies and Dark Horse Wines.

Photos Courtesy of Jonathan Short.

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